DNRC, Crazy Mountain reach water agreement
Jordan Hansen
(Daily Montanan) The state of Montana has reached an agreement with an exclusive golf club for water usage, after the club was found to be illegally diverting water for its course and trucking in water from nearby communities.
The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation reached an agreement late last month with how Crazy Mountain Ranch was using water.
The state filed suit against Crazy Mountain Ranch, a Delaware corporation that owns 18,000 acres near Big Timber, in mid-July over an irrigation system it was using for its golf course. The company is a subsidiary of the Yellowstone Club’s parent organization, CrossHarbor Capital Partners. The resort did not have the proper water rights to divert from Rock Creek for irrigation of its golf course.
The agreement, called a “consent decree,” avoided a court battle.
“(This is) a litigation tool for judicial enforcement signed by the district court judge and used to remedy the violation and ensure future compliance,” Patricia Spencer, a spokesperson in the DNRC’s water division wrote in an email. “The decree requires CMR to stop illegally using water on its golf course. If CMR purchases water to irrigate, it is required to report the source of the water purchased to DNRC to ensure it complies with the Water Use Act. CMR must also continue to pursue a new permit or change authorization.”
“(The ranch) does not have a valid water right that authorizes beneficial use of water for irrigation on the 112 acres of the proposed golf course,” the suit alleged.
In May, court documents said the company told local water users, “the ranch intended to irrigate the golf course regardless of department authorization.” The DNRC then got 12 complaints between its field offices in Bozeman and Helena.
On June 17, water users on Rock Creek and Hammond Creek submitted a “Petition to Enforce Water Court Decree and Appoint Water Commissioner” to the Park County District Court.
An official with the DNRC was dispatched to investigate the complaints and issued a report in early July. A lawsuit was then filed.
Crazy Mountain Ranch has a permit in process for changes in water usage, court documents stated. In a statement, the company apologized.
“We apologize for getting ahead of the process on the irrigation of the golf course,” David Hardwick, General Manager of Crazy Mountain Ranch said in a statement. “With this consent decree, the DNRC is allowing us to continue to irrigate the course with purchased water while it considers our May application for a change in place of use. It’s important to know that DNRC does not dispute that CMR has only used water that it is authorized to use – this is resolution of a dispute about where we are using that water.’’
While the dispute was going, the Livingston Enterprise reported the company was buying 80,000 to 100,000 gallons per day from the city.