University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 1977 Water use surface water and water rights on the Flathead Indian Reservation Montana: A review Laura Wunder The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Wunder, Laura, "Water use surface water and water rights on the Flathead Indian Reservation Montana: A review" (1977). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 8548. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/8548 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WATER USE, SUREACE WATER, AND WATER RIGHTS ON THE FLATHEAD INDIAN RESERVATION, MONTANA A Review by Laura Wunder B.A., State University of New York at Binghamton, 1971 Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA 1977 Chairman, Boar Dean, Graduate School Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: EP39349 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI Oi»Mrt«tion Publishing UMI EP39349 Published by ProQuest LLC (2013). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 4 81 0 6- 1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PREFACE The following paper represents an attempt to compile and summarize available water resource Information on the Flathead Indian Reservation of western Montana. It Is not meant to be com­ prehensive. There are broad gaps In the published data on the Reservation, and the Issue of Indian water rights Is a tangled, and as yet, unresolved one. In addition, the report will be confined to a discussion of surface waters on the reservation only. Ground­ water Is an extensive topic In Its own right and merits a more thorough treatment than was considered to be feasible within the limitations of this paper. Rather, It Is hoped that this paper will provide a review of basic Information useful In future planning on the reserva­ tion In the area of surface water resources; an Indication of areas where further research Is necessary; and a guide to the literature available on the subject, for those Interested In pursuing the matter further. It should be noted that. In some Instances, reference has been made to areas outside the boundaries of the reservation Itself. This has been done wherever It was felt that the Information had either a direct bearing or effect upon the reservation, or where the data might help clarify situations existing on the reservation. 11 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. t a b l e o f c o n ten ts Chapter I. DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY A R E A ............................ 1 Topography .............................................. 1 Major Bodies of W a t e r .................................... 2 Climate.............................................. 6 Vegetation .............................................. 9 Geology.....................................................10 S o i l s .......................................................13 P o p u l a t i o n .................................................16 Economy and Land Use .................................18 Indian vs. Non-Indian Land Us e ............................. 23 Summary.....................................................26 II. WATER U S E ...................................................28 History of Water Use on the Flathead Reservation ........ 28 Present Water U s e ...........................................32 P o w e r .......................................................33 Municipal Water U s e ........................................ 43 I r r i g a t i o n ................................................ 47 Summary.................................................... 68 III. WATER QUALITY...............................................72 Flathead L a k e ...............................................74 Flathead River .......................................... 76 Little Bitterroot River .................................. 77 Spring Creek, Mission Creek, and Others ................... 78 Municipal Water Quality ..... ........................ 82 Summary........................................ 84 IV. WATER R I G H T S ...............................................86 Montana Water L a w ...........................................86 Indian Water L a w ...........................................88 Water Rights on the Flathead Reserv a t i o n................... 96 Summary............................................ 101 V. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS....................................103 LITERATURE CITED .............................................. 109 APPENDICES ...................................................... 114 S o i l s ...................................................... 114 Flathead Indian IrrigationProject Crop Report ........... 118 Stream Gaging Records .................................... 119 iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) APPENDICES (cont.) Water Use and Water Quality Criteria .......... ..... 120 Regulations for the Use of Waters on Indian Reservations Located in Washington, Oregon and Idaho . 123 iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Temperature .............................................. 7 2. Precipitation ..... .................................. 8 3. Frost-Free P e r i o d ............................. 9 4. Population Estimates and Forecast ........................ 17 5. Indian vs. Non-Indian Population Projections .............. IS 6. Percentages of Indian Residents .......................... 18 7. Major Crops Raised on the Flathead Irrigation Project, 1976 21 8. Crop Yields on the Flathead IrrigationProject, 1961 .... 21 9. Livestock Raised on the Flathead Irrigation Project, 1 9 6 1 ..............................................22 10. Indian vs. Non-Indian Land U s e ............................. 23 11. Indian vs. Non-Indian Land Use by D i v i s i o n s ............... 24 12. Indian vs. Non-Indian 1976 Crop V a l u e s ..................... 24 13. Estimated Budget of an Average 80 Acre Indian Irrigation Allotment ...................................... 25 14. Alternative Plans for the Clark F o r k ....................... 36 15. Knowles P r o j e c t ........................................... 37 16. Buffalo Rapids #4 D a m ......... 40 17. Municipal Water Supplies .................................. 44 18. Community Sewage Systems .................................. 48 19. Jocko Division Water Supply ....... ................ 53 20. Mission Valley Water Supply .............................. 57 21. Camas Division Water Supply .............................. 58 22. Summary of Entire Flathead Project ........................ 59 23. Flathead Project Water Use, 1976 .......................... 60 24. Flathead Project Facilities .............................. 63 25. Water Use Classifications................................. 72 26. Municipal Water Quality .................................. 83 V Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Map of the Flathead Indian Reservation, Montana .......... 3 2. Location of Dam Sites on the Lower Flathead River , . , 35 3. Map Showing Approximate Locations of Subdivisions on the Flathead Irrigation Project ......................... 51 VI Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER I DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA Topography The Flathead Indian Reservation is located in western Montana and Includes most of Lake County as well as portions of Sanders, Missoula, and Flathead Counties. The reservation covers some 1,250,000 acres, and is bounded on three sides by mountain ranges. These are: the Mission Range to the east, the Cabinet Range to the west, and part of the Coeur D'Alene and Mission ranges to the south. The Salish (or Flathead) Range runs through the center of the reservation, while the Jocko Hills may be found in its southeast corner. Most of the reservation is valley bottom, the most important valleys of which are the Lower Flathead and the Little Bitterroot. Both of these valleys run in a generally north-south direction. Terrain on the reservation varies from gently rolling in the valley bottoms, to rugged mountain peaks, and represents a fairly typical example