Streamflow

The USGS WY-MT Water Science Center operates streamgages in the Snake River Basin in Wyoming that report streamflow in the mainstem of the Snake River and tributary streams. During the spring of 2022, in cooperation with the Teton Conservation District, thermistors were installed at six sites in the basin to record and report water temperature data. There are currently 12 sites in the basin that...

The Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Tribes seek an increased scientific understanding of the water resources within the Fort Peck Reservation of northeastern Montana. Hydrologic information is needed to make informed water management decisions, including the monitoring of instream flows established in the Fort Peck Indian Reservation Water Rights Compact with the State of Montana. The Fort Peck...

The Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative is a long-term science-based effort to assess and enhance aquatic and terrestrial habitats at a landscape scale in southwest Wyoming, while facilitating responsible development through local collaboration and partnerships. The WLCI is an interagency working group of partners that is beginning the process of establishing a much larger coalition of...

Riparian and aquatic ecosystems in semiarid landscapes like Southwest Wyoming contribute substantially to regional biodiversity. Long-term monitoring data that describe streamflow, surface-water quality, and groundwater levels are needed for assessing possible effects of changes in land use on those ecosystems.

The Blackfeet Nation seeks an increased scientific understanding of the water resources within the Blackfeet Reservation of northwestern Montana. Hydrologic information is needed in order to make informed water management decisions as the Blackfeet Nation moves forward with implementation of the Blackfeet Water Rights Compact as new water-use projects are initiated and as the Blackfeet Irrigation...

The USGS monitors stream water quality in Wyoming and Montana in cooperation with State, County, local, and other Federal agencies. Water-quality data for these sites are available from the USGS National Water Information System Web Mapper application in the form of an interactive map that can be accessed from the Data and Tools tab.

Peak-flow frequency information is needed for flood-plain mapping, design of highway infrastructure, and many other purposes across Montana. The USGS Wyoming-Montana Water Science Center has an ongoing project working to update peak-flow frequency estimates at USGS streamgages across the state.

The USGS WY-MT Water Science Center provided discharge measurements and high water mark (HWM) flagging for the June 2018 flooding along Elk Creek in Augusta, Montana.

StreamStats is a Web application that provides access to an assortment of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analytical tools that are useful for water-resources planning and management, and for engineering and design purposes.

The Smith River watershed is an important recreational and agricultural area in Meagher and Cascade counties in west-central Montana. Thousands of visitors travel to the area annually to float and fish the Smith River. Additionally, most of the water used to irrigate 36,000 acres of the upper Smith River watershed is withdrawn from the Smith River or its tributaries. During a recent drought...

The Watershed Program in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Wyoming Water Science Center developed regional curves that relate bankfull channel dimensions and discharge to drainage area for hydrophysiographic regions in Wyoming where data are currently lacking. Regional curves are useful aids for estimating bankfull discharge and related channel dimensions at ungaged sites...

Major floods in 1996-1997 on the Yellowstone River intensified public debate over the effects of human activities on the Yellowstone River. The Yellowstone River Conservation District Council partnered with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to conduct a cumulative-effects study on the Yellowstone. For that study, the USGS calculated streamflow statistics for unregulated (no development) and...