Jim Olson

The town of Belt has worked with the state for decades to tackle issues left by the Anaconda Coal Mine. A new multimillion-dollar water treatment facility will finally fix that. The plant will clean the acid drainage before discharging it back into the creek.

By October 2021, all of Montana was in severe drought — the worst the state had seen in decades. But Montana has seen bad dry spells before, forcing ranchers, farmers, conservationists and recreators to confront a collective dilemma: When water is in short supply, how can there be enough for everyone?