Sapphire Front Project
Bitterroot River Protection Association
The Bitterroot River Watershed
The Bitterroot River Basin is located in southwestern Montana. The entire Bitterroot River watershed is contained between the Bitterroot Mountains and the Sapphire Mountain Range. Four times as many streams enter the valley from the Bitterroot Mountain Range to the west than from the Sapphire Mountain Range to the east.
The Bitterroot River runs for about 85 miles south-to-north through the Bitterroot Valley, from the confluence of its West and East Forks near Conner to where it flows into the Clark Fork River near Missoula.
The Clark Fork River flows into the Pend Oreille, which flows into the Columbia, which flows into the Pacific. Today the Bitterroot River watershed is one of the easternmost headwaters of the Columbia River Basin.
Bitterroot River Protection Association
Mission:
- to protect and preserve the aquatic ecosystems and fisheries of the Bitterroot River and its tributaries
- to ensure public recreational and scientific access to all such waters
- to protect the aesthetic and ecological integrity of the entire watershed
Sapphire Front Project
Map of Monitoring Locations
The 2024 Sapphire Front Project involves collecting water quality samples and taking flow measurements on six streams that flow into the Bitterroot River from out of the Sapphire Mountains. This includes Rye Creek, North Rye Creek, Skalkaho Creek, Willow Creek, North Burnt Fork Creek, and Three Mile Creek. Each of these streams flows out of Bitterroot National Forest land and passes through private land with mixed agricultural and residential development before discharging into the Bitterroot River. These sites have all been sampled annually for Total Nitrogen (TN), Total Phosphorous (TP), Nitrite plus Nitrate (NO 2+3), Ammonia, Soluble Reactive Phosphorous (SRP), Water Temperature, Specific conductance (SC), pH, Dissolved oxygen (DO), Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Turbidity, and occasionally for Discharge (flows) since 2018.
Water Quality Monitoring
Dr. Rachel Malison, Assistant Research Professor at the Flathead Lake Biological Station gives instructions on water sampling protocols to BRPA volunteers.
MT DEQ Water Quality Standards Section Supervisor Katie Makarowski give instruction to BRPA volunteers on grabbing water samples from a stream in the Bitterroot.
Volunteers taking flow measurements on Lost Horse Creek.
BRPA Executive Director Michael Howell (center) and leaders of the Bitterroot River Mainstem volunteer monitoring groups Kent Myers (left) and Kelsey Milner (right) collecting nutrient samples on the river.
BRPA volunteer Barry Kirkpatrick taking flow measurements on North Burnt Fork Creek.
Collecting data on temperature, barometric pressure, dissolved oxygen, pH, specific conductance and turbidity on Skalkaho Creek with a YSI instrument.
To learn more about the Bitterroot River Protection Association or Monitoring Montana Waters, click the caption below each organization's logo.
