Upper Blackfoot Mining Complex Revegetation

Montana Dept. of Justice, Natural Resource Damage Program – Lincoln, MT
The UBMC is a DEQ-regulated Superfund facility located at the headwaters of the Blackfoot River, encompassing the Mike Horse Dam, the Mike Horse Tailings Impoundment, the Upper Blackfoot River and its tributaries. The area has legacy impacts from historic mining activities that seeps from mine tailings, waste repositories, and dam failure.

Watershed Restoration Group has held a revegetation contract with the state for multiple phases of the project. This is a notoriously difficult site with many challenges – environmentally, logistically, concerning access, and with very tough soils and substrates for project installation. We have successfully met the challenges, and as always, maintained a high-quality implementation. There were many planting zones, a diverse species list with approx. 30 shrub and tree species and seven herbaceous. We went beyond what was expected by installing plants with added consideration to plant composition and companioning, natural system mimicry, natural regeneration occurring, and hydrologic niches within zones.

We installed various sizes of wetland, riparian, and upland plants; deep watered plants; built wildlife exclosure fencing; constructed browse control cages; collected native seed for plant propagation; broadcast seeded; collected and spread forest duff; and coordinated plant and material deliveries to the remote site.