Sun River Finalist in Prestigious National Competition
Collaborative project one of four finalists to present at River Rally in New Mexico in May
The upper Sun River (Photo by Alan Rollo, Sun River Watershed Group)
Great Falls, Mont. -- A collaborative project to restore flows and water quality in the Rocky Mountain Front’s Sun River has gained international attention as one of the top four finalists in the national premiere of the North American Riverprize, a prestigious recognition bestowed by the International River Foundation.
“We were thrilled to hear we made it into the top four,” said Alan Rollo, the Sun River Watershed Group’s Coordinator for the past 20 years. “The Sun River as we know it now has been a long time in the making and the teamwork behind it deserves such recognition; the health of the Sun River is due to all the people who worked so hard to find the solutions to meet so many needs - from irrigation to angling.”
The North American Riverprize, an initiative of the International River Foundation, is a demonstration of outstanding, visionary and sustainable programs in river management, restoration or protection. Projects were submitted, regardless of the size of the river or scale of the project,and judged by an independent panel of experts drawn from all three countries and across a range of river management fields.
The Sun River has suffered from chronic dewatering and sediment pollution from the aptly-named Muddy Creek for almost a century. In an exemplary public-private partnership, the Sun River Watershed Group’s members worked with the Bureau of Reclamation, the Coca-Cola Company, and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) to restore Sun River flows and reduce sediment. Key to the success of the public-private partnership was Reclamation’s Cooperative Watershed Management Act funding, which provided the Watershed Group with the capacity to help the Fort Shaw Irrigation District undertake ambitious infrastructure improvements with the goal of not only increasing the reliability of the District’s irrigation water delivery, but also to restore flows to the Sun River through the conserved water. Funded through Reclamation’s WaterSmart program, together with matching funds from the Coca-Cola Company and Montana’s DNRC, it was the partnership that brought together the diverse funding sources and led to a project with benefits to both irrigation and river flows.
The Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks has begun monitoring trout populations in three different reaches of the Sun River this spring, and has already found elevated trout numbers.
“It’s a tricky problem, a river without water,” said Kirk Evenson, Montana Trout Unlimited member and fly-shop owner. “Tensions run high when there’s not enough water to go around, and pointing out a dry river-bed just adds fuel to the fire. But tricky problems call for creative solutions--and the collaborative work that we’ve done on the Sun is the only way to create solutions that work for everyone.”
The other three finalists for the prize include the Connecticut River (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire), the Niagara River (New York) and the San Antonio River (Texas).
The winner of the North American Riverprize will be announced at the River Rally in New Mexico, May 1-4. The winner will be considered for the International RiverPrize awarded later in the year.
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