Meeting to discuss reservation water development
The Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission will hold a public meeting in Kalispell this afternoon to discuss the recently proposed draft interim administration agreement with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.
The commission and the tribes, together with the federal government, are currently negotiating how much water in the upper and lower Flathead River basins should be reserved for state, federal and tribal purposes.
Given the complexity and sensitivity of that subject, the negotiations are expected to continue for several years. Until they're completed, the interim agreement would establish a procedure for managing water development within the Flathead Reservation.
The agreement calls for the creation of a four-member board, with two members appointed by the tribes and two appointed by the state. The board would handle all requests to drill water wells or use groundwater within the reservation boundaries.
"This agreement only deals with groundwater," said Kurt Hafferman, head of the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation's Water Resources Office in Kalispell. "Surface water is off-limits and has been since 1999."
Hafferman said anyone wanting to drill a water well on the reservation would submit an application to the interim board, providing information to demonstrate that water should be available at the desired location.
If the well was successful, he said, the board would then issue a license to use the water. The only permitted uses would be domestic, community residential and municipal wells. No new diversions for commercial or agricultural purposes would be allowed.
"Polson would probably be the biggest benefactor [from this agreement]," Hafferman said. "Right now, they're pushing the limits of their water infrastructure and of their water rights. They have no more water available."
The interim agreement would not directly impact water use in the Flathead Valley; new wells and water rights here will continue to be managed by the DNRC's Water Resources Office. However, people who do business in Lake County, including Realtors, might be affected.
"I'm trying to let people here know what's going on," Hafferman said. "I think they need to be aware of these negotiations so they aren't caught off-guard."
Today's meeting takes place at the Spring Creek conference room at the Hampton Inn in Kalispell, beginning at 3 p.m. The commission is particularly interested in getting feedback on the draft interim agreement, but there might be an opportunity for questions regarding the status of the compact negotiations.
Reporter Bill Spence may be reached at 758-4459 or by e-mail at bspence@dailyinterlake.com