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Lincoln County discusses reservoir repairs, animal shelter and modular biomass feasibility
Summary
County leaders described a leaking lower reservoir retaining wall, sought federal and USDA RD options for repair funding, outlined plans for a new animal shelter and described a feasibility study on modular biomass/waste‑to‑energy facilities to reduce landfill transport costs.
County officials used the meeting to describe several local infrastructure priorities that could qualify for disaster or community funding.
Reservoir and retaining wall: County officials said the lower reservoir retainer had started to leak and erode after the flood, reducing capacity and increasing stress on the structure. A county representative said crews installed a cofferdam and were dredging the reservoir while geotechnical work is underway; they asked whether disaster funds could cover anchoring and retaining‑wall repairs.
USDA and other funding options: Staff noted a USDA Rural Development contact (Tash Weiss Miller in Helena) who may have disaster‑related funds or loans for water, wastewater, community facilities, businesses and housing. Staff offered to connect county staff with that contact to explore eligibility.
Animal shelter and municipal facilities: Officials described an undersized animal shelter located in a county building on city land, which lacks capacity for typical intake levels. The county has hired two full‑time attendants and is considering acquiring land and grant funding for a new facility.
Waste management and waste‑to‑energy: County leaders described a feasibility contract with an engineering firm to study modular biomass/waste‑to‑energy plants that could process local wood waste and reduce long hauls to the Libby landfill. They said a modular approach could be scaled for Eureka, Libby and neighboring counties and pitched to investors as a circular‑economy project.
Budget examples cited: County leaders noted a $151,000 road repair bid as an example of near‑term cost, and that the county had recently completed a roughly $6 million landfill expansion funded with ARPA dollars to preserve future capacity.
Next steps: Staff suggested follow‑up to determine which projects fit FEMA, USDA RD or other funding streams and to assemble documentation and project packages for possible investor pitches or federal applications.
