Summary of results
PPL Montana, agencies, and private partners-through a cumulative stewardship program to improve river operations- restored more than 3,000 acres of wetland, riparian and upland habitats along the Madison and Missouri Rivers.

River
The Madison and Missouri Rivers flow more than 550 river miles from their headwaters in Yellowstone National Park northeast to Fort Peck Reservoir, draining a watershed of almost 41,000 square miles. The Madison and Missouri River system is biologically diverse, supporting both premier cold water trout and warm water fisheries. It not only provides a full spectrum of recreational opportunities and natural scenic vistas for public users it also sustains critical habitats for numerous migrant and resident wildlife species.

Projects & Energy
PPL Montana's Madison-Missouri River Project includes eight hydroelectric dams (Madison, Hauser, Holter, Black Eagle, Rainbow, Cochrane, Ryan and Morony) and one storage reservoir (Hebgen). Together they provide 292 (MW) of total generation capacity. They operate for power production, flood control, irrigation, public recreation and the protection and enhancement of fisheries, wildlife, riparian habitat, and water quality. Electricity generated avoids nearly 1,683,189 tons annually of carbon (CO and CO2) emissions annually.

Environmental Stewardship
A diversity of restoration and stewardship projects for fisheries, wildlife, recreation, water quality, recreation, and cultural resources are being completed.

Historical Information
PPL Montana's Programmatic Agreement with state and federal agencies protect cultural resources and significantly enhanced the knowledge, understanding and management of prehistoric and historic resources along the Madison and Missouri Rivers. The Agreement provides cost-share opportunities for the protection of cultural resources from hydropower operations, fisheries, wildlife and water quality conservation projects, and recreation and land management developments.

In 2005, PPL Montana completed 139 individual stewardship projects (one for every four river miles) to enhance fisheries, wildlife, habitats, water quality, recreation and cultural resources throughout this river system.

Challenges
The most difficult challenge for PPL Montana's stewardship program in 2005 was maintaining active project collaboration with the wide diversity of stakeholders (e.g. agency professionals, conservation groups and public recreation interests, communities) across the vast distances (550 river miles) and numerous resource issues within the Madison and Missouri River system.

Innovation
Emerging technologies (e.g. real-time remote data monitoring, project specific web-based libraries of information accessible to all stakeholders, expanded use of remote satellite and enhanced cell phone communications, video conferencing, and face-to-face agency consultation meetings) bridged information gaps and improved system-wide communication protocols with measured success.

Collaboration/Cooperation
The Madison-Missouri River partnership includes the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Natural Resource and Conservation Service, Montana Department of Environmental Quality, Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Farm Service Agency, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, six Montana counties (Gallatin, Madison, Broadwater, Lewis and Clark, Cascade, and Chouteau), Montana Trout Unlimited, American Rivers, Montana Conservation Corp, Recreation Trails, Inc., private landowners, and PPL Montana. Several Memoranda of Understanding and Collaborative Agreements have been established between these public and private partners to facilitate consultation and cost-sharing of resource conservation projects in the river corridor.

Accomplishments
PPL Montana's continued to work effectively with state, federal agencies, and private groups to implement and cost-share a diverse array of stewardship projects for fisheries, wildlife, habitat and water quality projects, including endangered species across the river system.

Through the Farm Service Agency Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program, PPL Montana and its partners restored 3,000 acres of riparian and associated upland habitat along the Missouri River headwaters. Other accomplishments for PPL Montana in 2005 include

• Management of 32 new recreation sites: primitive rural to highly developed urban settings and across multiple federal, state, local and private jurisdictional boundaries. This successful program increases management efficiencies, improves the delivery of recreational services, and provides an innovative funding mechanism that allows for substantial financial leveraging and cost-sharing among all stakeholders.
• Enhanced juvenile populations of the endangered pallid sturgeon in the Missouri River below Fort Benton using innovative natural rearing techniques.
• Implemented a floating bulkhead system at two hydro facilities (Black Eagle Dam and Hauser Dam) to allow dam flashboard and spillway repairs without drafting project reservoirs, eliminating otherwise significant drawdown impacts on power generation, reservoir recreation, fisheries and water quality.
• Collaborated with agencies to restore several miles of Missouri River tributary stream habitats important to spawning native trout.
• Initiated the first of a three year wetland and wildlife habitat restoration project on the Madison River Granger Ranch, one of the most important wetland complexes in southwest Montana.
• And implemented a unique international joint venture with conservation biologists in Sonora, Mexico and other southwestern U.S. states to manage spring nesting migrant bird riparian habitats along the Missouri River in Montana and winter riparian habitats that these same migrant birds use in Sonora, Mexico.

Future
The Project 2188 stewardship programs described above will continue to be monitored and implemented under adaptive management principles for the term of the Project 2188 License in consultation with resource agencies and other stakeholders.

What Others Are Saying
"PPL Montana has led the way to restoration of one of the largest remaining wetland and riparian habitats still intact in the middle Madison Valley. Without their leadership, this project would still be nothing more than a dream". -Tom Hinz, Montana Wetlands Legacy Coordinator for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks says that through the Project 2188 Stewardship program

"Over the last decade PPL Montana has been a leading and sustaining partner in a community effort to improve and protect the river corridor here in Great Falls, and in greatly expanding the public access to residents and visitors along our cherished stretch of the Missouri River. The most recent milestone of this successful partnership was the Grand Opening of a new Day Use Area on the restored Black Eagle Memorial Island, developed and provided by PPL Montana, and of new extensions of community road and trail systems that provide first-ever public access to this historic and beautiful area below Black Eagle Falls". - Doug Wicks, Director of Recreation Trails, Inc. says.