RED LODGE - Carbon County commissioners remain frustrated over debris they say still needs to be cleaned up from area streams after last year's flooding.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks did stop the process because it was concerned that too much natural debris was being taken out that would have been good for fish habitats.
Crews have removed about 60,000 cubic yards of debris from last year's floods in Carbon County, but there still may be more.
"There's a lot of stuff everywhere," said Commissioner Bill Bullock. "Everything you can imagine that could wash down a river."
Bullock says crews stopped picking up debris after FWP revoked the permit.
Mike Ruggles, FWP regional supervisor in Billings, says more natural debris was getting removed than what was allowed in the joint application for debris cleanup. So the agency went to individual permits for better oversight.
"Ended up resulting in much better communication," Ruggles said. "You know, recognizing where they're at. How much work they've done."
Ruggles said there will still be some man-made debris left because crews can't easily get to it or it may be on private land.
And they have to prioritize and may not get to everything.
"If it mobilizes, does it end up taking out a bridge?" Ruggles said. "Does it end up impacting the riverbank that can take out a road? Does it end up getting into other buildings or structures and being able to cause damage? If it's one or two pieces, they're likely not to stop in and grab those and go through the paperwork to get there."
Bullock says the commissioners' job of representing the people can conflict with FWP.
"Their job is to look out for wildlife, fish and game," Bullock said. "The two don't meet up very well, sometimes. We've resigned ourselves to this is how it's going to be. And we'll kind of hope and pray that we have a lot of what ifs. What if nothing happens next year? That's the what if we've got to count on right now."
Jake Ganieany, Montana Disaster & Emergency Services recovery and mitigation bureau chief, says about 120,000 cubic feet of debris has been removed from rivers, creeks and streams in Carbon, Stillwater, Park and Yellowstone counties.
Ganieany expects the cleanup to be finished by the end of the month.
