Upper Gallatin Drought/Water Supply Focus Group Prioritizing Vulnerabilities May 24th 10:30 - 12PM Big Sky Chapel Basement

Focus Group Goals Participants will Familiarize themselves with drought & water supply issues that threaten the sustainability of our community and watershed Work collaboratively to develop mitigation and response actions that promote resiliency against these threats

Information Sharing Meeting Recap Needs for collaborative drought planning in the Upper Gallatin Upper Missouri Basin Drought Resiliency Planning Basin-wide rapid population growth, shifting demographics, land and water use changes Southwest Montana climate change projections Reduced snowpack levels, earlier runoff, reduced late summer flows Warmer temperatures (land & instream), exacerbated droughts Increased groundwater demands Big Sky Snowpack-driven tourism and recreation based economy, rapid development, no central authority to enforce potential mitigation/response actions

Drought Awareness Survey: 50 responses from local community “Drought can impact not only obvious recreational opportunities such as fishing, rafting, and golf, but also less obvious ones such as mountain biking, hiking, and horseback riding. It can be a huge impact on overall forest health. I am very concerned.” “I am concerned that the area will not be prepared, especially if we have unusually long drought periods.” “It’s water that makes our world go around up here, it affects everything!”

Information Sharing Meeting Recap “Prolonged and severe drought is chronic in the Upper Missouri Basin” 1970s-90s: most mentioned impact= fire Evacuation notices & alerts Removing horses & livestock Informal town meetings Restrictions from pulling over in Gallatin Canyon Smoke 2000-2010s: 50 impacts from 2000-2017 reported in Madison County, 42 in Gallatin Top 3 impacted sectors: water quality and supply, agriculture, plants and wildlife 39 instances of relief, restrictions, or response

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Drought Risk By County Gallatin County Emergency Management Plan Drought risk: Overall Moderate risk Moderate probability of major disaster Moderate probability of property impact Low probability of population impact High probability of economic impact Moderate future development impact Madison County Emergency Management Plan Drought Risk: Overall Moderate-High Risk Up to D4 Magnitude Economic impacts Weeks-months County-wide Highest risk areas: Rural, ag areas Potential size: Valley to county-wide Speed of onset: Weeks to months Duration: Months to years Priority: Moderate

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Initial risks identified by Focus Group Invasive species (2) Domestic and municipal water supplies + increasing demand (4) well water supplies Fire hazards Stream flows (4) Land use (2) Trout Recreational opportunities (winter & summer) (3) Climate change (falls into many categories) Upper Gallatin’s water supply within the context of the Upper Missouri basin

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap SNAPP F r amewo r k

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Effects of drought and water supply issues on.. Snowpack Climate change projections: reduced snowpack levels, warmer temperatures, more precipitation as rain than snow, earlier runoff + Snowpack driven, tourism & recreation based economy Impacts: Reduced quality ski season Less visits and $$ spent in Big Sky Winter = peak season Earlier resort closures Job loss: Biggest employer in Big Sky is the resort & YC Less capacity for watershed to hold water for prolonged periods More constrained supply and availability

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Effects of drought and water supply issues on.. Wildfires Climate change projections: more intense, longer duration fires that burn larger areas + Rapid development & more homes being built within the urban wildland interface Impacts: Property damage Park closures or restrictions Less hotel stays and $$ spent in Big Sky 2016 Yellowstone visitors contributed $680.4 million to the Park’s gateway communities in MT and WY Reduced air quality, public health concerns Reduced habitat recovery timing More suitable habitat for invasives with higher capacity to withstand fire

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Effects of drought and water supply issues on.. Surface Flows Climate change projections: warmer instream temperatures, earlier runoff, lower late season flows + River recreational opportunities is a major contributor to our economy- reliant also on snowpack Impacts: Less suitable habitat for trout and macros Lower quality rafting and fishing River recreation based businesses threatened Less water and of lower quality contributing to downstream users

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Effects of drought and water supply issues on.. Groundwater Storage Climate change projections: reduced snowpack levels, warming temperatures, more precipitation as rain than snow, and earlier runoff + Snowpack is a major source for groundwater recharge- Meadow Village aquifer Increasing growth and development put further stress on our groundwater supplies to service municipal and domestic needs Impacts Lower groundwater levels Lower streamflows Lower capacity to serve domestic and municipal needs

Vulnerability Assessment Meeting Recap Effects of drought and water supply issues on.. Local Economy Context: Climate change projections shift water availability and timing, drivers of our winter and summer based tourism & recreation economy 2017 Big Sky Chamber Community Profile 90 restaurants/shops/service related businesses in Big Sky support tourism and recreation # of visitors increasing each year, last year record high summer of 6000+ visitors to welcome center Total MT visitors: 23.4 million Headwaters Economics: Gallatin County Study 54,785 service related jobs,higher than govt or non service related Contributed to $2,136.2 million over last 15 years But pay lowest Lower quality winter season threatens businesses Entire economic standing of community = all in some way connected to water (snowpack)

Prioritizing Vulnerabilities Impact Economic Social High - Medium - Low Priority that impact risks economic integrity of our community High - Medium - Low Priority that impact risks the quality of life enjoyed by residents and visitors Environment High-Medium-Low Priority that impact risks the health of our watershed