Meryl B Storb, PhD (Former Employee)

The Kootenai River Watershed is an international resource cooperatively managed by the U.S., Canada, and Tribal governments. In recent years, coal mining in the Canadian portion of the watershed has resulted in elevated concentrations of several constituents, including selenium, nitrate, and sulfate downstream (Storb et al., 2023). At increased levels, these mining byproducts can affect water...

Selenium is an essential nutrient with a narrow gap between enough for life and too much for life. Mining operations have been linked to releasing selenium into rivers and streams, where it can accumulate in aquatic ecosystems and disrupt the development of egg-laying organisms like fish and birds. Recent research shows that selenium travels farther from the Elk River Valley than previously...

Lake Koocanusa (also called Koocanusa Reservoir) is a transboundary reservoir that's located in northwestern Montana and southwestern British Columbia, Canada (BC) and encompasses the headwaters of the Kootenai watershed, eventually flowing into the Columbia River. Coal mining has occurred in the Elk River watershed in British Columbia, Canada for more than 100 years. Concentrations of different...

The Flaxville aquifer is present in the northern and central parts of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and consists of sand and gravel that forms extensive plateaus and topographic benches used for dryland farming. Because many residents rely on groundwater as their primary water supply on the Reservation, the Flaxville and underlying aquifers are important sources of groundwater. The goal of this...