Montana State Prison’s drinking water has routinely tested positive for coliform, a bacteria found in fecal matter, and the facility has received numerous drinking water violations over the past three decades, according to the state’s Safe Drinking Water Information System.

Publicly available drinking water tests from the Department of Public Health and Human Service’s Environmental Lab show the prison’s aging and troubled system tested positive for coliform 11 times in 2025 and eight times in 2024.

Questions about water quality have come to the surface since a reported water pipe break at the prison 10 days ago that left inmates without consistent drinking water and in some cases not enough water, according to an inmate and family members.

But water quality at the prison appears to be a longstanding issue. The Department of Corrections said it takes those concerns seriously. 

“The safety of inmates and staff members at Montana State Prison (MSP) is paramount, and any safety concerns brought to the department’s attention are addressed immediately,” Department of Corrections spokesperson Carolynn Stocker wrote in an email to the Daily Montanan. “The Department works closely with the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to ensure the safety of water.”

The facility has received seven “individual violations” since 2022. When inspections reveal issues, there is a set notification process. The violations, which follow testing, were over E. coli monitoring, multiple consumer confidence violations — a mandated water quality reporting process by the Environmental Protection Agency — as well as notifications about copper and lead.

“DEQ has informed the DOC that lead and copper values are less than federal action levels,” Stocker wrote in an email.

When there is an issue with water that requires public notification, it’s called a violation. Even things like not responding to a correction or repair request within a certain time period can be considered a violation, according to a DEQ reference sheet on federal rules surrounding coliform.

Following that notification, water facilities are asked to come back into compliance.

In an email late Monday, the Department of Corrections did not directly answer a question regarding consumer confidence report violations the Daily Montanan sent Friday. The DOC referred those questions to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, which did not respond to the Daily Montanan by press time. 

There have been about 50 tests for coliform, a different bacteria than E. coli, over the past year, according to the data set. 

During those coliform tests the state also tests for E. coli. None of the E. coli tests showed the presence of that pathogen, and prison water hasn’t tested positive for that bacteria since 2000, and even then it was in non-potable water, the Department of Corrections said in an emailed response to questions from the Daily Montanan.

On Monday, inmates were handed a notification dated Oct. 10, saying that there were questions about the quality of the water supply, in this case, potentially from the infrastructure problems at the prison. Amanda McKnight, who has been advocating for inmates during the water crisis, said her husband, who is an inmate, read the statement and she transcribed it.

“Our water system recently experienced a loss of pressure, which could have resulted in contamination of the water supply,” the statement reads. “Because of the loss of pressure, it is unknown if contaminants could have infiltrated the distribution system.”

The statement goes on to say water from the prison’s supply should be boiled before usage. 

“Inadequately treated water may contain disease-causing organisms, including bacteria, viruses, and parasites, which can cause nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and headaches,” the statement reads.

The DOC did not immediately respond to a request late Monday for comment on the boil order notification.

McKnight said her husband had severe stomach issues for six months after entering the prison. Even before the current water crisis, she was sending him extra money for bottled water, she said, and that’s been a consistent worry.

“It’s devastating to know that my husband and 1,600 other human beings along with the staff who work there are being forced to live in conditions we wouldn’t tolerate for animals,” McKnight, who shared the violations with the Daily Montanan, wrote in a message. “Clean water is a basic human right. The State has known about these water issues for years and has done nothing. This isn’t an accident, this is neglect.”

The testing data goes back decades, and prison water has tested positive for coliform 37 times since 2001. Coliform bacteria aren’t necessarily harmful, though their presence in drinking water can indicate pathogens are in the water. 

Following a water sample, bacteria is grown in a petri dish overnight, said Ben Rigby, the executive director of Montana Rural Water Systems.

If it’s a “hit” or when a sample tests positive for a specific pathogen, they’ll take several more samples, Rigby said.

Rigby was previously the Water Treatment Superintendent city of Helena’s water system and said there’s always a possibility of false positives too. Reporting out any water issues is paramount to public trust, he said.

“That’s kind of rule number one, as an operator in a public water supply,” Rigby added.

There are significant federal regulations around water quality, including the Revised Total Coliform Rule. 

“Total coliforms are a group of closely related bacteria that are natural and common inhabitants of soil and surface waters,” the rule states. “Their presence in drinking water suggests that there has been a breach or failure in the water system (for example, a hole in the pipe); and pathogens, which are disease-carrying organisms, may have entered the drinking water.”

It was unclear how high the levels were of coliform bacteria. Positive tests for coliform at the prison date back to 1981, state records show. A test on Sept. 23 of this year showed the presence of coliform in the drinking water.

In an email, the Daily Montanan asked the DOC to explain the severity of the test results and its response. A DOC spokesperson explained the process the DOC uses to meet standards but did not elaborate on the positive results for coliform.

The state samples water at the facility about three times per month, Stocker wrote in an email. Those samples are delivered to the DPHHS environmental division, which then reports the results to the Department of Environmental Quality.

“If there are any concerns with the results, Corrections works with DEQ to identify and address any problems and to ensure water meets the requirements of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act and state laws,” Stocker wrote. “This could include, but is not limited to, mitigation strategies such as boil advisories. The DOC continues to work with DEQ until a negative test result is achieved and the water is confirmed free from the contaminant.  When public notice is required, MSP posts that information in all public areas at the facility for staff and in the communal areas in the prison units for inmate access.”  

Sewer and water issues aren’t new at the prison, and last year, Montana Public Radio reported a sewage backup lasted for days.

“As a wife, it breaks me to know that my husband — and every man inside those walls — has been drinking, showering, and living in contaminated water for years,” said Ariana Smith, whose husband is also in the facility, said in a statement last week.

The National Guard has delivered thousands of gallons of water to the prison from the city of Deer Lodge. The prison is also drawing from two on-site wells, Lee Newspapers reported on Monday.

But there’s been major issues with the city of Deer Lodge’s water system as well. One of the city’s three public wells shut down following a 2013 violation for arsenic contamination.

“The two remaining wells are also susceptible to arsenic contamination due to the proximity of the Clark Fork River,” a 2024 Department of Natural Resources and Conservation environmental assessment states. “Having only two remaining production wells poses a severe risk to the City’s ability to provide reliable water service due to lack of redundant water supply.”

Deer Lodge — and the state prison — both lie within the Anaconda Company Smelter Superfund Site.

Milling and smelting operations produced high concentrations of arsenic, lead, copper, cadmium and zinc that contaminated soil and groundwater.

Last week, the Department of Corrections said it was going to take $21 million in appropriated money from 2025 budget legislation to “modernize” the prison’s water system following the break. This work is expected to take from 60 to 90 days, the DOC said in an Oct. 18 press release.

DOC officials said they have tried to find the source of the problem, calling in multiple water experts, the state’s National Guard and a Department of Natural Resources and Conservation command team. Last week, the DOC announced in a press release that water had been restored to the Secure Adjustment Unit and units 1 and 2 on the high-security side of the facility. 

Work to stabilize water access continued over the weekend, the agency said in an Oct. 18 press release. On Monday, 13 plumbers were expected to be on site, DOC Director Brian Gootkin said in a statement. A leak was found outside the A unit in the low security side of the prison, and the DOC said maintenance staff believe repairing that will help with water pressure in units A, B and C.

Some work to excavate pipes at the prison has to be done by hand, according to the DOC.

“It seems like every time we fix one leak, another one pops up affecting the system in a different way,” Gootkin said in a press release. 

The Department of Corrections also said a Department of Public Health and Human Services sanitarian inspected the prison last week and provided technical assistance on the safety and adequacy of the facility’s temporary water system. 

“The temporary water system inspected today meets the highest standards to ensure the health and safety of MSP inmates and staff,” DPHHS sanitation Jenna Fisher stated in a DOC press release.

A DOC release said Fisher confirmed that the facility is supplying necessities — including portable restrooms, showers, and bottled water — in quantities they said exceed levels recommended by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

On Friday, the Department of Corrections announced potable water trucks supplied the prison’s food factory, allowing that facility’s cooking operations to resume.

Additionally, the DOC said Fisher observed that the prison’s kitchen is maintaining safe sanitation — water is being boiled, the release said — and laundry facilities remain fully operational. 

Construction planning is also progressing, with plans to replace the failing water system to begin this week, the agency said.