Please feed our fish!

These fish are swimming in dirty, unsanitary water.

2014 Water Cycle Assessment

Category 1
All beneficial uses have been assessed and all uses are fully supported.

Category 2 or 2,2A
Available data and/or information indicate that some, but not all of the beneficial uses are supported.

Category 2,2B
Available data and/or information indicate that a water quality standard is not met due to an apparent natural source in the absence of any identified man-made sources.

Category 3
Insufficient or no data available to determine whether or not any beneficial use is attained.

Category 4A
All TMDLs required to mitigate identified impairments or threats have been completed and approved.

Category 4C
Identified threats or impairments result from pollution categories that do not require a TMDL, such as dewatering or habitat modification.

Category 4C,2B
Identified threats or impairments result from pollution categories that do not require a TMDL, such as dewatering or habitat modification & Available data and/or information indicate that a water quality standard is not met due to an apparent natural source in the absence of any identified man-made sources.

Category 5
One or more beneficial use is impaired or threatened and a TMDL is required.

Category 5,2B or 5,5N
One or more beneficial use is impaired or threatened and a TMDL is required & Available data and/or information indicate that a water quality standard is not met due to an apparent natural source in the absence of any identified man-made sources.

For Those On A Private Water Supply

If you're not on the public water supply, then you are the manager of your own small water system. To ensure that your water is safe and providing good quality drinking water, owners must give their wells check-ups and always make sure to follow these steps:

1. As a minimum, test your water for coliform bacteria and nitrates. 
2. Inspect your well parts to ensure they are in good repair. 
3. Check to make sure your well cap is not broken or missing.
4. Inspect your pressure tank and associated plumbing by looking for things like leaks or corrosion, which could lead to future problems.
5. Survey the area around your well to make sure there are no hazardous materials (paint, motor oil, household chemicals, etc.) nearby which could spill and contaminate your well water.

Never dump hazardous waste on your property and never pour hazardous waste down the drain. Things such as over the counter medicine or prescription drugs that are no longer wanted/needed should be taken to your local pharmacy, if they have an unwanted drug take back program. If they don’t have such a program, try following these steps: Remove the unwanted medicine from their original containers and then mix them with an undesirable substance (such as coffee grounds, kitty litter), recontainerizing them, and throwing them into your daily trash.  Another method is to render illegible any personal information on medication containers, add water and other undesirable substances to the container, then seal the container thoroughly with duct tape before placing into the trash. 

These fish are swimming in healthy, pure water!

Joe Meeks from DEQ

"Dilution is the solution to pollution."

Paraphrased Interview with Joe Meeks:

• What are some common contaminants in the Helena water system?
  
  
• Arsenic, lead, copper, microbials, and nitrates.
  
  
• What are some problem areas in the Lewis and Clark County?
  
  
• Mining, Lake Helena (TDML).
  
  
• What is the water quality “standard”?
  
  
• Montana has higher surface water quality standards than it does for the drinking water standards.
  
  
• How does Helena rank compared to other Montana cities/areas?
  
  
• Drinking water is fairly good in Helena area. Montana is a headwater stream state, the stream starts in an urban environment and goes down - Montana is at the start.
  
  
• What is wrong with the Fairgrounds duck pond?
  
  
• The duck pond is a conundrum. It is not natural and has become over polluted and overpopulated because people are feeding and encouraging the ducks to stay. The ‘Kids Fishing Pond’ is now overrun with ducks and geese alike. The Second Duck Pond was supposed to be a spring, but they flooded it into another pond, further degrading the water quality.

Crystal Springs

Crystal Spring

• There is an upside down headwater spring at the Fairgrounds.
  
  
• It’s soluble and easily picks up contaminants or sediments on the way to the spring.
  
  
• The spring itself aids in cleansing and filtering the water efficiently.
  
  
• Wetlands and Springs are valuable because they improve the water as they cleanse it.
  
  

This is the drill run off for the Winston Gold Mine, in Montana. After Running  in to the  water collection pool it is then purified then put back in to the environment.  If this is not done properly then it can change the composition of the surrounding water supply. 

Recently there  has been a major problem with invasive Zebra mussels in lakes in Montana, especially in Canyon  Ferry lake , which is the lake  seen above taken from an airplane. Zebra mussels are a problem because they filter water, up yo a liter a day, to eat plankton.   Since the  zebra mussels  eat a lot of plankton, they compete with fish for food. They also clog pipes by forming colonies inside of the pipes. Then the water cannot flow through the pipes as easily.