Water use on the rise in Bigfork

Bigfork residents used as many as 1.5 million gallons of water per day during the month of June — levels normally seen during the peak month of August, according to the Bigfork Water and Sewer District manager Julie Spencer. Increased water usage in the Bigfork area comes on the heels of nearly a week of record-setting temperatures across Montana, with most days averaging in the high 90s. Last Thursday, Gov. Greg Gianforte called on U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to declare Montana a drought disaster area as nearly every region in the state was facing severe to extreme drought conditions. As of Monday, July 5, the eastern portion of the state was home to the most extreme drought conditions, while Flathead County was a mix of abnormally dry, moderate drought and some areas with no drought at all, according to the National Integrated Dought Information System.

“We are already using about 1.5 million gallons a day — this is about what we normally see in August, so it’s earlier than normal use,” Spencer told the Eagle. “We are recommending people irrigate at night and not in the daytime because it just evaporates.”

She also advises residents to check the integrity of their irrigation systems — recently one user reported a sprinkler head had popped and was shooting water into the air. To avoid needlessly wasting water, irrigation systems should be well-maintained, she noted.

The Bigfork Water and Sewer District has four water tanks with a combined capacity of 875,000 gallons. The tanks are supplied by four wells, each about 300 feet deep, located approximately three miles north of town. However, their second-largest tank which is capable of holding 250,000 gallons is currently offline for maintenance. Spencer expects it to be up and running by the end of the month.

One major concern is ensuring that Bigfork has ample water on-hand in the event of a fire.

During the February 2020 blaze that destroyed Eagle Bend Golf Club, firefighters used an entire tank of water, Spencer noted.

The district is continuing to monitor usage day by day, she said, noting that the greatest draw on the system typically occurs in the morning hours.

“We potentially could have too much use, and if that comes we will have to have people come off irrigation or alternate days that they irrigate,” Spencer explained. “We just want to make sure that we had adequate water for fire flow.”