2018 and 2020 Upgrades
In April, 2018, the District installed two 1000 foot sections of plastic ditch liner in two sections to prevent seepage through the ditch wall. Its performance during the 2018 irrigation season was quite positive in that the areas below the ditch where seepage and swampy conditions occur are now much drier. Ditch flows also show an increase. The lining of additional leaky sections took place in 2020.
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Installation of a new trash rack at the Dam was completed in October, 2018 when the lake was at its lowest level. The trash rack sits in the entrance to the head gate and blocks entry of logs, large branches, etc... that could damage the head gate while permitting small branches, pieces of wood, etc... to pass through.
2011 Reconstruction
Reconstruction of the Tin Cup Dam was completed on November 7, 2011. The breech in the dam was filled and a new spillway was constructed. The front face of the dam was lined with an impermeable membrane and then covered with rock slope protection. A satellite-based remote control system has been installed that enables fine tuning of outflows to meet demands for in-stream flows and irrigation water. A water purchase agreement with the Columbia Basin Water Transactions Program via the Montana Water Trust and grant from Montana, Fish, Wildlife and Parks covered all costs of reconstruction. The storage capacity has been increased by 1089 acre feet to a total of 2000 acre feet. Under the terms of the water purchase agreement, 400 acre feet of the additional storage is allocated to enhance late season in stream flow in Tin Cup Creek,. This leaves 688 additional acre feet for irrigation. Thus the lake water available for irrigation is increased by 76%.
The benefits of the reconstruction are:
- Enhanced dam safety
- More late-season irrigation water
- Enhanced fish populations in Tin Cup Creek and the Bitterroot River
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