Out West researched and developed multiple projects that married the interests of the farm and ranch operators with the overall health of the Bighorn River. Together, Out West and the BHRA vetted the projects and prioritized the continued investigation in three major areas: turbid water return optimization, improved livestock access to the river, and the formation of a long-term joint coalition/working group.

A major point of contention between the agricultural community and the recreational users of the river has been high turbidity or “cloudy” return flow. Our research has shown that while not all turbid returns are directly from farm and ranch operations, there are potential projects to reduce the agricultural impact on turbidity and benefit both communities. The most promising avenues to combat turbid returns are to convert from flood to sprinkler irrigation, replace ditches with pipelines when possible, and control livestock access in highly erodible areas. Unfortunately, fractionated ownership and short-term leases combined with high capital investment requirements have previously limited agricultural producers from employing these solutions to their full extent (Figure 1). Overcoming these obstacles will take a group effort but will have great benefit to producers and river users alike.

The river is a desirable environment for anglers and nature lovers, while also serving as an ideal location for livestock to water and escape the heat. Unfortunately, cattle do not always choose ideal locations for river access and occasionally use steep and unstable areas. These access points are putting the livestock at risk and deteriorating riverbanks. Through aerial and on the ground investigation we identified a series of locations where current livestock access can be controlled to promote access in naturally ideal locations for the cattle and riverbank health. Fence lines would be installed to direct cattle movements to more ideal locations (Figure 2) and, in some cases, solar water set-ups added to provide ample, clean drinking water to the livestock if a suitable access is not located within the pasture.

Accomplishing the joint goals of all river users is a monumental task that cannot be tackled in one year by a small group of people. Through our investigation of funding avenues available, we found an opportunity to maximize both funding and the overall impact of our collaborative effort. The NRCS Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) promotes coordination of the NRCS conservation goals with motivated cooperators to maximize positive impact and return on investment. We believe that a long term working group could be established with representation from all river users to partner with the NRCS in the RCPP to access a portion of the $300 million dollar annual budget and maximize the impact we can all have on the Bighorn River and surrounding industries.

Bighorn Water Quality Working Group

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