Location:

Threemile Creek is located in the Bitterroot basin north of the town of Stevensville, MT.  Major tributaries to Threemile Creek are Ambrose Creek, Iron Cap Creek, and Wheelbarrow Creek. These headwaters begin in the Sapphire Mountains on the eastern side of the Bitterroot Valley, then form Threemile Creek which flows primarily through private lands across the valley floor, then through the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge before reaching the Bitterroot River.

Background:

• Fisheries: Westslope cutthroat trout, eastern brook trout, and brown trout are the primary trout species found in this stream.
• Impacts: The increasing growth rate and associated water demands experienced in northern Ravalli County over the last decade, and continuing today, have put considerable pressure on the stream's water quality and quantity.
• Status: Threemile Creek has been listed by the MT Department of Environmental Quality as a 303(d) impaired water body. It major impairments are sedimentation, nutrient loading, and warm water temperatures. Lack of instream flow exacerbates the creek's impairments.  These persistent conditions have led to several studies and plans through which land managers and landowners are attempting to improve the health of the creek.

The Coalition's Water Right Lease on Threemile Creek

Project Details

(corresponding to numbered map location)

1 - Threemile Creek Water Right:

Duration:  10 Years  (2004 - 2014)

Flow Rate Protected:  0.2 cubic feet per second

Location:  2 miles upstream from the confluence with the Bitterroot River

Value:  The Coalition owns this water right, which was donated in 2003.  In 2004, Montana Water Trust (now the Clark Fork Coalition) received authorization for the water right's transfer to instream flow for the next 10 years, the maximum term allowed under Montana state law.  With temperatures in the lower reaches of the stream exceeding greater than 68°F for 58 consecutive days in the summer of 2003, every little bit of water helps in a small system such as Threemile Creek.