HomeMy WebLinkAbout014 DNRC Exempt Well Approval_Blackwood Groves SubdivisionFrom:Strasheim, Kerri
To:matt@bridgerlandgroup.com
Cc:Griffin Nielsen
Subject:Water Inquiry Blackwood Groves Subdivision
Date:Friday, February 11, 2022 5:11:14 PM
Attachments:211028_Blackwood Groves Irrigation Planning.pdf
Matt –
Thank you for the clarification that no wells will have any overlap in use or comingling of
water in pipes. With that, the proposed groundwater use for the Blackwood Groves project
does not require permitting. The wells meet our current guidance by exceeding the distance
requirement of 1320 feet, allowing for up to 10 acre-feet (AF) per well. The project
proposes 5 wells, and each well does not exceed 35 gallons per minute (GPM) or 10 AF of
use. The City of Bozeman will be providing water for indoor use and is responsible for
ensuring that the proposed water use fits within the allowances of current water rights. No
other lots will be able to develop any groundwater use.
Standard Language:
In Clark Fork Coalition, et. al. v. DNRC, et. al., 2016 MT 229, 384 Mont. 503, 380
P.3d 771, the Montana Supreme Court concluded that the definition of “combined
appropriation” in Admin. R. Mont. 36.12.101(13) was invalid. The Court reinstated
the Department’s 1987 Rule defining “combined appropriation” as: “An
appropriation of water from the same source aquifer by means of two or more
groundwater developments, the purpose of which, in the department’s judgment,
could have been accomplished by a single appropriation. Groundwater
developments need not be physically connected nor have a common distribution
system to be considered a “combined appropriation.” They can be separate
developed springs or wells to separate parts of a project or development. Such wells
and springs need not be developed simultaneously. They can be developed gradually
or in increments. The amount of water appropriated from the entire project or
development from these groundwater developments in the same source aquifer is
the “combined appropriation.”
Under this Rule, the Department interprets subdivisions that are pending before the
Department of Environmental Quality for approval on October 17, 2014 or filed after
that date to be a single project that can be accomplished by a single appropriation.
Consequently, all wells in such a subdivision will be considered a “combined
appropriation” for the purposes of Mont. Code Ann. 85-2-306. The only exception
to this interpretation is that a subdivision which has received preliminary plat
approval prior to October 17, 2014 will not be considered a project under the
“combined appropriation” 1987 Rule; individual lots will still be evaluated under the
1987 Rule at the time of an application to the Department. 2015 Mont. Laws § 1, Ch.
221.
This communication does not serve as a pre-approval for a water right.
Thank you for the opportunity to review your project,
Kerri
___________________
Kerri Strasheim
Regional Manager – Gallatin, Madison, and Park Counties
MT DNRC Water Resources
2273 Boot Hill Court, Suite 110
Bozeman, MT 59715
Ph: 406-556-4504