Irrigation Districts and Water Shares in Ravalli County

What is the difference between an irrigation district and a ditch company?

Both deliver water to many users through shared works, but they are organized differently. An irrigation district is organized under Title 85, chapter 7 of the Montana Code Annotated, is governed by a board of commissioners, and levies taxes and assessments on the irrigable land inside it. A ditch company or water users' association is a member organization that maintains the headgate and conveyance system its members share. MSU Extension's ditch article describes the second kind: multiple users sharing infrastructure may form a ditch company, and maintenance is paid by ditch owners or water users and is typically not a public expense.

Either way, the MSU Water Rights FAQ explains the key consequence for a landowner: if you are serviced by a ditch company or irrigation district, you may not hold a water right for that use yourself. The company, association or district holds the rights, and you hold shares or an entitlement in it.

Which irrigation districts serve the Bitterroot?

We are not aware of a single official roster for Ravalli County, so we only name the ones whose details we could confirm. The Bitter Root Irrigation District, often called the Big Ditch or BRID, was described by NBC Montana (in a story first published in 2012 and updated in 2016) as the largest irrigation district in Ravalli County, with a canal of about 72 miles running from south of Hamilton to the Eagle Watch area near Florence, water stored at Lake Como, and roughly 17,000 acres depending on it.

The Daly Ditches Irrigation District is described in a DNRC dam safety case study as founded in 1982, with infrastructure originally built by a private entity in the late 1880s, irrigating 6,108 acres for 778 users with its primary diversion on the Bitterroot River. DNRC's case study covers the Hedge Canal diversion dam about 6 miles north of Darby, rebuilt in 2010 and 2011, which supplies water to 41 percent of district users. Numbers like these change, so treat them as what the sources said when published and ask the district for current figures.

Many smaller ditch companies and associations serve the valley as well. If your property has a headgate or a lateral, the deed, the county records or a neighbor on the same ditch will usually tell you who runs it.

How are irrigation district assessments collected?

Through the county property tax system. Section 85-7-2136 MCA says the county treasurer of each county in which a district lies collects the district's taxes and assessments in the same manner and at the same time as county real estate taxes, and that the district's board sends the Department of Revenue a list of district lands and amounts by the third Monday in August so the department can enter the assessment roll in the county's property tax record. The statute also allows payment in semiannual installments and says the treasurer may not collect county taxes on land with an unpaid district assessment unless that assessment is paid.

So if your Ravalli County tax statement includes an irrigation line, that is how it got there. Ditch companies and private associations are different: they generally bill their members directly under their own bylaws, which is why it matters which kind of organization serves your land.

Can a district assessment become a lien on the property?

Yes. Section 85-7-2108 MCA provides that a special tax or assessment levied by a district is a lien on the entire 40-acre tract or fractional lot, or on the whole platted lot for subdivided land, attaching as of January 1 of the year it is levied. Part 21 of the chapter also contains sections on delinquent sale and redemption. In plain terms, unpaid district charges follow the land, which is why a title search on irrigated ground should pick them up.

Do you pay if your land cannot be irrigated?

Montana law addresses this. Section 85-7-2110 MCA says a special tax or assessment may not be levied on a tract that the board of commissioners finds has no irrigable land, and that after the board's order of determination, no new lien attaches to a nonirrigable tract. The same section ties voting rights in district elections to having irrigable land. If a parcel was split and part of it built over, the question of how the remaining acreage is classified is one for the district board.

Subdivision law adds a related point. Section 76-3-504 MCA allows a subdivision with an average lot size of 1 acre or less to skip ditch easements only if buyers are told the land is classified as irrigated and may continue to be assessed for water delivery even if the water is not deliverable. Small-lot owners in older Bitterroot subdivisions sometimes discover this on their first tax bill.

What does a share actually get you?

That depends entirely on the organization's rules, which is why the bylaws or district rules are the document to read. Typical questions are how many shares or acres are attached to the parcel, when the delivery season usually starts and ends, whether water is delivered continuously or on a rotation, who opens and sets the headgate, and what the member is responsible for maintaining downstream of the main ditch. MSU's ditch article notes that right holders must stay within the amount in their right and pay maintenance costs.

How shares or entitlements move to a new owner depends on the organization's bylaws or rules, while a district's assessments are a lien on the land itself under section 85-7-2108. Confirm how the transfer works with the organization before you close on a property.

What should you ask before buying land with district or ditch water?

We are a landscape and irrigation contractor, not a title company or water lawyer, but these are the questions we see buyers wish they had asked. Which organization delivers the water, and who is the contact? How many acres or shares are attached to this parcel, and are they in good standing? Is there an irrigation line on the tax statement, and what was it last year? Where is the headgate, who sets it, and what is the rotation? Is there a recorded ditch easement or a plat showing it? Has any water been severed or removed from the land? DNRC's Water Rights Query System, the county treasurer, the plat and the organization's office together answer most of them.

This is general information, not legal advice. Water law turns on the documents and history of a specific property, so confirm anything that matters with DNRC or a Montana attorney who practices water law.

Can district water run a sprinkler system?

Sometimes, and it takes design. Ditch water is untreated surface water, so a system fed from it needs a pump sized to the delivery, filtration to keep sediment and debris out of heads and emitters, and a plan for the weeks when the ditch is not running. It must also stay completely separate from your household plumbing. Colorado State University Extension notes in its drip irrigation guide that filters need cleaning more often with well or pond water than with municipal water, and the same logic applies to ditch water.

On many small acreages the practical answer is a split: flood or pasture irrigation from the ditch on the open ground, and a pressurized sprinkler and drip system on the house lot fed from the domestic supply or a well. Our guides to irrigating from a well, drip irrigation and acreage landscaping cover those pieces, and the ditch and water rights guide covers what you may and may not do near the ditch itself.

How can HJ help on district-irrigated property?

We design and install the pressurized part: sprinkler and drip systems for the house lot, zones matched to what is planted, and the fall sprinkler blowout that protects them. We do not set headgates, hold water rights or advise on share transfers. This guide is part of our Montana Landscaping, Lawn & Irrigation Guide, and our irrigation systems page explains how we build. Call HJ Property Care & Tree Service at (406) 215-7319 or request a free estimate. We work across Missoula and Ravalli counties, from Missoula and Lolo to Florence, Stevensville, Corvallis, Victor, Hamilton and Darby.

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