Erosion from logged areas and poorly maintained roads caused three segments in the Swift Creek watershed (East Fork Swift Creek, West Fork Swift Creek, and the Swift Creek main stem) to fail to support their aquatic life and cold water fisheries designated uses. As a result, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) added the three segments to the state’s Clean Water Act section 303(d) list of impaired waters in 1996.
Implementing logging best management practices and improving roads have improved water quality. Recent data show that Swift Creek fully meets its aquatic life and cold water fisheries uses, prompting MDEQ to remove all three segments from the state’s impaired waters list in 2012.
Learn more about the Swift Creek, Montana success story here.
Source: US EPA
