At the start of March, Monitoring Montana Waters and the Montana Pesticide Stewardship Partnership Program participated in Water Quality Awareness Day at the Montana State Capitol Rotunda. The event was sponsored by Western Montana Conservation Commission and partners attending included Montana Department of Environmental Quality, US Geological Survey Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center, Montana Department of Natural Resources & Conservation: CARDD & Water Resources, City of Missoula Stormwater, Clark Fork Coalition, Montana Bureau of Mines & Geology, Prickly Pear Land Trust, and Montana Department of Commerce. Legislators received a postcard invitation to the event in their legislative mailboxes and an email a few days prior notifying them of the event.  

The main goal of this event was to demonstrate the great work organizations are doing across the state to protect and improve water quality and articulate why this work is needed and important. MMW and PSPP personnel had the opportunity to showcase Flathead Lake Biological Station’s work, different projects, outreach efforts, and capacity. Legislators learned about what water quality issues our organization focuses on, why these issues are important and why they need to continue to be worked on. It was a great opportunity for us to highlight how our projects are funded and what kind of support is required to continue the work. 

This event provides an opportunity for legislators to meet the people and organizations who work on the topics and issues they must discuss, make policies around, and dedicate funding toward during bill hearings and interim sessions. Water quality is and will continue to be an important topic and requires additional work and funding to protect Montana’s water resources.