Imagine a lifeline slowly drying up, year after year. For hundreds of families on the Blackfeet Nation, this isn’t imagination—it’s the harsh reality of a historic drought threatening their cattle ranching heritage and economic stability. What does it mean when the very land that sustains you can no longer provide?

A historic drought has cast a long shadow over the Blackfeet Nation, severely jeopardizing its vital cattle ranching sector and the Indigenous economy it underpins. Situated amidst the sprawling prairies east of Glacier National Park, this region relies heavily on agriculture, with ranching serving as a cornerstone of financial stability for hundreds of families.

For the past five years, the Blackfeet Nation has grappled with an unrelenting Montana drought, transforming once-lush pastures into arid landscapes. Watering holes have vanished, and the essential growth of grass hay, crucial for livestock, has been severely impeded, leading to widespread financial hardship and profound stress across the community.

The impact is starkly visible in the declining cattle population, which saw a nearly 20% reduction between 2017 and 2022. This livestock crisis is particularly alarming for ranchers, as noted by Verna Billedeaux from the Blackfeet Nation Tribal Extension office. The lack of sufficient water forces animals to travel extensively, diminishing their body condition and critically impairing their reproductive capabilities, thus shrinking herds further.

Veteran ranchers like Francis “Boo Boo” Bird, with a quarter-century of experience on the Blackfeet Nation, recount unprecedented environmental changes. Springs that once flowed reliably for decades are now dry, potholes that were always full have disappeared, and islands have emerged in ponds never before seen. These firsthand accounts underscore the severity of the water scarcity and the profound changes to the landscape.

Beyond individual ranching operations, the economic health of Glacier County is intricately linked to the success of its cattle producers. When ranchers face thin profit margins due to the drought, their reduced spending reverberates through local businesses, highlighting the systemic fragility of the Indigenous economy in the face of environmental adversity.

The daily struggle for water is immense. Joe Kipp, another Blackfeet cattle rancher, illustrates the scale of the challenge: providing 20 gallons of water per cow on hot days translates to a staggering 4,000 gallons daily for his herd—equivalent to a semi-load of water. This relentless demand exacerbates the water scarcity and logistical difficulties.

Cattle ranching, inherently a cyclical industry with “boom or bust” phases, is being pushed to its limits by consecutive lean years. This prolonged period of hardship places immense strain on ranching families, threatening generational livelihoods and the cultural fabric tied to this traditional way of life within the Blackfeet Nation.

Compounding the challenges, tribal and Bureau of Indian Affairs policies regarding external cattle grazing have drawn criticism. Book St. Goddard, chair of the Blackfeet Nation Stock Growers Association, questions the logic of allowing thousands of outside cattle to graze on reservation lands already suffering from critical grass and water shortages, arguing that such practices exacerbate the drought impact and overgraze precious range units.