Bridging Science & Action: Highlights from the Inaugural Gallatin Water Science Symposium
by Lilly McLane, Watershed Restoration Director
Earlier this month, about 130 local water resource managers and Montana State University students and faculty mingled in the Inspiration Hall event space. Floor-to-ceiling windows provided a backdrop of the snow-covered Bridger Mountains for talks and posters about water quality and quantity in the Gallatin Watershed.
The inaugural Gallatin Water Science Symposium was hosted as part of the Gallatin Water Collaborative (The Collaborative), an initiative started in 2021 to unify local efforts to protect, restore, and enhance water resources in the Lower Gallatin Watershed. The Collaborative is made up of stakeholders from across the Gallatin Valley, including conservation organizations, government agencies, scientists, engineers, agricultural producers, recreationists, and developers. Groups come together in various formats to collaborate on the future of water. We listen to each other, find things we have in common, work together on priority actions, share capacity, and build our collective knowledge and understanding.
We face many challenges as a headwaters watershed that depends almost entirely on snowpack for our annual supply of water and requires especially cold, clean water to support a trout fishery. Not to mention the shifting, growing pressures and demands of a changing climate and rapid growth. Luckily, we also have an awesome institution in our backyard - Montana State University, full of eager students and accomplished faculty - and dedicated professionals and leaders working hard to balance the many needs of our growing community.
Many of the goals and actions identified by The Collaborative to steward our precious, limited supply of water come down to the availability of science and an awareness to use it. It’s a two-way street. The Gallatin Water Science Symposium was a day to inspire research that is driven by the challenges and needs of our community, and for our actions on the ground - from policy to restoration - to reflect best practices rooted in science. The sunny, high-ceilinged room was full of many bright, engaged minds. It was amazing to stand back and watch people meet each other, curious and excited about the information they had just learned, shaking hands and cocking their heads to pose a question or point to a graphic on a poster so they could understand better. The vibe was energizing, positive, and infectious.
Presentations spanned topics on water quality and quantity. We learned about how the transitions in irrigated agriculture and land use have had significant impacts on the Gallatin Valley aquifer. How the City of Bozeman anticipates supply and demand in the face of drought and growth, and the actions they are taking to conserve, mitigate, and source water. Similarly, actions to maintain ecological supply were presented, including aquifer recharge and securing in-stream flow water rights. The Department of Natural Resources has been looking to science to shape policy and regulations to ensure groundwater extraction does not impact surface water and down gradient water rights holders. And snow. There was lots of talk about snow. How do we better understand the characteristics of our largest reservoir to know how much water we have, anticipate flooding and drought, and what management actions are effective to improve snow and water retention on the landscape?
One of my personal favorites was a presentation by Mike Suplee about his work with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to determine nutrient water quality standards for rivers and streams across the state. Nutrient standards are based on preventing excess algal growth, which can cause a host of problems for cold-water aquatic ecosystems and detract from recreational experiences. This topic is especially relevant as the Montana Legislature attempts, once again, to tear down numeric nutrient standards in the current session. I have referenced Mike’s publications countless times in my graduate research and now as the Restoration Director for the Gallatin Watershed Council, and still, there were new things that clicked into place listening to Mike present. It was a pleasure to be able to talk to him in person.
We also heard about identifying pollution and pollution sources in surface and groundwater, from nutrients and heavy metals to pharmaceuticals and forever chemicals. Talks and posters were presented on teasing apart natural and anthropogenic impacts and better characterizing the extent of nitrogen pollution that rises above background levels and poses human health risks. And then, there was plenty of what we are doing about it. There were innovative solutions for wastewater treatment, including advances in treatment wetland technology and state-of-the-art water reclamation plant upgrades in Big Sky. The Gallatin County Health Department is looking closely at the science to inform amendments to the Health Code. Their intent is to reduce the cumulative impact of septic on groundwater and surface water quality by requiring improved treatment and maintenance for both new and existing individual wastewater systems. And I could go on…
The day was jam-packed with inspiring people, progressive ideas, and interesting, relevant research. I’d say it was a huge success. But don’t just take it from me: The Gallatin Water Collaborative is the recipient of the 2025 Watershed Stewardship Award in recognition of “the range of groups we have brought together and the holistic approach to address the challenges of conservation in an urban watershed in one of the fastest-growing locations in the state.” Collaboration works, and it feels good too. A BIG thank you to the groups that worked hard to put this event on, the folks that shared their work, and the curious minds that showed up to learn. What a day!
The Gallatin Water Collaborative is hosted by the Gallatin Watershed Council.
The Gallatin Water Science Symposium was made possible by MSU Extension Water Quality, Montana Water Center, Montana DEQ Non-point Source and Wetlands Section, and the Gallatin Watershed Council.
