The Bitterroot National Forest (BNF) land where the creeks lie was previously private property where owners developed dirt roads to ease timber removal. In 2000 intense fires severely damaged the landscape and caused dumptruck-loads of highly erosive soils to pour into streams. According to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, the creeks needed a 63% reduction in the amount of soil entering the creeks from the nearby roads.

These creeks are essential habitat to native Westslope Cutthroat trout and Bull trout. With these degraded stream conditions, native insects and fish cannot thrive. Sediment build-up fills deep pools in creeks that fish use to lay eggs, ultimately smothering eggs and impairing survival. Excess sediment also kills insects in streams that fish rely on for food.

​Recontouring these abandoned, deteriorating roads restored hydrologic function, allowing for rain and runoff to be stored in the ground instead of washing out the road surface and into streams.

The East Fork of the Bitterroot River has endured a long struggle with thermal pollution (high temperatures) and excess sedimentation that impairs a 5,000 foot river reach. Healthy riparian habitat can mitigate these challenges.

Temperature pollution degrades habitat for insects and fish, ultimately disrupting the whole ecosystem and the fisheries we love to enjoy. Doran Creek, a tributary to Cameron Creek, lacks healthy streamside vegetation to provide shade and became dangerously warm. 

​Temperature pollution, in this case high temperatures, threaten native fish survival. Sediment pollution decreases clarity of our beloved clear waters and also degrades habitat for insects and fish, ultimately disrupting the whole ecosystem and the fisheries we love to enjoy.