What We Do
Partnerships
The Lolo Watershed provided the Salish people with hunting and fishing grounds, trappers with furs and trade; Lewis and Clark camped and traveled it while on their expedition. Today the watershed is divided and managed for a variety of interests including agriculture, recreation, hunting and fishing, timber production, and development. LWG recognizes that to adequately represent the diversity of interests, our partnerships must be strong, diverse, and continually growing. LWG has conducted extensive outreach and formed working relationships with the Lolo community, state and federal agencies, and non-profits. These valued partnerships have allowed our small organization to accomplish a considerable amount with very few resources and we are grateful to them.
Education
LWG provides a unique opportunity for students to learn about science in an outdoor context. Our typical education programs introduce concepts like clean water, sediment pollution, watershed function and the water cycle. These lessons are spent outside, near a stream to ‘see’ Lolo creek with new insight. The objectives are to present science in an imaginative and relatable way, provide a clearer understanding of the function and requirements of a healthy watershed, and how we impact those waters.
Public Outreach
Each year, LWG hosts a lecture series at Traveler’s Rest State Park that is open to the public. Past topics have included Living with Beaver and Fire, results of an extensive Lolo hydrologic study, tracking bull trout through eDNA research, and restoration in the Big Hole Watershed.
Stay tuned for this summer’s speaker series topics!
Restoration Work
Our restoration projects share common themes found in the Lolo Watershed Restoration Plan: improve stream health, address climate impacts, and honor landowner commitments.