Montana Water Use
and Availability Assessment
Yellowstone River Water Planning
YRCDC Update - September 16, 2010
Jim Robinson
Montana DNRC
Water Resources Division
1
State Water Plan
§85-1-203 MCA
“The department (DNRC) shall gather from any source
reliable information relating to Montana’s water
resources and prepare from the information a
continuing comprehensive inventory of the water
resources of the state.”
2
STATE WATER PLAN §85-1-203 MCA
(As Amended in 2009)
 An inventory of consumptive and nonconsumptive
uses associated with existing water rights;
 A continuing inventory of the state’s groundwater;
 An analysis of the effects of drought and
increased depletions on water availability;
3
STATE WATER PLAN §85-1-203 MCA
(As Amended in 2009 – continued)
 An estimate of surface and ground water needed
to satisfy new future demands;
 Proposals for the best means, such as an evaluation
of opportunities for storage …to satisfy existing
water rights and new water demands;
 Possible sources of water to meet the needs of the
state; and
 Legislation necessary to address water resource
concerns in these basins.
History of Water Planning in MT
 Pre-1965 – Water Project Development Era
 MT Water Resources Board (1933)
 US Bureau of Reclamation (1902)
 1965 -1981 – Basin Planning Era
 1965- Federal Water Resources Planning Act, Basin
Commissions
 1967-MT Water Resources Act
 1981- Federal funding ended
 1987-1999 – Section Planning Era
 Issue Oriented
 Focus on Policy Development
 1999 – Present
 Support of local watershed groups
Montana Water Planning 2010
FOR THE
21ST Century
 Information Management and Technology
 Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
 Internet Delivery of Information
 Oversight by Basin Water User Councils:
 Yellowstone River Basin (YRCDC)
 Missouri River Basin (MRNRC)
 Clark Fork River Basin (Clark Fork Task Force)
Montana’ s Major River Basins
Source: USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2004-5223: Estimated Water Use in Montana in 2000
CENTRAL QUESTIONS
 What are Montana’s
current and future
water resource
needs?
 What water is legally
and physically
available to meet
existing and future
needs?
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Montana Water Planning 2010
Fundamental Relationship:
(WATER SUPPLY) – (WATER USE) =
WATER AVAILABILITY
Montana Water Planning 2010
Implementation Strategy
Objectives:
1. Quantify Water Supply
2. Quantify Water Use
3. Quantify Available (unappropriated) Water
4. Evaluate Future Challenges
5. Implement Information Management Strategy
6. Involve, Educate and Engage Montana Water Users
7. Investigate Funding Possibilities
Montana Water Planning 2010
Objective 1: Quantify Water Supply:
Tasks:
1. Partner with USGS to model and calculate
surface water flows (StreamStats)
2. Support USGS Cooperative stream gauging
program across MT.
3. Work with MBMG to assess ground water
supplies.
Montana Water Planning 2010
Objective 2: Quantify Water Use
Tasks:
1. Update National Hydrography Dataset (NHD).
2. Geospatial enabling of Water Rights Database
a. Link Points of Diversion (PODs) to NHD
b. Link POD, to Places of Use (POUs)
3. Irrigated lands mapping and estimation of
agricultural water use.
4. Update “Estimated Water Use in Montana in 2000”
(USGS SIR 2004-5223).
5. MBMG ground water investigations (GWIP) and
integration of GWIC well database.
Montana Water Planning 2010
Objective 3: Quantify Available Water
Tasks:
1. Assess extent of imbalances between water
supply and water use.
2. Assess potential impacts of Water Reservations
on future water availability.
3. Assess potential impacts of Federal Reserved
Water Compacts on future water availability.
4. Assess potential impacts of Interstate Compacts
on future water availability.
5. Assess potential impacts of international
agreements on future water availability.
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Potential Partners
Local
Water User Councils (§85-1-203)
Conservation Districts
Watershed Organizations
County Commissions/Planners
Water Users
Federal
US Geological Survey
US Fish & Wildlife
NRCS
US Army Corps of Engineers
State
DNRC
Regional Offices
MT Water Center
MT Watercourse
Dept of Fish Wildlife and Parks
Dept of Environmental Quality
MT Bureau of Mines and Geology
MACD
NRIS
Dept of Agriculture
MT Watershed Council
Universities
Wetlands Protection Program
Conservation Organizations
Montana Water Planning 2010
Current Funding Status
 Objective 1: Water Supply

StreamStats
• $197,000 – USGS match
• $135,000 – MT Dept of Transportation (cash and in-kind)
• $102,500 – DNRC Water Management Bureau OTO
(cash - $47,000 OTO and in-kind)
• $100,000 – RRGL Grant – Application submitted May 15, 2010
• $22,500 – DNRC Water Operations Bureau (cash and in-kind)
• $8,000 – DNRC Water Rights Bureau
$565,000 – Total Cash & In-kind
Montana Water Planning 2010
Current Funding Status
 Objective 1: Water Supply continued

USGS Stream Gauging Program – FY11
• $272,275 – USGS
• $277,000 – DNRC - WMB

USGS Stream Gauging Program – FY12
• $276,250 – USGS match - estimated
• $303,675 – DNRC - WMB – estimated

USGS Stream Gauging Program – FY13
• $274,275 – USGS match - estimated
• $322,320 – DNRC - WMB - estimated
Current Funding

Objective 2 – Water Use and Objective 4 Information Management

$76,620 – RRGL Grant (Application submitted May 15, 2010)
•
•
•
•
•
Develop Information Management Framework.
Define Geospatial Data Model.
Migrate exiting information into framework.
Evaluate methodology for mapping irrigated lands.
Evaluate methodology for estimating water use on irrigated
lands.
INTERMISSION