Conservation
through the Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) 2026 Nonpoint Source Pollution Reduction Grant Program. The grants were awarded to a coalition of local partners working collaboratively to improve water quality across the watershed.
Funded projects include stream and riparian restoration work on the Shields River and its tributaries, including Bangtail Creek and Canyon Creek, as well as organizational capacity that will support continued project development and landowner engagement throughout the watershed. Partner organizations receiving grants include Montana Freshwater Partners, Trout Unlimited, and the Park County Conservation District.
Eligible local organizations in the Shields watershed can apply to receive up to half of DEQ’s available funding each year through 2028 as DEQ’s designated Nonpoint Source Focus Watershed—a distinction the watershed earned in early 2025 through a collaborative nomination led by Montana Freshwater Partners and the Park Co. Water Initiative alongside local agencies, nonprofits, and Shields Valley landowners.
“Partners in the Shields watershed demonstrated their combined impact when they applied two years ago and successfully became the next DEQ focus watershed. They continued that momentum with the suite of project applications submitted this year. DEQ is confident that having a diversity of groups working collaboratively towards the goal of improving water quality and landowners’ enjoyment of their land will lead to demonstrable successes.”
— Hannah Riedl, Nonpoint Source and Wetlands Section Supervisor, Montana DEQ
Additional Focus Watershed funding cycles are anticipated for the Shields watershed in 2027 and 2028, providing sustained investments in the health of the Shields River system and the communities and working lands that depend on it.
About Montana Freshwater Partners
Montana Freshwater Partners is a Livingston-based nonprofit dedicated to improving the health of rivers, streams, and wetlands in the Upper Yellowstone region through collaborative, on-the-ground restoration and community partnership.