News Release Archive

Crow Tribes & Reclamation Enter into Water Storage Allocation Agreement from Bighorn Lake

Media Contact: Tyler Johnson, (406) 247-7609, 03/30/2016 10:27

For Release: March 30, 2016

Reclamation's Great Plans Regional Director Mike Ryan (left) and Crow Nation Chairman Darrin Old Coyote sign a water storage allocation agreement for Bighorn Lake.BILLINGS, Mont. -- The Bureau of Reclamation and the Crow Tribe have entered into a Storage Allocation Agreement Wednesday, March 30, 2016 which defines the terms and conditions for the Tribe to utilize their stored water from Bighorn Lake near Fort Smith, Montana.

The agreement is part of the Crow Tribe Water Settlement Act of 2010. Under the settlement, 150,000 acre feet of Tribal stored water may be used annually for any beneficial purpose by the Tribe. Also, up to an additional 150,000 acre feet of Tribal stored water may be used annually as supplemental water for the Natural Flow Right during times of Natural Flow shortage under certain terms and conditions.

"The agreement sets the stage for the Crow Tribe to begin utilizing an important storage water right that is provided in the Water Settlement Act of 2010," said Great Plains Regional Director Mike Ryan. "This agreement, and other partnerships, demonstrates that by working together we can solve water resource challenges," Ryan said.

The Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program's Yellowtail Unit was constructed under the authority of the Flood Control Act of December 22, 1944 (58 Stat. 887, 891). Yellowtail Unit's features include Yellowtail Dam and Bighorn Lake, Yellowtail Powerplant, Yellowtail Afterbay Dam, and related structures. The Tribe's Settlement Act was enacted on December 8, 2010, permanently allocating 300,000 acre-feet of stored water to the Tribe for its use in accordance with the provisions of the Settlement Act, which includes water sold or leased by the Tribe for industrial purposes, among other uses.

Editor's note: Additional images of Yellowtail Dam and Yellowtail Afterbay Dam available on request.

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