Biden Administration Agrees To Immediately Begin Emergency Repairs To St. Mary Canal Siphon

The Biden Administration announced on July 5 they will immediately begin rehabilitation work along the Milk River Project following last month’s siphon burst. The Bureau of Reclamation agreed to fund the repairs through existing emergency authorities under Public Law 111-11.

“This is an important step forward for North Central Montana water users who rely on the Milk River Project to support their farm operations that feed the world and to keep their small businesses running,” said Tester. “I called on the Bureau of Reclamation to use their emergency authority to immediately begin repairs and I’m pleased that today they have committed to do so. I’ll keep working to ensure the Administration continues to listen to the thousands of impacted Montanans living in North Central Montana who couldn’t wait another minute for this relief.”

The bipartisan Fort Belknap Indian Community (FBIC) Water Rights Settlement Act, which would provide critical funding for repairs on the Milk River Project, was brought to the Senate floor. The Fort Belknap Indian Community (FBIC) Water Rights Settlement Act will provide $1.3 billion to improve infrastructure and economic development for the Fort Belknap Indian Community and improve the efficiency of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Milk River Project, which furnishes water for the irrigation of about 121,000 acres of Tribal and non-Tribal land. The bill specifically includes $275 million to rehabilitate the St. Mary’s canal. The bill will also restore Tribal management to 38,462 acres of state and federal land for the FBIC.

The Montana Farm Bureau also submitted a letter to U.S. House of Representatives leadership urging them to take up the Fort Belknap Indian Community (FBIC) Water Settlement Act of 2024 (S.1987).

“The Milk River Project in north central Montana is aptly referred to as the “Lifeline of the Highline” because it provides water to over 120,000 acres of productive farmland, several towns, and two tribes,” said MFBF President Cyndi Johnson in her letter to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Democrat Leader Hakeem Jeffries. “Just over one week ago, a portion of the Milk River Project near Babb, Montana, suffered a disastrous failure, flooding the nearby community and threatening the economic certainty of a large portion of our state.

Johnson explained that the FBIC provides the assistance to restore St. Mary’s Canal that MFBF members have been asking for and negotiating about for more than 20 years. This legislation will provide $275 million for Milk River Project infrastructure repairs and to restore the St. Mary’s Canal.

“Without the essential repairs S. 1987 will provide to the Milk River Project, a large portion of our state will literally dry up and it’s not just our state that will suffer,” said Johnson, adding, “According to the Milk River Joint Board of Control, this project and the agriculture it supports raise enough food to feed 1 million people.”

The Conrad wheat farmer explained, “Our members, these rural communities, and our state will be put in great jeopardy if this project is not repaired quickly and completely. Please act promptly on the Fort Belknap Indian Community Water Settlement Act of 2024.”