I Need Water Rights — What’s Next?
The Gallatin River Basin is part of the Upper Missouri River Basin, which is a closed basin, meaning no new surface water rights can be created. All legally available water from streams, lakes, and reservoirs has already been allocated. As a result, any new use of water — including drilling a well, building a home, expanding irrigation, or starting a development — must be offset.
Gallatin Water Trust can help you:
Identify available water rights
We help you find water rights that can be leased, purchased, or transferred to meet your project’s needs.
Navigate DNRC permitting
and mitigation
We guide you through the required change or mitigation process to ensure your new use is legal and does not harm existing users or Montana’s fisheries.
Connect with potential sellers
or partners
We match you with landowners who are interested in selling or leasing all of or a portion of their water rights — and make sure those rights can be used responsibly.
Working with GWT is voluntary and designed to support both landowners and the watershed.
What about Groundwater
In Montana, drilling a new well requires a permit from the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC).
Because groundwater and surface water are connected, new wells can reduce streamflow or impact other water users. To prevent harm, most new uses must be mitigated — meaning the impact must be offset using an existing water right.
Gallatin Water Trust helps make this possible by connecting new users with water rights that can be donated, leased, or transferred to meet mitigation requirements and ensure the use is legally sound.
Why It Matters
Keep Streams
Flowing
Supporting Ranches
and Farms
Meeting Community
Water Needs
Allow Responsible
Growth
Ensuring New Uses do not harm fisheries or downstream users