GBTU Chapter Meeting: Montana TU Conservation - Feb 27 (Zoom) 630-800PM
We are cross-sharing presentations with the Bitterroot TU Chapter
Hear firsthand how they are opening up spawning habitats in one of the world's most iconic watersheds.
The Bitterroot River in Montana is among the most scenic and popular fishing rivers in the West and is home to a suite of native and wild trout species. Its iconic status in American popular culture stretches as far back as the Lewis & Clark expedition, which pushed through the valley, to the setting for Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It, to the set of the TV series Yellowstone.
Tributary streams are the “fish factories” of the Bitterroot, providing spawning and rearing habitat for fish migrating from the river. Today, however, many streams have been disconnected by a combination of fish passage barriers and habitat degradation, including extensive dewatering and loss of riparian forests. TU reconnects and restores critical tributary habitat through on-the-ground restoration projects focused on fish passage, habitat improvement, and water conservation. We work with Bitterroot land managers, irrigators, and conservation partners to develop win-win projects, ensuring that the Bitterroot community and fishery thrive.
North Burnt Fork Creek was historically a major spawning ground for Bitterroot fish, but a pair of standpipes near its mouth has blocked year-round access to this habitat for over 50 years. Trout Unlimited and partners are now working to replace this barrier with a newly constructed bridge that will fully open a passage while maintaining visitor access to the popular trail system on Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge. This project will reconnect 2.5 miles of North Burnt Fork Creek habitat to the Bitterroot River. Through a major volunteer effort, we will also put 450 trees and thousands of willows into the ground, ensuring that this newly opened habitat has the shade, cover, and bank stability that fish and all Refuge wildlife need to thrive.
TU project manager Christine Brissette of Missoula, MT, with guests from the Bitterroot River TU chapter, will lead a presentation about this project, and how reconnecting a “bucket list” river in Western Montana may energize our efforts to protect native habitat here in Greater Boston.
Please preview a short video on the project https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUOUjwaBWio