History of MPH's Involvement

MPH was first made aware of these consistently high nitrate levels in 2011. Both MPH’s mission to protect the environment and human health, as well as their obligation under state law to not issue any permits that could cause or contribute to a violation of an established water quality standard, influenced MPH's next steps. In 2011, a protocol was put in place that required any person proposing a new or increased wastewater source in the area to justify why the proposal would not make the existing problem worse and provide evidence demonstrating the projected increase in nitrate loading would not cause any of the three wells to exceed 10mg/L. Sanitarians were not allowed to issue a permit for a new or increased use unless this evidence was provided.

In 2015, the existing protocol and a defined boundary were adopted into the City-County Health Code, Regulation 1, Section 20, Special Management Areas, which states:

(D) Seeley Lake Special Management Area. The following restrictions apply to land located in the NW quarter of T16 R15 Section 2, the East half of T16 R15 S03, and the South half of T17 R15 S35 (see Appendix G).

(1) New or increased use may not be approved unless the Department determines that it will not cause or contribute to a violation of the nitrate standard established in 76-5-605, MCA.

(2) The Department will evaluate septic permit applications on a case by case basis, using the best information available including, but not limited to, nitrate sample results and existing studies on groundwater flow direction. The Department may require an applicant to supply additional information to substantiate that groundwater will be protected.

(3) Provided there has been no unapproved increased use, replacement systems will be allowed in this area.

When the Missoula City-County Health Board adopted the Seeley Lake Special Management Area regulations in 2015, the Seeley Lake Special District was on its way to implementing a community-wide solution to the contamination. A wastewater management preliminary engineering review was completed in 2012. After community input on the wastewater management options identified in the review, the Sewer District Board members chose to pursue a public sewer system that would collect and transport the community’s wastewater to a treatment plant. The plant would have been capable of reducing nitrate concentrations to levels far below conventional septic systems before releasing the treated sewage discharge to a series of drainfields located outside the nitrate contamination area.

The current SMA regulations in the Health Code were enacted to “hold the line;” a stop-gap measure to ensure the contamination did not get significantly worse while the community solved the problem. The regulations only address proposed new and increased use. This regulatory approach will never result in a decrease in nitrate entering the system, as it does not address or mitigate the existing septic systems that continue to load the sensitive system with nitrate from human waste.

Accomplishing a public sewer project is incredibly challenging. This is the case everywhere, not just in Seeley Lake. Unfortunately, in 2021 after the new sewer proposal was voted down by residents, the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board had to release millions of dollars in grants and loans that had been committed by various funders.

Fortunately, the current Sewer District Board has recently gained positive momentum toward a community-wide solution. Their chosen consulting firm is in the process of evaluating a number of sewer system options for the community and compiling a list of pros and cons in terms of cost, level of treatment and location. The Sewer District, MPH, and the state and county emergency management offices are working together to secure funding for the planning and construction of the chosen sewer system.