Two well known explorers, Meriwether Lewis, of the Lewis & Clarke Expedition, and Captain John Mullan passed by this confluence in the nineteenth century. Prior to their passing the Kootenai, Salish, Nez Perce, Blackfeet, Crow and Shoshone Indians had traversed and lived in the area for millennia. These rivers were highly valued for the bull trout they provided the natives.
In 1907 W.A. Clark, one of the Butte Copper Kings, built a dam to generate power for his new lumber mill just downstream of the cofluence. Finished in January of 1908, the dam was pretty much destroyed that year by the largest flood of the Clark and Blackfoot Rivers in recorded history. The dam was rebuilt and remained in place until 2000.
Prior to that, in 1983, water wells in the area proved to be contaminated by arsenic and heavy metals. It turned out that the 1908 flood had washed millions of cubic yards of contaminated sediment down the Clark Fork which became trapped behind the dam. Through the next 70 odd years the heavier elements in the sediment were forced down through the ground, eventually entering aquifers below.
After study and testing, the area was declared a
Federal Superfund site, with cleanup beginning shortly after. The cleanup is mostly complete but the riverbanks are, for the most part, still out of bounds while vegetation becomes re-established. As a result, coordinates for this confluence were taken at Milltown State Park, which is a legacy of the Superfund project and not yet fully open. It has, however, a viewpoint which affords an excellent view of the confluence and the Superfund site.
The best place to get a feel for the Milltown Superfund site and to learn its history is at the
Milltown State Park, which overlooks the site. There are six historical markers in the park telling the story of this area's becoming a Superfund site and of the work that has been done, as well as what has yet to be accomplished. The markers are at the end of a paved walking path which leads downhill from a parking area on Deer Creek Road. Access to the road is from Highway 200 in Bonner via Speedway Avenue.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Clark Fork River was named not for William A. Clark, the Copper King who built the Milltown Dam, but rather William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806. Actually, this is rather strange, as Lewis and Clarke had split up for part of their return journey and only Lewis passed through here while Clarke took a more southerly route.
A small part of the river's story, from the informational plaques at the viewpoint, is reprinted below.
A Flood's Legacy
The river sediments that carried metals like arsenic, copper and cadmium piled up behind the Milltown Dam and were later covered by decades of cleaner river mud. The lack of oxygen in the buried sediments and the pressure from the reservoir's water caused the arsenic to move down into the area groundwater, polluting the local community's drinking water supply. In 1981, arsenic was discovered in local wells and soon the Milltown Reservoir was listed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the first Superfund site in the country.
WHAT IS SUPERFUND?
Administered by the EPA, the Superfund law seeks to clean up and restore polluted industrial sites across the nation. The law, formally known as CERCLA, identifies the parties responsible for the contamination and requires them to pay for the cleanups and site restoration. At the Milltown Reservoir Superfund site, the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) and North Western Energy have paid for the cleanup and restoration, estimated at more than $100 million.
CHANGING OWNERS FOR THE DAM
W.A. Clark died one of America's richest men in 1925 but his dam and industrial empire in Montana soon became part of the legendary Anaconda Company. Among its many holdings, "The Company" owned the mines in Butte, the smelter in Anaconda and the lumber mill in Bonner. In 1977, the Anaconda Company was bought by the Atlantic Richfield Company, which in turn was acquired by British Petroleum in 2000. Anaconda's affiliate, the Montana Power Company, owned and operated the Milltown Dam for generations. In 2002, the Montana Power Company was purchased by North Western Energy, which owned the 416-acre site until 2010 when it was acquired by the State of Montana.
MILLTOWN SUPERFUND TIMELINE
1908
Milltown Reservoir flooded with contaminated sediments.
1980
Congress passed the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), better known as the Superfund law.
1981
Arsenic discovered in Milltown drinking water; homes placed on bottled water.
1983
Milltown Reservoir listed as the first federal Superfund Site in Montana; the State of Montana sues ARCO for natural resource damages at Milltown and other upper Clark Fork River sites.
1985
New, safe drinking water well installed for Milltown residents.
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1996
Study of possible cleanup options nearly completed. Ice jam occurs.
1997
EPA and State begin multi-year effort to reevaluate and expand possible cleanup and restoration options.
2000
Dam removal and cleanup is proposed by Missoula County and the Clark Fork Coalition.
2003
Milltown Superfund Redevelopment Working Group begins community and park planning work.
2004
EPA and the State of Montana propose dam removal.
2005
The State of Montana, the United States, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, ARCO and NorthWestern Corporation reach a negotiated agreement to remove the dam and contaminated sediments and restore the river and floodplain.
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2007
Clark Fork bypass channel built; sediment removal begins.
2008
Milltown Dam powerhouse demolished; dam breached.
2009
Dam's spillway removed; sediment removal concludes.
2009-2012
Roughly 17,000 feet of river channel and 400 acres of floodplain are reconstructed in former reservoir area.
2010
Clark Fork River diverted into new channel.
2010-2012
State of Montana acquires former reservoir and surrounding lands to create Milltown State Park and begins park development.
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From the marker