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Water Projects Bureau
The Water Projects Bureau administers the operation and maintenance of state-owned water projects. These include 24 dams, with approximately 250 miles of irrigation canals and one 10 MW hydropower facility. The bureau also assists the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks with dam safety issues regarding their 9 dams. Most of the DNRC projects are operated by local water users associations that use the water for irrigation. Many of the projects provide secondary recreational benefits including camping, fishing and boating.
Water Projects Bids, Proposals, RFPs and RFQs
- Deadman's Basin Gatehouse
Improvements Project
May 30, 2012 Submittal Date
Addendum #1
Associated Replacement Sheets to Project Drawings
State Water Projects
East Fork Rock Creek Reservoir Data
Tongue River Reservoir Data
Middle Creek Reservoir Data
Painted Rocks Reservoir Data
Hydropower
State Reservoir Storage Contents
(PDF file links viewable with Acrobat Reader)
State-Owned Water Projects
| Name | Year Completed |
Storage (acre-feet) |
Height (feet) |
County |
| *Ackley Lake Dam | 1938 | 5,815 | 51 | Judith Basin |
| *Bair Reservoir Dam | 1939 | 7,010 | 102 | Meagher |
| *Cataract Dam | 1959 | 1,478 | 80 | Madison |
| *Cooney Dam | 1937 | 28,400 | 102 | Carbon |
| *Cottonwood Dam | 1953 | 1,900 | 39 | Park |
| *Deadmans Basin Dam | 1941 | 72,220 | 60 | Wheatland |
| *East Fork of Rock Creek Dam | 1938 | 16,040 | 83 | Granite |
| Fred Burr Dam | 1948 | 516 | 50 | Ravalli |
| Frenchman Dam | 1952 | 3,750 | 44 | Phillips |
| *Glacier Lake Dam | 1937 | 4,200 | 57 | Carbon |
| *Martinsdale Dam | 1939 | 23,110 | 91 | Wheatland |
| *Middle Creek Dam (Hyalite) | 1951 | 10,184 | 125 | Gallatin |
| *Nevada Creek Dam | 1938 | 12,640 | 88 | Powell |
| *Nilan Dam | 1951 | 10,090 | 54 | Lewis & Clark |
| *North Fork of Smith River Dam | 1936 | 11,406 | 84 | Meagher |
| *Painted Rocks Dam | 1940 | 32,362 | 143 | Ravalli |
| *Ruby River Dam | 1939 | 36,633 | 111 | Madison |
| *Tongue River Dam | 1939 | 79,071 | 94 | Big Horn |
| *Toston Dam (Broadwater-Missouri) |
1940 | 3,000 | 56 | Broadwater |
| *Willow Creek Dam | 1938 | 17,730 | 105 | Madison |
| *Yellow Water Dam | 1938 | 3,840 | 37 | Petroleum |
Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks Dams
| Name | Year Completed |
Storage (acre-feet) |
Height (feet) |
County |
| Ashley Lake Dam | -- | 20,400 | 10 | Flathead |
| *Bearpaw Dam | 1958 | 535 | 59 | Hill |
| Clearwater Fish Barrier | 1963 | less than 50 | 15 | Missoula |
| *Gartside Dam | 1962 | 326 | 30 | Richland |
| Johnson Reservoir Dam | 1930s | 208 | 23 | Dawson |
| Knowlton Reservoir Dam | 1890-1910 | 166 | 15 | Teton |
| South Sandstone Reservoir Dam | 1975 | 940 | 38 | Fallon |
| Whitetail Dam | 1930s | 198 | 21 | Daniels |
| Rainy Lake Fish Barrier | -- | -- | -- | Missoula |
*Denotes High-Hazard Dams: A "high-hazard" dam is one whose failure would endanger lives.
This classification is not a reflection on the actual condition of the dam.
