The state of Montana filed suit with the U.S. Supreme Court against Wyoming over water rights, claiming Wyoming's excessive use of water from two river systems is leaving downstream Montana ranches and farms dry. The dispute over the Tongue and Powder rivers marks a sharp escalation in a water fight between the two states. The region is suffering through a prolonged drought dating to 1999. The lawsuit alleges Wyoming is ignoring Montana's "senior" water rights by taking more water from the rivers than allowed under the 1950 Yellowstone River Compact...The lawsuit also names North Dakota as a defendant, but only because that state also is part of the water compact...In yet another front in the water war, the two states are mired in a federal lawsuit over poor-quality water that is a byproduct of some of the more than 20,000 coal-bed methane wells in northern Wyoming. After Montana won approval to regulate that water if it flows across its borders, Wyoming and the energy industry sued last year to repeal the regulation...Montana officials said they were forced into legal action by Wyoming's refusal to answer prior requests for more water from the Tongue and Powder rivers in 2004 and 2006.

Similar articles, February 2, 2007--Montana Sees Red; Sues Over Wyoming's Greener Pastures and February 4, 2007--Drought Leaves Montana, Wyoming Fighting for Water were both published in the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. A February 9, 2007--Long Dry Spell Leaves States Fighting for Water was also published in the Durango Herald. For copies of the original articles contact the WIP at (970) 247-1302 or stop by the office at 841 East Second Avenue in Durango.