HELENA, Mont. On July 09, 2024 - Governor Greg Gianforte today announced his request for federal assistance to respond to the St. Mary siphons failure was granted by Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Touton.

“I’m grateful for this much needed federal assistance to repair the St. Mary and Halls Coulee siphons,” Gov. Gianforte said. “The State of Montana stands ready to assist local and federal officials in responding to the widespread effects the failure will have on water users and irrigators.”

On June 17, a catastrophic failure of the St. Mary siphons led to concerns about potential impacts to drinking water for 14,000 Montanans and irrigation for over 18,000 water users. The lack of water provided by the St. Mary Canal could significantly impact over 121,000 acres of irrigable land. 

“I wish to thank the State of Montana for working with local officials to secure these federal funds to repair the St. Mary Canal,” said Jennifer Patrick, project manager for the Milk River Joint Board of Control. “Today’s announcement is a testament to what state and local coordination can look like. When we speak in one voice, it is much easier to get things done.

In late June, the governor sent a letter to Commissioner Touton and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland requesting the federal government act under existing federal law to authorize federal funds to replace the siphons. The governor noted that the Montana Legislature has previously authorized $32 million in financial assistance to replace siphons and restore water to Montanans who rely upon the Milk River.

Federal law allows the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Reclamation to authorize federal funds to repair the siphons and was previously exercised by the federal agencies in response to the Drop 5 failure in 2020.

The announcement of the emergency declaration comes after the Bureau of Reclamation met with state and local officials at the site of the St. Mary siphon failure near Babb, Montana.

Read the full letter from the Bureau of Reclamation here.