Updating Water Laws

Incredibly, water usage in the West is still governed largely by water laws created in the 1800s - antiquated provisions that fail to recognize the intrinsic value of healthy rivers and streams.

Western Water Project staff are working to make this arcane system of water rules more flexible and relevant to today’s needs. In Montana, they helped pass landmark legislation allowing landowners to use some of their water to enhance rivers without risking the loss of their water rights. The effort has opened up 500 miles of previously inaccessible habitat for native trout on the famed Blackfoot River and served as a model for similar legal reform in Utah and Nevada.

Throughout the region, TU is also working to address the growing reliance on groundwater and its impact on surface streamflows.

Spotlight: Weaver Ranch, Montana

Ranchers John and Irene Weaver partnered with TU to replace a leaky irrigation canal with a more efficient system. The agreement—made possible by water law changes promoted by TU—saved the Weavers money, conserved water and improved bull and cutthroat trout habitat on the North Fork of the Blackfoot River.

For the Weavers, the transaction enabled them to reduce labor and install a more reliabale water delivery use system. "Every year, it took us four to five days of dang tough work to clean that ditch--and even then we couldn't always get water down it," said John. "I've wanted to get off that ditch for years. Because of the financial help, I finally got it done."