Sheep Creek Watershed Outreach



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Project Announcements and Updates

Date

Announcement

January 11, 2021 The Sheep Creek Aluminum TMDL document was approved by the U.S. EPA in December of 2020. The final document can be found on DEQ's website at: http://deq.mt.gov/water/surfacewater/TMDL 
August 10, 2020

Public comment for the "Sheep Creek Aluminum TMDL" document will begin August 24, 2020 and last 30 days. All comments must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, September 22, 2020. The document and information on submitting comments will be contained on DEQ's website at http://deq.mt.gov/Public/publiccomment , beginning August 24.

 

A public information meeting will be held virtually, via Zoom, on Thursday, September 10, 2020 at 5 p.m. Additional meeting information is contained in the "Meetings & Presentations" table below. Please contact Lou Volpe with any questions at LVolpe@mt.gov

January 24, 2020

A draft version of the "Sheep Creek Aluminum TMDL" document is available for watershed advisory group review and comment in the "Documents Available" table below. Advisory group members may submit their comments to Lou Volpe at LVolpe@mt.gov by February 14, 2020. After the advisory group review period is complete, the document will be released for a formal public comment period, and a public meeting will be held during this time to answer questions. Advisory group members may also submit written comments during the public comment period, the start date of which has not yet been determined. Advisory group members will be notified when the public comment period begins. Please contact Lou with any questions: (406) 444-6742. 

Note that a copy of the draft surface water discharge permit (MPDES permit) for the Black Butte Copper Project, and the accompanying Fact Sheet, are also posted in the table below for your reference when reviewing the TMDL document. DEQ is not accepting comments on these two documents at this time. 

May 23, 2017

The Draft Sheep Creek E. coli TMDL and Water Quality Improvement Plan is available for public comment until 5 p.m. Monday, June 5, 2017. The document and information on submitting comments can be found at: http://deq.mt.gov/Water/WQPB/TMDL/tmdlPublicComments

Electronic copies of the document are also available at the Meagher County City Library in White Sulphur Springs, Great Falls Public Library, and the Lewis and Clark Library in Helena. 

March 14, 2017

A draft version of the Sheep Creek E. coli TMDL document is available for stakeholder review, and can be found in the "Documents Available for Watershed Advisory Group Review" table below. 

Please send comments by April 1, 2017 to Lou Volpe at LVolpe@mt.gov. You may also contact him at (406) 444-6742 if you have questions. 

January 21, 2015

The Department of Environmental Quality will host a Sheep Creek Watershed Advisory Group Meeting in White Sulphur Springs. Details of the meeting can be found in the "Meetings and Presentations" section below. 

 

Meetings and Presentations

Meeting

Presentations and Handouts

May 13, 2016

Watershed Advisory Group Meeting

Presentation (18 MB)

February 24, 2015

Watershed Advisory Group Meeting

Agenda (102 KB)                  

Presentation  (6.7 MB)

September 10, 2020

Public Meeting

Virtual Zoom Meeting

5:00 p.m.

September 10, 2020 Presentation (PDF,1.53 MB) 

Recording of the presentation on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A8gh6jq8RY 

 

Documents Available for Watershed Advisory Group Review 

Document

Document Description

Date

Draft Sheep Creek Aluminum TMDL Document (2.1 MB)

Appendix A: Project Area Description Maps (2.0 MB)

Appendix B: Aluminum Water Quality Data (290 kb)

Stakeholder Review Version of the Draft Sheep Creek Aluminum TMDL document and its appendices.

Posted 01/24/20

The stakeholder-review version of the document was removed 8/10/20. 

 

The final document can be found on DEQ's website at: http://deq.mt.gov/water/surfacewater/TMDL 

Fact Sheet for Permit MT0031909: Tintina Montana, Inc., Black Butte Copper Project (2.85 MB)

Draft MPDES Surface Water Discharge Permit MT0031909 for Tintina Montana, Inc. (~0.5 MB)

DEQ proposes to issue a new Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (MPDES) permit for the Black Butte Copper Project, a proposed underground copper mine located near White Sulphur Springs, MT. 

The draft permit includes effluent limits, monitoring requirements, and special conditions at each outfall developed specifically for the proposed copper mine to protect the beneficial uses of the receiving water bodies. The Fact Sheet identifies the principal facts and significant factual, legal, methodological, and policy issues considered in preparing the draft permit. 

Posted 01/24/20

These documents are posted for reference. The public comment period for these documents closed May 28, 2019 and DEQ is no longer accepting comments on the draft MPDES permit or the fact sheet. DEQ issued the final permit in 2020. 

 

Questions: Jeff May, 406-444-5326 

Media Inquiries: Rebecca Harbage, 406-444-2813

Draft E. coli TMDL Document 

* Document is now available for public comment until June 5, 2017. Information at: http://deq.mt.gov/Water/WQPB/TMDL/tmdlPublicComments 

Draft version of the Sheep Creek E. coli TMDL document for stakeholder review. This is not a formal, public comment document and contains incomplete sections. 

Posted 3/14/17

Document removed from page when public comment period began.

The final document can be found on DEQ's website at: http://deq.mt.gov/water/surfacewater/TMDL 

Sheep Creek Watershed Sampling and Analysis Plan:  Nutrients, Metals, and E. Coli (2015) (1 MB)

This Sampling and Analysis Plan includes all of the nutrient, metals, and E. Coli sampling details for the 2015 field season.

2/24/2015 

Sheep Creek Watershed Sampling and Analysis Plan:  Sediment (2015) (1.4 MB)

This Sampling and Analysis Plan includes all of the sediment sampling details for the 2015 field season.

2/24/2015 

 


 

Project Contacts

 

Role

Contact

Email

Phone

TMDL Project Manager – Aluminum and E. coli

Lou Volpe

LVolpe@mt.gov

(406) 444-6742

Black Butte Copper Project MPDES Permit Writer

Jeff May

JMay@mt.gov

(406) 444-5326

Media Inquiries

DEQ Public Information Officer

Rebecca Harbage

RHarbage@mt.gov

(406) 444-2813

 


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Last Updated: January 11, 2021