Montana
State considers removal of illegal Smurfit Stone outfall pipes
MISSOULA — The state of Montana is looking into removing several illegal outfall pipes that jut from the Smurfit Stone mill site into the Clark Fork River.
On Thursday, Ryan Weiss, deputy Trust Lands administrator for the Montana Department of Natural Resources Conservation, told the Legislative Environmental Quality Council that his department needs to do a more thorough investigation of the outfall pipes emanating from the Smurfit Stone mill site before it knows what action to take.
“We’ve done essentially a qualitative assessment; we don’t know what the pipes look like beneath the ground,” Weiss said. “I don’t know if there’s anything being discharged from the pipes.”
The DNRC has determined that it has the authority over the pipes because several of them protrude into the Clark Fork River below the low-water level. Anything below the low-water level of streams and lakes is considered state property.
Weiss said his staff couldn’t find any record of the DNRC or its predecessor, the Department of State Lands, giving anyone authorization to install the pipes on state property, so it’s a matter of illegal trespass. There’s also no record of when the pipes were installed, and no one knows if they’re leaking anything.
According to a Dec. 8 memorandum that DNRC staff sent to Weiss, pipes at two and possibly three locations extend into the Clark Fork River below the low-water line. At Outfall 2, a 3-foot-diameter steel pipe angles about 40 feet from the berm into the river at a point above some of the landfills and sludge ponds. Outfall 1 is slightly upstream, but no pipe is obvious there. The memorandum said relic structures could be buried so more investigation is needed.
Farther downstream near the western end of the site, Outfall 3 has six metal pipes hooked to a diffuser. One is a 3-foot-diameter pipe and the rest have a 1-foot diameter. All extend at least 5 feet into the river.
While the pipes should be removed, Weiss said the DNRC is uncertain how to proceed. It could write a letter of authorization approving removal of the pipes by the potentially responsible parties – three landowners responsible for paying for the site cleanup — although Weiss said it was currently unknown which parties are responsible for the pipes.
Because the DNRC doesn’t have regulatory authority, that’s about all it can do outside of filing a lawsuit, Weiss said. So the DNRC has to work with other state agencies that have regulatory authority such as the Department of Environmental Quality.
Add to that the complications of the Smurfit Stone site being involved in a federal cleanup process.
“We could go the voluntary (cleanup) route or we could look at other legal mechanisms, such as a civil trespass action,” Weiss said. “My concern would be demanding (the pipes) be removed without coordinating with the other agencies to ensure there aren’t inadvertent consequences to water quality or soil disturbance by forcing a removal before we have all the data.”
DNRC staff first did a site visit in November 2019 with Environmental Protection Agency project manager Allie Archer and Montana Natural Resource Damage Program environmental specialist Brian Bartkowiak. At that point, it was known that the Montana Department of Health and Environmental Sciences had issued a Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit for the outfalls in 1995.
DNRC staff conducted a second site visit this past November with the EPA and a consultant for the potentially responsible parties, who would have to pay for removing the pipes. At that point, Archer said the DNRC would have to coordinate with the EPA on any plans or work to remove the pipes, according to the Dec. 8 memorandum.
Rep. Jonathan Karlen, D-Missoula, expressed concern that the pipes wouldn’t be removed if the potentially responsible parties refused to pay.
“For these pipes, which it seems like all sides agree are trespassing, that we expedite the process of compelling removal, hopefully voluntarily, but if not, I don’t think we should just wait for a voluntary action,” Karlen said.
Sen. Pat Flowers, D-Bozeman, urged Weiss to create a DNRC process for assessing penalties.
“Without that, I think you’re encouraging any bad actor to put whatever infrastructure they want on state lands and hope that they don’t get caught,” Flowers said.
Contact reporter Laura Lundquist at lundquist@missoulacurrent.com.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at July 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from July 10 drawing
02-39-44-46-56, Mega Ball: 23
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from July 10 drawing
10-13-23-30, Bonus: 02
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from July 10 drawing
14-42-46-47-57, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
DILLON, Mont. — Low oxygen levels and excess nutrients led the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to officially determine that the Big Hole River is impaired, state officials said.
The conditions are affecting aquatic life and recreation along parts of the river. Officials said the nutrients can fuel algae and plant growth, especially during hot, low-water conditions.
The Big Hole has been the focus of water quality restoration efforts for decades, with more than $1.3 million in federal Clean Water Act funding invested since 1988.
The impairment will be included in DEQ’s next water quality report. Restoration work and funding for the watershed will continue.
In these Montana towns a stranger rarely stays a stranger for long. Shopkeepers in Philipsburg know their regulars by name. Bigfork neighbors fill the same theater seats every summer. Livingston locals still swap trail tips with visitors over coffee. The welcome here comes from people who greet newcomers like they belong. These eight communities show what small-town Montana hospitality looks like up close.
Whitefish
Whitefish sits within an hour of Glacier National Park, and that proximity shapes everything about the town. Central Avenue runs on covered Old West walkways lined with local shops, restaurants, and galleries, and the crowd shifts with the seasons as skiers give way to summer hikers.
Glacier National Park draws visitors with hundreds of miles of hiking trails, alpine lakes, and the scenic Going-to-the-Sun Road. Closer to town, Whitefish Lake offers public beaches, boat rentals, paddleboarding, and fishing during the warmer months. When winter arrives, Whitefish Mountain Resort becomes the area’s main attraction, with ski runs, snowboarding terrain, and gondola rides overlooking the Flathead Valley. Even after a day outdoors, many visitors return to downtown Whitefish to browse local shops or settle in at the town’s restaurants and breweries.
Bigfork
Sitting on the northeastern shore of Flathead Lake, Bigfork pairs a working harbor with a downtown built around its artists. Galleries and studios cluster within a few walkable blocks, and the water is never out of sight for long.
Flathead Lake is the town’s biggest draw, with boating, kayaking, fishing, and swimming on the largest natural freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River in the lower 48 states. Just offshore, Wild Horse Island State Park lets visitors hike among native wildlife, including wild horses, bighorn sheep, bald eagles, and mule deer. Theater lovers can catch a Broadway-style production at Bigfork Summer Playhouse, which has staged live performances for decades. Before leaving town, visitors can browse the independently owned galleries and studios showcasing paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and other work by Montana artists.
Philipsburg
Philipsburg made its money in silver, and the painted storefronts along Broadway Street date to those boom years. The old buildings now hold local businesses, and the mining past is easy to trace from one block to the next.
A visit to Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine lets visitors sift through mining gravel for Montana sapphires, many of which can be cut into finished gemstones. Just outside town, Granite Ghost Town State Park preserves the remains of a silver mining community, with abandoned buildings that mark the region’s boom years. Those interested in local history can stop at the Granite County Museum, where exhibits cover the area’s mining industry and early settlement. Before leaving, many visitors make time for The Sweet Palace, a candy store that has become one of the town’s signature stops.
Livingston
Livingston sits on the Yellowstone River and serves as a northern gateway to Yellowstone National Park. Restored commercial buildings house an active arts scene, and the Absaroka Range rises just south of the rooflines.
The historic downtown works as the town’s main visitor area, with independent bookstores, outfitters, cafes, and long-standing local businesses inside restored commercial buildings. At the Yellowstone Gateway Museum, exhibits trace the region’s history through Indigenous presence, railroad expansion, and early settlement in the Yellowstone Valley. Small galleries across the downtown core show work by regional artists whose subjects often reflect the river valley and the mountains around it.
Red Lodge
Red Lodge marks the start of the Beartooth Highway, one of the highest paved roads in the country. Its compact, walkable downtown keeps locally owned shops and restaurants busy in every season.
The Beartooth Highway climbs into the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and continues toward Yellowstone National Park, with steep mountain passes, alpine lakes, and long-range views. In winter, Red Lodge Mountain becomes a major recreation area for skiing and snowboarding, with terrain that draws residents and visitors alike. During the warmer months, hiking trails in the surrounding mountains open onto forests, ridgelines, and wildlife viewing areas. Downtown Red Lodge stays active year-round, with local businesses and historic buildings packed into a walkable core.
Choteau
Choteau sits where the prairie meets the Rocky Mountain Front, and dinosaurs put it on the map. Fossil beds nearby produced some of the most important dinosaur nesting discoveries in North America, and the town leans into that history.
At the Old Trail Museum, exhibits cover the region’s natural history, including fossil finds and artifacts tied to its prehistoric past. The surrounding country is known for wildlife viewing, with elk, deer, and many bird species in the foothills and open plains near town. Just outside Choteau, fossil sites linked to major dinosaur discoveries have built the area’s reputation in paleontology research. The Rocky Mountain Front opens onto hiking routes and wide viewpoints where the plains give way to the peaks.
Stevensville
Stevensville is the oldest permanent settlement in Montana, founded in 1841 as St. Mary’s Mission. It sits in the Bitterroot Valley between the Bitterroot and Sapphire mountains, and the town center still runs at a slower pace.
St. Mary’s Mission is the town’s most significant landmark, preserving the mission’s early buildings and marking the first permanent Euro-American settlement in what became Montana. The Bitterroot Valley around Stevensville is known for its orchards, farmland, and mountain views, and it serves as a corridor to nearby communities and recreation areas. Local boutiques and small shops fill a compact town center that reflects its long history. Hiking trails in the nearby foothills reach forested terrain, open meadows, and views of the Bitterroot Mountains, drawing the most traffic during the warmer months.
Virginia City
Virginia City boomed after an 1863 gold strike in Alder Gulch, and much of that town survived. Wooden boardwalks, original storefronts, and period buildings still line the Main Street, so a walk here doubles as a walk through the 1860s.
Historic structures throughout the town can be toured to see how miners, shopkeepers, and early settlers lived during the gold rush era. Several small museums and preserved buildings cover mining equipment, frontier life, and local governance during the 1800s. Costumed interpreters run seasonal reenactments as well, recreating daily routines and events from Virginia City’s early years.
Small Towns Worth the Detour
These eight towns show how much Montana packs into its smaller communities. Livingston and Whitefish put national parks within reach of a walkable downtown, while Philipsburg and Virginia City keep their mining-era streets intact and open to visitors. Choteau turns fossil country into a point of local pride, and Stevensville carries the state’s oldest roots. Anyone looking for genuine small-town hospitality will find plenty of it across these Montana communities.
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