LWG News Updates
LWG Awarded $10,000 grant by MTDEQ to write a draft Watershed Restoration PlanIn 2009, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality awarded the Lolo Watershed Group a $10,000 grant to begin developing a watershed restoration plan. The LWG kicked off the grant by giving an overview of proposed tasks at their public meeting on January 27, 2010
(see Meetings and Events page for details). The watershed planning effort will include identifying, gathering and consolidating existing data and targets, identifying data gaps, and prioritizing pollution reduction potential for upcoming restoration projects. The LWG will work with technical advisors, watershed group members and Lolo Creek landowners to consolidate multiple agency and watershed initiative goals and priorities into an overall Watershed Restoration Plan document that addresses nine key elements of a WRP, as specified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). For more details on these elements, check out this link:
Watershed Restoration Plan Tasks 2010
Report of February 4, 2009 General Meeting at the Lolo Community Center
The general meeting was well attended with over 30 people showing up. Presentations were given
by representatives from the Nature Conservancy and Trust for Public Lands on the Montana Legacy Project which was followed by a lively and informative discussion of many issues and concerns relating to the project and its impact on the Lolo watershed.
Two draft maps for the Lolo watershed were laid out for everyone to examine. These maps show water rights, irrigation ditches, and key geographic features of the Lolo watershed. They were created by Katie Gaut, GIS Specialist at the Montana Water Trust (MWT) with assistance from Damon Pellicori, Water Resources Manager at MWT and funded by a mini-grant from MT Department of Environmental Quality.
We also "unveiled" our new web site and invited members to give input and make suggestions
for improving the website.