II. INTRODUCTION 



A. Scope of Study 



The Montana Department of Health and Environmental Sciences (DHES) 

 commissioned this report as part of its Statewide 208 project. DHES will 

 integrate the results into a comprehensive management plan for all non- 

 point source pollution in Montana. 



Water quality problems in Montana's Statewide 208 Planning Area (Fig. II-l) 

 were identified and evaluated from data provided by government agencies 

 and private sources. Problem areas were assessed by the nature and severity 

 of the problems, their relation to silviculture, and their potential 

 for remedy. 



Forestry management guidelines regarding stream water quality, presently 

 used by Montana's forest industry, were appraised. Silvicultural practices 

 (harvesting methods, road design and construction, use of pesticides, 

 slash removal and seedbed preparation) and their attendant water quality 

 problems were examined through literature review. 



Existing legislation and regulation (federal, state and local) of forest 

 practices and water quality was analyzed for effectiveness in controlling 

 water pollution. Methods for mitigating or preventing water pollution 

 were studied and best management practices (BMP's) for silvicultural 

 activities were identified. Site-specific recommendations were made for 

 selected problem areas. 



B. Forest Industry in Montana 



One fourth (23 million acres) of Montana's area is forested. Of this 

 amount, about 14 million acres is commercial forest (Table II-l). 



