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Fee and Budget
The Gallatin Local Water Quality District's (GLWQD) base operating budget is attributed to District fees. The fee is $6.00/year and is assessed on all improved real properties and mobile homes within the District boundary including properties in the municipalities of Belgrade, Bozeman and Manhattan. In order to conduct research, monitoring and extensive education programs and projects, the District looks to funding from outside contracts and grants.
District Activities
Activities of the GLWQD include ground-water monitoring studies, surface water monitoring, participation in youth and adult education opportunities, conducting electronic waste (e-waste) recycling events, co-sponsorship of household hazardous waste (HHW) collection events, and other special projects. The GLWQD is non-regulatory and serves as a clearinghouse of information on water resources within the District for homeowners, businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies. The District strives to collaborate with homeowners, local nonprofits, MSU, and other organizations in the valley and throughout the state to improve ground water and surface waters within the District boundary.
History of the Gallatin Local Water Quality District
The GLWQD was created by the Board of County Commissioners of Gallatin County on December 5, 1995, by Resolution Number 1995-55. A Gallatin Local Water Quality District Program Application was submitted to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on April 25, 1997. Based on a review of the District’s Program Application, and an Environmental Assessment completed by DEQ, the State of Montana Board of Environmental Review approved the Gallatin Local Water Quality District on June 20, 1997.
The District covers the middle third of Gallatin County and includes 460 square miles of land in private ownership and 355 square miles of land administered by Federal, State, and Local agencies (815 square miles). District Staff consists of a full-time District Manager, a full-time Water Quality Specialist, and a half-time Administrative Assistant. In addition, students from Montana State University and other educational institutions are employed periodically to assist with District projects.
The District was originally contained within the Environmental Health Division of the Gallatin City-County Health Department and governed by the Gallatin City-County Board of Health, with the addition of one Board member from the Gallatin Conservation District, and representatives from the City Councils of Belgrade, Bozeman and Manhattan. The District was reorganized in 1999 and is now a separate Department within Gallatin County and is governed by a dedicated Water Quality District Board of Directors consisting of members selected as required by Montana Code Annotated (MCA) 7-13-4516.
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