Water-rights deal: Active citizenry can make a difference

 For months, the Water-Rights Compact Commission has had a lot of Lincoln County residents wondering just what the future of our water supply might be. 

In April, I was at the Lincoln County Commissioners’ meeting when our leaders were tipped off that the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes had handed down their “wish list” for at least partial ownership of area watersheds.

The list was extensive, claiming rights to just about all waterways in and around Libby, excluding Flower Creek, the source of Libby’s water supply.

What followed were months of wrangling by our state leaders to guarantee this thing would not fly right past the concerned residents of Lincoln County.

Sen. Chas Vincent and State Reps. Jerry Bennett and Mike Cuffe had been holding feet to the fire to make sure we get some answers.

However, it now seems that a brokered settlement is in the offing, and only because of public outcry, I believe.

By his own admission, Missoula Attorney and Chairman of the DNRC Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission Chris Tweeten said his group had been working on the accord for a decade.

In fact, he seemed agitated that Lincoln County residents were only now getting concerned.

The fact is, Mr. Tweeten, your group did a poor job of informing the people in Lincoln County who will be affected by the Compact commission’s decision.

When did you plan on letting the good residents of Lincoln County know that our water-rights were also being claimed by the Tribes?

Certainly, I suppose it has been the Tribes’ water since the 1855 Hellgate Treaty, but there has been a whole lot of development in Lincoln County since 1855.

Fact is, only by chance did the commissioners learn of what was being negotiated behind the backs of Lincoln County residents.

It was, folks, as if we were thought of as a “Johnny-Come-Lately” to the table.

Mostly, with TWN staffer Ryan Murray reporting on the water-rights hearing, as he had since he arrived in Libby, I just sat and listened, just sponging up most of what was said.

And, admittedly, I feel as most do that we now have little concern as consumers for our water rights. 

At the end of the day, it now seems a negotiated settlement is in the offing.

Certainly, the Tribes have their guaranteed rights to a portion of the water that flows through Lincoln County. And, as their demands point out, since the construction of Libby Dam, the natural flow of water has been restricted.

For Libby residents, I believe water will flow to meet our needs.

However, for our brothers to the north — particularly those ranchers or those who consume water for irrigation — they may not be as fortunate.

Former Lincoln County commissioner candidate Steve Curtiss, a rancher, beckoned the Compact Commission for answers on Monday.

Curtiss went so far as to plead with the Commission for a meeting of his ranchers’ group before the panel makes a decision.

“You’re going to make a decision on Dec. 19, and I would hope you would meet with us,” Curtiss said, directing his statement toward Tweeten during the hearing that was attended by as many as 85 people.

Hopefully, our county brethren to the north will get an answer to their satisfaction.

These last seven months are a testament to what active citizenry can accomplish when mobilized.

However, the fight is not yet over. A battle may have been won, but the water war is not over.

(Alan Lewis Gerstenecker is editor of The Western News. His column appears weekly.)