Location:

Stonewall Creek and Keep Cool Creek are located near Lincoln, MT.  Stonewall Creek is a tributary to Keep Cool Creek and the combined water from both streams flows into the Blackfoot River just below Lincoln, MT.

Background:

• Fisheries: Both creeks support Westslope Cutthroat and Brown trout, and Keep Cool Creek may be intermittently used by Bull Trout that enter from the Blackfoot River.
• Impacts/Status: Both streams are currently affected by high water temperatures, mining, sediment inputs, dewatering, and livestock grazing in riparian areas.

Total Flows Protected by the Coalition: 4.28 cubic feet per second at Keep Cool, and 2.39 cubic feet per second at Stonewall

4.28 cubic feet per second of water in Keep Cool Creek, and 2.39 cubic feet per second in Stonewall Creek from late April to late October, the driest months of the year.

Coalition Water Right Lease Agreements (pending)

Project Details

(corresponding to numbered map locations)

1 - Keep Cool Creek:

Duration:  10 Years (2009-2018, pending approval)

Location:  2 miles from the confluence with the Blackfoot River

Flow Rate Protected:  4.28 cubic feet per second

Value: Enhanced streamflows will improve fish passage at Keep Cool Creek's confluence with the Blackfoot River.

2 - Stonewall Creek:

Duration:  10 years (2009-2018, pending approval)

Flow Rate Protected:  2.39 cubic feet per second

Location:  0.9 miles from the confluence with Keep Cool Creek.

Value:  Increased instream flow in Stonewall Creek will improve fish passage at Stonewall Creek's confluence with Keep Cool Creek. By working on both streams, the Coalition increases the benefit to both stream systems as well as the greater Blackfoot river.  Protecting water through the summer season will improve conditions for resident fish in both creeks, as well as migratory fish from the Blackfoot River.