About The CD

Conservation districts grew from public concern for the condition of our natural resources in the 1930s as a response to the ‘Dust Bowl’ days. In 1935, the US Congress declared soil and water conservation to be national policy, with the passage of Public Law 46. Today, there are almost 3000 conservation districts nationwide tackling a wide variety of natural resource issues. At the state level, Montana Conservation District Law (Section 75-7-101 through 75-7-124 MCA) was enacted to allow land users to form soil and water conservation districts in 1939, and the Ruby Valley Conservation District was formed that same year. There are 58 conservation districts throughout Montana working locally to fulfill the state’s policy to conserve soil, water, and other natural resources of the state.  A map of all Montana Conservation District regions is available online.

CDs have been entrusted by the state with mandated activities such as implementation of the 310 Law, water reservations, stream access portage routes, county planning board participation, and local Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) consultation. Also, CDs serve as the local point of contact for numerous federal programs. This is all in addition to the long-standing CD roles such as educating landowners about sound conservation practices, tree planting and organizing outdoor classroom educational activities for school children. The Ruby Valley Conservation District is guided by a board of directors with a shared concern for the health of the land and the region’s resources.

For more information about Conservation Districts in Montana, visit The Montana Association of Conservation Districts.

The Ruby Valley Conservation District meets the first Wednesday of every month at 7 pm. Meetings are open to the public, and location can vary by the month. 310 Permit applications are reviewed at RVCD Board Meetings. For information on how to apply, click here. Contact Shirley Galovic at rvcd@3rivers.net if you would like to be added to or receive an agenda.