Prairie county, montana

Policy 19: Local and county government will have input and say on emissions and burning that occur in Prairie County.
Policy 20: Prairie Dogs and other animals, including predators, wild horses and burros should not be allowed to be a detriment to the private landowner.
Policy 21: Federal/State agencies involved in the protection and recovery of threatened and/or endangered species within Prairie County shall coordinate these specific plans with the Prairie County Commissioners and appropriate county board.
Policy 22: Federal, and state land, wildlife management and enforcement agencies shall coordinate with the Prairie County Commissioners and the appropriate board on all matters regarding wildlife.
Policy 23: Federal/State agencies need to coordinate their management practices within Prairie County with the Prairie County Commission, appropriate county board and affected party with regard to promotion of vegetative growth, grazing and management of wildlife.
Policy 24: Federal/State agencies should allow for sufficient recreational hunting of game animals as a management tool for population control. Otherwise, just compensation must be provided to the private landowner for the economic damage that was done to his/her operation.
Policy 25: Federal/State agencies responsible for monitoring the condition of wetlands, waterways and riparian areas in Prairie County shall coordinate these effects with the Prairie County Commission.
Policy 26: Federal/State agencies managing waterways, wetlands and riparian areas containing such threatened or endangered species shall coordinate their management activities and plans with the Prairie County Commission and/or the Prairie County Land Planning Board.
Policy 27: Any wilderness areas or Areas of Critical Environmental Concern shall be designated in Prairie County only with expressed written acknowledgement of the Prairie County Commissioners or upon recommendation of the Prairie County Planning Board.
Policy 28: Any Wild and Scenic River Designations shall be designated in Prairie County only with expressed written acknowledgement of the Prairie County Commissioners upon recommendation of the Prairie County Planning Board and shall comply with all county water use plans along with current and future federal/state water use plans.
Policy 29: Prairie County shall review all plans for the protection of all aquatic, threatened and endangered species within its boundaries. Acknowledgement from the County Commissioners must be received before any plans for protection of aquatic threatened or endangered species is recognized in Prairie County.
INFRASTRUCTURE STRATEGY
Infrastructure is a significant means of managing or guiding growth. Development is more likely to occur where infrastructure, such as roads, water, and sewer facilities are already in place.
Water Systems
Prairie County has several county-owned buildings located in Terry, including the County Courthouse and Senior Center. All County buildings have well water. The County buildings located in the Town of Terry are governed by the Town’s plans for providing services. The Prairie County Fairgrounds operate on a private water well.
Water in Prairie County is obtained from individually owned and operated groundwater wells, ranging from shallow dug wells along the creek valleys to deep drilled wells in the upland areas. The deep wells are highly mineralized.
Ground water in the County is in a variety of aquifers that are located in alluvial deposits or terrace deposits of sand and gravel, or it is in bedrock formation of sandstone, coal, fissile sandy shale, or baked clinker beds. The most significant ground water resources in Prairie County are alluvial deposits and terrace deposits along river valleys and in the inner valleys of most streams. The coarse deposits are the most permeable zones in the area.
Information regarding ground water wells is available on the Internet for all counties in Montana. Specific data from well records generated from the Groundwater Information System shows data on well location and depth, as well as water quality information at selected sites.
No new public systems, managed or administered by the County, are being proposed in this document.

Solid Waste Facilities
There are currently no solid waste facilities in Prairie County besides a city-owned class three landfill located approximately two miles west of Terry that only accepts compost and tree branches.
The Town of Terry is permitted with the Public Service Commission to pick up rural residents’ garbage. Areas for garbage pickups in Prairie County include all points within five miles of Interstate 94 from Custer County through Prairie County to Interchange 198 (Crackerbox Route), southwest of Glendive. Solid waste is hauled to the City of Glendive Landfill.
The Town of Fallon set up a solid waste district in the early 1980s. Current contracts include weekly pickup in Fallon and pickups include areas approximately five miles outside of Fallon. This service is assessed on residents’ taxes, funded through a Solid Waste District.
State regulations dictate disposal of garbage for rural residents outside of garbage pickup areas. Current guidelines state that if a landowner owns more than five acres, he or she can maintain a solid waste unit on their property as long as it doesn’t’ pollute the water, constitute a nuisance or pose a public health hazard. According to State law, it is illegal to burn garbage. More information on state regulations can be obtained from the County Sanitarian, located in Glendive.
Waste Water Systems
Wastewater treatment in Prairie County is by individual septic tanks and drain fields. The only public wastewater treatment systems in the county are those used by the City of Terry, which is outside of the jurisdiction of the County Planning Board and the Fallon Sewer District.
The Montana Sanitation in Subdivision Act requires review of proposed sewer and water systems prior to county approval for all new parcels less than 160 acres. The new systems must meet or exceed minimum standards of the State Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). DEQ is the administrator of the Sanitation in Subdivisions Act (MSIS), which governs sewer and water system requirements. The long-term trend for use of individual sewer and water systems will most likely remain as the predominant method of meeting sanitation system requirements in subdivisions.
The County Fairgrounds operates on a septic system designed and installed according to the Department of Environmental Qualities Circular 4.
The Town of Terry owns a sewage lagoon, located approximately one mile north of town.
Fire Protection Facilities
Fire protection in Prairie County is provided by volunteers. More information is located in the Local Services and Public Facilities section of this document.

Roads & Bridges
The County Commissioners cooperate with all entities involved in the construction of roads and bridges in Prairie County.
The construction of bridges is encouraged to not impair streamflow, causing downstream sedimentation.
Other infrastructure
Currently, there is no other infrastructure planned in Prairie County.

SUBDIVISION REVIEW
EVALUATION CRITERIA & PROCESS FOR REVIEW OF PROPOSED SUBDIVISIONS
Potential developers will be given a subdivision application, which is required to be completed. This application will be compared to the subdivision regulations to ensure that the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act and Sanitation Subdivision Act. The application will be forwarded to the Planning Board for a recommendation to the County Commission. The County Commission will review the recommendation and may add conditions of approval to the Preliminary Plat approval. Once the Preliminary Plat approval has been given by the County Commission, conditions of approval will have to be met in order for the County Commission to approve the Final Plat. Final Plats can then be filed with the Clerk and Recorder. Prairie County will adhere to all Montana laws on major and minor subdivision reviews. Subdivisions must be in compliance with the Floodplain Encroachment Act and all Sanitation laws.

INVENTORY OF EXISTING CHARACTERISTICS

AND GOALS & OBJECTIVES

A. POPULATION

Introduction
Counties in Montana experiencing the largest increase in population between 2003 and 2004 included Gallatin County (Bozeman), Flathead County (Kalispell) and Yellowstone County (Billings). The population in Prairie County has declined approximately 38% over the previous decade, while the State of Montana’s population has grown by 13% during the same time period. In 2000, Prairie County ranked 52^nd in county population when compared to the other 56 counties in the state.
Montana continues to see growth in its older population. People aged 55 to 59 are the fastest growing group in the state. The second fastest growing group of individuals in Montana is 60 to 64 year olds. The fastest declining age group is those ages 35 to 39.
Population Trends
According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the current population in Prairie County is 1,199 residents. This is the lowest count since the County was formed in 1915. There were 1,400 registered voters in 1915.
Population in Prairie County has been steadily declining since the drought of the 1930s. While the population peaked in 1930, one decade later, the County had lost over 1,500 residents. Between 1970 and 1980, the County population increased by 84 residents, only to lose 453 residents the following decade. Figure A.1 shows the population trends in Prairie County between 1920 and 2000.
Figure A.1



Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census.

Population trends in the six surrounding counties are displayed in the following tables:

Table A.1 Surrounding Counties 2000 Population and Rank in State

County	2000 Population	Rank in State
Custer	11,696	16th
Dawson	9,059	25th
Fallon	2,837	41st
Garfield	1,279	51st
McCone	1,977	47th
Prairie County	1,199	52nd
Wibaux	1,068	53rd

Source: www.ceic.commerce.state.mt.us
Table A.2 Surrounding Counties Population Trends 1980-2000

County:	Percent Change between 1980 & 1990	Percent Change between 1990 & 2000
Custer	-10.8%	-1%
Dawson	-19.5%	-4.69%
Fallon	-17.5%	-8.57%
Garfield	-4.0%	-19.51%
McCone	-15.8%	-13.14%
Prairie County	-24.7%	-13.3%
Wibaux	-19.3%	-10.33%

Source: Basic Demographic Trend Report. U.S. Census Bureau.
Figure A.2 shows population trends in Montana from 1920 to 2000. The population in Montana has been steadily increasing since 1930. The state saw a population decline between 1920 and 1930 of approximately 11,000 residents. The largest increase in population was between 1990 and 2000, with the state seeing an increase of 120,935 people move to Montana.
Figure A.2



Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census

Population by Age
The following table shows the population by various age categories for the past three censuses. Between 1990 and 2000, Prairie County’s population declined by 184 residents. There was a decrease in children ages 5-17, and adults 18-24 and 25-44 and an increase in residents ages 45-64. The number of residents ages 65-74 decreased by 64 residents, while the population for residents over the age of 76 increased by 3 people. The median age for residents in Prairie County increased by 5 ½ years between 1990 and 2000, and increased 9 years between 1980 and 1990. The median age for the State of Montana in 2000 was 37.5. Table A.3 displays Census information on the population by age in Prairie County for 1980-2000.
Table A.3 Population by Age Group: 1980-2000

	Total	Ages 0-4	Ages 5-17	Ages 18-24	Ages 25-44	Ages 45-64	Ages 65-74	Ages 75+	Median Age
1980 Census	1,836	135	389	159	435	390	328		34.4
Percent	100.0	7%	21%	9%	24%	21%	18%
1990 Census	1,383	69	258	64	336	306	192	158	43.4
Percent	100.0	5%	19%	5%	24%	22%	14%	11%
2000 Census	1,199	50	174	52	240	394	128	161	48.9
Percent	100.0	4%	15%	4%	20%	33%	11%	13%

Source: U.S. Census of Population and Housing, 1990; Census 2000, Summary File 1.
Median age is defined as a measure that divides the age distribution into two equal parts: one-half of the cases falling below the median value and one-half above the value. Median age is computed on the basis of a single year of age distribution.
Population by Education and Sex
In 2000, 76% of the population of Prairie County responded to the education question on the U.S. Census. According to these numbers, approximately 32% of the population in Prairie County completed high school, 9% completed an Associates Degree, 12% have a Bachelors Degree, and 2% of the population completed a Masters Degree. Table A.4 displays the education of the population of individuals in Prairie County for persons over 25, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Table A.4 Population Education

	Prairie County	Percent Male	Percent Female	Total Percentage of population
Persons (over 25 and older)	913	50%	50%	100%
Less than ninth grade	129	8%	6%	14%
Some high school, no diploma	65	4.4%	2.6%	7%
High School diploma	295	17%	15%	32%
Some college, no degree	210	12%	11%	23%
College, Associate Degree	79	2%	7%	9%
College, Bachelor Degree	112	5%	7%	12%
College, Master Degree	17	1.6%	0.4%	2%
Professional Degree	6	0.5%	0.5%	1%

Source: Census 2000, Summary File 3
Over the previous three decades, the education of the population of Prairie County has remained relatively the same, with an increase of approximately 5% of the population obtaining a 4-year college degree between 1980 and 1990.
Table A.5 Historical Population Education

1980 % 1990 % 2000 %

Education, Population 25+ 1,153 100.0% 994 100.0% 913 100%

High School Diploma 363 31.5% 331 33.3% 295 32%

College Degree (4+ yrs) 92 8.0% 131 13.2% 112 12%

Source: 1980 and 1990 summary tape files 3, U.S. Bureau of the Census
Population by Race
According to 2000 Census data, the current racial composition of the Prairie County population is 98 percent Caucasian and 2 percent other.
Location of Population
In 2000, over half of the population in Prairie County lived in Terry. Table A.6 compares the location of the population for the previous three decades.
Table A.6 Location of Population

Place	2000 Census	1990 Census	1980 Census
Terry	611	659	929
Prairie County	588	724	907
Total	1,199	1,383	1,836