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OCN > 2306 > El Paso County Regional Loop Water Authority, May 18 – Water quality tests look promising

El Paso County Regional Loop Water Authority, May 18 – Water quality tests look promising

By James Howald

The El Paso County Loop Regional Water Authority (EPCRLWA) board heard more detailed results of water quality testing at its May 18 meeting. President Jessie Shaffer updated the board on progress filling the project manager position the authority has advertised. Kevin Brown asked the board for direction on how to specify the schematic engineering design report for the project. Director Amy Lathen raised the issue of how to increase political support for the project.

The EPCRLWA was formed in November 2022 by an Intergovernmental Agreement between Cherokee Metropolitan District (CMD), Donala Water and Sanitation District (DWSD), the Town of Monument (TOM), and Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District (WWSD) to build infrastructure that would allow water, including treated effluent, that is flowing south in Monument and Fountain Creeks to be stored at Calhan Reservoir at Woodmoor Ranch and then pumped back north to be used by customers of the participating districts.

Few concerns with water quality

Richard Hood, of JVA Inc., the company the authority has hired to assess water quality and design the water treatment aspects of the project, summarized for the board a memo he wrote detailing the water quality results from testing done in March and April. Hood said the overall water quality is good, making the water relatively easy to treat. Tests showed the water quality was consistent, he said, with moderate pH and alkalinity levels. The tests showed moderate dissolved carbon and acceptable levels of iron and manganese. Total dissolved solids—a measure of minerals, salts, and metals—were slightly above the standard, Hood said.

Hood said standards for per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, commonly called PFAS, were announced by the Environmental Protection Agency in March but are not yet in effect. The standards are expected to be enforced in December 2026. Hood told the board these substances, which don’t break down over time and are linked to a wide range of health problems, should be watched carefully and will impact the design of the water treatment part of the project. Hood said the tests showed perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) levels at 9.5 parts per trillion. The target level is 4 parts per trillion. The tests for perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) showed levels at 16 parts per trillion. The target level is 4 parts per trillion.

Hood said the first samples were taken at the headgate of the Chilcott Ditch, the point at which the water is diverted from Fountain Creek. The next round will be drawn from where the Chilcott Ditch enters the Calhan Reservoir. This will provide a measure of changes that may be occurring as the water is conveyed through the ditch.

Project manager position generates interest

Shaffer told the board that the request for proposal for a project manager who will coordinate the work of the consultants and contractors needed for the project has seen many downloads from the BidNet site where it is posted, indicating lots of interest.

Direction sought on design proposal

Kevin Brown, an employee of CMD who is responsible for an RFP to develop a schematic engineering design report for the complete infrastructure required by the project, asked the board for direction on the question of who should make the final decisions on technical issues—the project manager that the board intends to hire or the board members themselves.

The schematic engineering design report is a detailed plan that will address issues such as the water treatment design, the location of pumping stations, the specifications for the several runs of pipeline that will need to be built, and so forth. The report will also document exactly which portions of the infrastructure each participating district will own and is needed to inform financial decisions. The EPCRLWA board plans to hire a consulting company to complete this report.

Brown recommended these decisions be made by the board members but felt either approach could work. The issue remained undecided.

Board will reach out to Mobolade

Director Amy Lathen, who represents CMD on the EPCRLWA board, suggested the board should reach out to Yemi Mobolade, the recently elected mayor of Colorado Springs. Director Mike Foreman, who represents TOM on the EPCRLWA board, said a meeting with Mobolade was already scheduled and agreed that the authority needs to increase its political representation.

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The next regular meeting is scheduled for June 15 at 9 a.m. Regular meetings are usually held on the third Thursday of each month at 9 a.m. at the Monument Town Hall at 645 Beacon Lite Road. Workshop meetings are held every Thursday at 9 a.m. at rotating venues. Please see loopwater.org or call 719-488-3603 to verify meeting times and locations.

James Howald can be reached at jameshowald@ocn.me.

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