Montana's First Private Water Bank

Grass Valley irrigation company creates Montana's first private water bank

Irrigated agricultural land is increasingly being converted to subdivisions as the Missoula Valley population grows and spreads from the city center, and as a result fewer irrigators are paying more money to maintain critical infrastructure on the remaining farm and ranch land.

To ensure the water keeps flowing, the Grass Valley French Ditch Co., one of the oldest and largest irrigation companies in Missoula County, has created Montana's first private water bank.

The company, which irrigates 4,100 acres of land west of Missoula, recently received authorization from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to market shares of its substantial water rights to potential buyers, including developers of subdivisions, businesses wanting to offset industrial water use or agricultural projects that need additional irrigation or stock water.

A water bank is designed to facilitate efficient trade among water users. Because water is over-appropriated across much of the state - meaning more is allocated than is physically available in streams or rivers - many areas, including the Missoula Valley, are closed to new appropriations. Any new water use that requires more than a small, permit-exempt well is required to mitigate its impact on groundwater or nearby surface waters.

Before, that could be complicated and expensive, but the new water bank allows developers to purchase or lease mitigation water through a simplified process.

"Water banks like Grass Valley's will facilitate new residential development in a way that protects existing water users and streamflows," said Karen Knudsen, director of the Clark Fork Coalition, which is partnering with the company to meet the DNRC-required monitoring component of delivering mitigation water. "This is exactly the direction we need go in Montana as the state moves away from allowing subdivisions to develop with individual, unregulated wells. We are pleased to partner with the Grass Valley French Ditch Co. on this groundbreaking project."

"We realize we live in a landscape where agriculture and residential development will be competing for the same water resources," said company president Tim Fister. "This water bank is the best solution for protecting the company's water rights while also meeting Montana's different water needs."

Source: Missoulian

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• Agriculture
• Water Management
• Governance & Planning