Milk River Project
The Lifeline of the Hi-Line
Ongoing Projects
Stay up-to-date as structures throughout the Milk River and St. Mary system move through the planning, design, and construction phases.
St. Mary Siphon Failure Updates
On June 17, 2024, the St. Mary Siphon failed, causing significant impacts to the Milk River Project. To stay informed click here.
MRJBOC invites the public to participate in the Draft Watershed-EIS Plan Scoping Meeting. Click here to learn more and get involved.
What is the Milk River Project?
The Milk River Project is beyond remarkable. With over a century of successful operation, this engineering feat diverts water from the St. Mary River on the Blackfeet Reservation, flowing through northern Montana and Glacier National Park, and across southern Alberta, Canada. This project is a testament to the intricate canals, siphons, and diversions designed for a seamless flow of water. The Milk River Project is essential to fulfill Montana’s water demands, catering to eight irrigation districts, Reclamation pump contracts, private contracts, the Blackfeet and Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, and other living communities along the Milk River. The project has created numerous recreational opportunities for the surrounding inhabitants, contributing to the ecosystem’s prosperity and wildlife habitats. With such a prominent and successful project, the Milk River Project has proven to be a symbol of limitless possibilities.
Benefits to Montana’s Economy
How the Milk River Project has been providing to Northern Montana for over 100 years.
18,000
Residents provided drinking water
1,000,000
People fed annually
140,000
Acres of irrigated lands
700+
Farms
729
River miles of wildlife habitat and recreation
Milk River Project Partners
🚨 New Innovation Challenge – Help Detect Hidden Dam Cracks 🚨
Hidden cracks deep inside embankment dams can be nearly impossible to detect, yet they can lead to internal erosion—one of the leading causes of dam failures. These cracks may be only millimeters wide and buried deep within clay and silt, making them extremely difficult to find with existing technology.
The Bureau of Reclamation is launching a three-phase challenge to develop new ways to detect these subsurface cracks. Geophysicists, sensing specialists, nondestructive testing experts, AI/ML practitioners, and creative problem-solvers from any field are invited to participate.
Participants will move from concept development to prototype testing and real-world validation, competing for up to $400,000 in prizes while helping advance the future of dam safety.
💡 Think you have an idea?
Follow the challenge, review the guidelines, build your team, and show us what you can discover.Hidden cracks beneath embankment dams could pose serious risks but they’re incredibly hard to detect.
The Bureau of Reclamation is calling on innovators, technologists, and problem-solvers to help develop new ways to find these cracks.
💡 Think sensors, AI, geophysics, or something entirely new.
💰 Up to $400,000 in prizes available.
Learn more and get involved: www.herox.com/CrackTheCase ... See MoreSee Less
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They say the weather can change quickly in Montana—and around here, that might be the understatement of the year.
Today we were set up for a small 40-yard wall pour, but our tester wasn’t able to make it to the site and we were a little concerned about getting the concrete trucks safely down the canal, so the call was made to postpone the pour.
Not even an hour later the skies cleared and it looked perfect… and then the wind showed up. Montana weather keeps us on our toes.
No concrete today, but there’s still plenty happening on site to keep the crews busy and the project moving forward. Next week we’re hoping for a better stretch of weather so we can catch up on a few of the concrete pours that are starting to stack up.
But for now, we’ll take the moisture—because across Montana we all know how much we need it. 🌧️ ... See MoreSee Less
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Let’s kick off the week with a quick update from the St. Mary Diversion Dam project. Thanks to a very mild winter, NW Construction has been able to resume work on site ahead of schedule, and crews are already making steady progress moving the project forward.
The first photo shows the Diversion Dam headworks area and highlights the impressive amount of concrete that was placed during last season’s construction. The next two photos get a little into the weeds—but I thought they were pretty neat—as they provide a closer look at AJ Concrete Pumping utilizing a material conveyor belt system to place backfill material along the sluiceway structure. Crews are achieving proper compaction using a roller compactor, along with a plate compactor working tight against the structure to ensure the material is properly consolidated around the concrete.
The following set of photos highlights Easton and Grizzly Steel crews forming and reinforcing Fish Screen Wall 1L as that portion of the project continues moving forward. The final photo shows excavation work underway to make room for the new fish screens as they move to that phase of construction.
Lots of progress is happening across this site as work continues to move forward. 🚧👷♂️ Hope you all have a great start to your week! ... See MoreSee Less
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Happy Friday! It has been a busy week out at the Hall’s Coulee Siphon project as crews continue pushing toward the finish line. Several pours were completed on the inlet apron slabs, excavation of the outlet canal is still underway, and crews have been busy backfilling around the pipes and tidying up remaining items across the site.
It’s great to see the project really taking shape as work continues to move forward. 👷♂️🚧
#milkriverproject #hallscouleesiphon ... See MoreSee Less
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This week we held a series of open public meetings in Havre, Malta and Browning to discuss the Draft Watershed Plan–Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Milk and St. Mary River Watersheds. This plan will help guide long-term improvements and management of the watershed, along with the infrastructure that supports the Milk River Project.
Thank you to everyone who attended and took the time to share your concerns, perspectives, and ideas. Public input is a critical part of this process, and we truly value hearing from those who live and work throughout the basin and along the St. Mary Canal.
Please remember the plan is still in draft form, and there is time to review the document and provide feedback. Your comments will help shape the final plan and the preferred alternative moving forward.
You can review the draft plan and learn how to submit comments here:
milkriverproject.com/projects/watershed/
The public comment period is open until March 30. Thank you to everyone who continues to stay engaged in this important effort. And a big thank you to the three host sites for accommodating the groups. ... See MoreSee Less
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Time to unwrap the present 🎁
The pipe encasement pour at the Hall’s Coulee Siphon has officially reached strength, and the Sletten Construction Company crews have begun stripping the forms. Once that process is complete, NW Construction will move back in to start backfilling the remaining pipe.
This is likely the last time you’ll see these pipes exposed (hopefully!) for many, many years. Another big milestone in the books — great teamwork out there getting it done! 👏
#milkriverproject #hallscouleesiphon ... See MoreSee Less
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