Missouri River Fisheries

NorthWestern Energy monitors some of the state’s top sport fisheries and rare fish, including endangered species, in the Missouri River and reservoirs between Canyon Ferry Dam and Fort Peck Reservoir. About half of the project funding is dedicated to habitat enhancement in tributaries and the mainstem river.

Missouri River Fisheries Technical Advisory Committee (MoTAC)

The FERC license that allows us to operate nine dams on the Missouri and Madison Rivers in Montana includes many requirements for the protection, mitigation and enhancement of fisheries, wildlife and habitat resources along the river corridor.

We have three Technical Advisory Committees (TACs) to assist us in implementing the fisheries, wildlife, and habitat programs on the Madison and Missouri Rivers. All protection, mitigation and enhancement projects must be approved by the TACs.

The Missouri River Fisheries TAC's geographic scope is from Canyon Ferry Dam to the headwaters of Fort Peck Reservoir. MoTAC is comprised of NorthWestern personnel and representatives from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; U.S. Forest Service; and U.S. Bureau of Land Management. TAC members communicate throughout the year and formally meet once per year to review progress from the previous year, discuss and approve projects for the upcoming year, and ensure approved projects comply with FERC license requirements.

2022 Proposals