History
Founder Gill Geesey (left) holding a sample while hardy volunteers assist (January 1999) |
In 1999, concern over potential water quality threats on the Gallatin River inspired several citizens to start a volunteer water quality
monitoring program. The concern was that future impacts to the river would not be as easily verified unless future data could be compared
to historical, or "baseline" data. After initial planning, the Blue Water Task Force was officially organized in the spring of 2000 by Dr.
Gill Geesey, a microbiology professor at Montana State University, and Jenny Ader, former chair of the Mountain Surf Chapter of the
Surfrider Foundation. Workshops were held at Montana State University to teach interested citizens about the techniques used to collect
and analyze river samples for water chemistry, aquatic insects, and periphyton. Volunteers from these workshops began collecting water
quality data in May 2000, and data was collected through January 2004.
By February of 2004, it became evident that the organization had evolved to a point where it could become an independent watershed group,
headquartered within the monitoring area and run by residents locally. The group officially stepped out from under the auspices of the
MSU Water Center in June, 2004, and established itself as the independent Blue Water Task Force, Inc.
The mission of the Blue Water Task Force is to protect and preserve the health of the Gallatin River Watershed. Through quarterly
data sampling, public education and outreach, coordination of projects, and collaboration with partners, the BWTF works to achieve
this mission.
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