The Montana Water Trust (MWT) will coordinate and write a subbasin plan for the Bitterroot Watershed.  This contract funds the initial planning, coordination, data gathering and analysis of the subbasin planning process, and covers the activities from June 1, 2007 through May 1, 2008.  In 2000, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council called for subbasin plans based on local involvement to be adopted into their Fish and Wildlife Program in order to guide future BPA project funding. The Bitterroot Watershed is now one of only four subbasins in the Columbia Basin without a plan.  This watershed covers 2,814 square miles and is the headwaters for the middle Clark Fork River, the Pend O’Reille River, and the Columbia River.  The Bitterroot subbasin is one of the most complex watersheds in Montana, as well as the Columbia Basin, as evidenced by the size and number of tributaries, the historical and current water use structures, and the rapid growth pressures facing the valley.

The Bitterroot subbasin plan will identify and prioritize specific management and restoration actions for fish and wildlife resources in this watershed.  This contract will fund the initial planning efforts, coordinated by MWT, including a thorough technical and scientific analysis of existing watershed assessments, inventories, projects and research in the Bitterroot subbasin.  Activities will include information and data-gathering from all relevant public and private stakeholders and creating a comprehensive summary of fish and wildlife resources within the subbasin.  This data will be synthesized and analyzed in a Preliminary Action Plan for the Bitterroot, which will serve as an outline of the final subbasin plan.  The Action Plan will also detail the future public involvement and any further studies needed to complete the management section of the subbasin plan in 2009.  

The completed subbasin plan will prove invaluable for synthesizing information in this watershed, as well as for prioritizing future restoration and management efforts of BPA-funded programs and for local, state, federal, or tribal fish and wildlife programs.  In addition, this planning process will provide stakeholders with the opportunity to comprehensively view the historical and existing habitat conditions, integrate the projects and programs currently underway, and coordinate future management efforts.