Projects and Issues
Bighorn River: Wild Trout or a Boat Ramp?
Bob Krumm, long time outdoor writer, speaker and fishing guide, recently stated that, “…the fishery in the Bighorn River below the dam is one of the most precious in the United States. It is arguably one of the top three trout rivers in the United States.” Many people who have enjoyed this magnificent river and its wild trout would agree. This is evidenced by the fact that fly fishers travel from around the US and the world to experience the river east of Billings. A recent University of Montana study estimates that recreational use of the Bighorn brings some $30 million to the area economy annually.
Unfortunately, the drought that we have been experiencing for the past several years has dealt a cruel blow to the water supply for this river and its wild trout population, which continues to dwindle. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) has had to accept far less than desirable flow releases from Yellowtail Dam which is controlled by the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR). Detailed studies of river discharge vs. habitat loss by FWP have established that the desired minimum flow for sustaining the fishery is 2,500 cubic feet per second (cfs) in addition to a higher, once per spring, flush flow. FWP maintains that 1,500 cfs is an absolute drought-driven minimum; at that flow level most of the side channel spawning and rearing habitat is lost. The trout population, once over 10,000 fish per mile, has dwindled to less than 1,000 during this drought period and the economy of the area has taken a significant hit as a consequence.
Meanwhile, much to the consternation of the Lovell, Wyoming based Friends of Bighorn Lake; the level of that lake has receded to well below the end of the boat ramp at Horseshoe Bend, the recreation area closest to Lovell. This problem has been compounded by the inevitable, large sediment deposition at the head of the lake. The chief concern voiced by the “Friends” is the economic impact to business interests in the Lovell area.
Fueled by an election year promise from their governor to restore the economic windfall envisioned from Horseshoe Bend based lake recreation, the “Friends” initiated a campaign to reach a quick solution for the low lake level. Buoyed by strong rhetoric from the WY governor and congressional delegation and support from the National Recreation Area manager, they hired a consultant to find an easy solution. It became obvious to them from the outset that the state level support for their campaign would evaporate if they dared look at improvements to water/watershed management in the upper Bighorn basin (located entirely within Wyoming).
The “Friends” options were rapidly reduced to choking down the releases from Yellowtail Dam to the Bighorn River. Apparently, reducing flows from 1,500 to 1,000 cfs seemed like a nice round number, though bearing little resemblance to the physical realities. Never mind that, in the words of FWP Commissioner Shane Colton, such a flow reduction “…would be lethal to the river fishery”. Never mind that such a reduction in dam releases would result in a commensurate loss in hydropower production and that retaining that amount of water in the reservoir would not yield tangible benefits for the 2007 lake recreation season. Never mind that Wyoming Game and Fish acknowledges that this lake has a very limited potential as a fishery regardless of the lake level and that the sediment deposition coming from the upper basin has already raised the operational level of the boat ramp by 12 feet and that trend continues. In short, Lovell, Wyoming interests, with the encouragement of their top political leadership, advocate decimating the Bighorn River wild trout fishery in Montana for little if any near term benefits to their area. As a solution for Montana, their consultant suggests enlisting the Corps of Engineers to excavate out the side channels of the river.
In response, a small group of Billings area anglers, working closely with FWP Region 5 staff, adopted the name “Friends of the Bighorn River” and established a website (bighornriver.org) in order to communicate concerns far and wide and began seeking the attention of the Montana political leadership. Senator Max Baucus was the first to respond, issuing several strongly worded public statements in support of the river and its fishery. In a letter to the BOR manager, the senator stated that, “Dropping flows…would threaten one of Montana’s world-class trout streams, and I adamantly oppose it. You can rest assured you will be met with steadfast opposition should you move to reduce flows on the Bighorn River”. Governor Schweitzer followed with a letter to BOR also opposing reduced flows. MWF and Montana TU have taken positions in support of the river and the Montana fishery.
Friends of the Bighorn River prepared a proposed strategy for dealing long-term with the water supply concerns in the Bighorn River Basin. Beyond saying “hell no” to Wyoming proposals for a drastic reduction in releases to the river, our group proposes a jointly conducted, basin-wide investigation of opportunities for: upper basin water conservation and sediment yield reduction measures, for coordinated operation of some 33 storage reservoirs having over 3 million acre-feet of storage capacity (data from TU letter of 10/2/06) and for an evaluation of the present day economics and public demands for allocation of the limited water supply among competing uses. Half a century ago when stored water allocations were made no one could envision the economic and societal values associated with recreational uses of water that exist today. In proposing a comprehensive search for solutions, we refuse to accept the premise that water passing into Montana is wasted water (a statement attributed to the Wyoming BOR manager). The full text of this strategy can be viewed on the website bighornriver.org.
It could be that with the November election now past and the season for political posturing by Wyoming candidates mercifully behind us, the threat to the river will die the agonizing death it deserves. However, the drought that spawned this water war may not disappear so soon. This magnificent river and its remarkable trout fishery is deserving of the utmost comprehensive search for solutions and sportsmen and sportswomen must be prepared to respond forcefully, with strength but responsibly to any and all salvos that would diminish these valuable public resources . If you are interested in becoming involved with this effort, go to: Friends of the Bighorn website.
There is currently a Montana legislative measure that will soon become an official joint resolution bill, LC2332, that is being brought forward by Rep. Kendall Van Dyk. The measure is a Senate and House joint resolution stating that the Montana Legislature strongly disapproves efforts to reduce the Bighorn downstream flow and that Montana submit to the Montana Congressional Delegation, Secretary of Interior Kempthorne and the US Bureau of Reclamation this position while asking for flow protection. The long and short of the problem is there are no easy solutions, especially simply reducing the outflow into the blue-ribbon stretch of the river. We need to resolve the problem but this one isn't the wisest solution. For more information, please visit the Friends of the Bighorn River's website at http://www.bighornriver.org/ for an excellent source of information on the subject.
