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Letters not connected to water compact

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News from the Montana DNRC

HELENA — Notification letters sent recently to Flathead-area water right owners from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation’s Water Adjudication Bureau are part of the agency’s ongoing claims examination process.

The process is not connected in any way with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) Water Compact or with the proposed Montana Artesian water bottling operation, according to Kathy Olsen, manager of DNRC’s Kalispell Regional Water Office. The Department has been directed by the Montana Water Court to examine water right claims in Flathead River Basins 76L and 76LJ.

Olsen said her office has been inundated with calls and walk-in traffic by residents who aren’t sure what the letters are for, and why they are required to respond.

“The letters are part of our standard review of pre-July 1, 1973, state-based water right claims in basins 76L and 76LJ,” Olsen said. “These are the final two basins to receive this review as part of the claims examination process started in the 1980s. They have nothing to do with the CSKT compact, and nothing to do with Montana Artesian.”

Claimants with issues or concerns are encouraged to contact the DNRC water resource specialist identified at the end of the letter for more detailed assistance regarding their individual water claim filings.

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