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2024 CCR

SNAKE RIVER WD 2024 Drinking Water Quality Report 
Covering Data For Calendar Year 2023


Public Water System ID: CO0159105
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We are pleased to present to you this year’s water quality report.  Our constant goal is to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water.  Please contact SCOTT PRICE at 970-468-0328 with any questions or for public participation opportunities that may affect water quality.    

General Information

All drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants.  The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk.  More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791) or by visiting epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water.


Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population.  Immunocompromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV-AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk of infections.  These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers.  For more information about contaminants and potential health effects, or to receive a copy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and microbiological contaminants call the EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (1-800-426-4791).


The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. Contaminants that may be present in source water include:

  • Microbial contaminants: viruses and bacteria that may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife.
  • Inorganic contaminants: salts and metals, which can be naturally-occurring or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming.
  • Pesticides and herbicides: may come from a variety of sources, such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff, and residential uses.
  • Radioactive contaminants: can be naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.
  • Organic chemical contaminants: including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are byproducts of industrial processes and petroleum production, and also may come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff, and septic systems.

 

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment prescribes regulations limiting the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. The Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water that must provide the same protection for public health. 

Lead in Drinking Water

Lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. We are responsible for providing high quality drinking water and removing lead pipes, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components in your home. You share the responsibility for protecting yourself and your family from the lead in your home plumbing. You can take responsibility by identifying and removing lead materials within your home plumbing and taking steps to reduce your family's risk. Before drinking tap water, flush your pipes for several minutes by running your tap, taking a shower, doing laundry or a load of dishes. You can also use a filter certified by an American National Standards Institute accredited certifier to reduce lead in drinking water. If you are concerned about lead in your water and wish to have your water tested, contact SCOTT PRICE at 970-468-0328. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available at epa.gov/safewater/lead.

 

Source Water Assessment and Protection (SWAP)

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment may have provided us with a Source Water Assessment Report for our water supply. For general information or to obtain a copy of the report please visit wqcdcompliance.com/ccr. The report is located under “Guidance: Source Water Assessment Reports”.  Search the table using system name or ID, or by contacting SCOTT PRICE at 970-468-0328. The Source Water Assessment Report provides a screening-level evaluation of potential contamination that could occur. It does not mean that the contamination has or will occur. We can use this information to evaluate the need to improve our current water treatment capabilities and prepare for future contamination threats. This can help us ensure that quality finished water is delivered to your homes. In addition, the source water assessment results provide a starting point for developing a source water protection plan. Potential sources of contamination in our source water area are listed on the next page.

Please contact us to learn more about what you can do to help protect your drinking water sources, any questions about the Drinking Water Quality Report, to learn more about our system, or to attend scheduled public meetings. We want you, our valued customers, to be informed about the services we provide and the quality water we deliver to you every day.

 

Our Water Sources

Sources (Water Type - Source Type)

Potential Source(s) of Contamination

SUPPLEMENTAL WELL 1A (Groundwater-Well)
SNAKE RIVER WD WELL NO 1 BASE II (Groundwater-Well)
OWNERS WELL NO 3 (Groundwater-Well)
SITE 1 WELL NO 1 (Groundwater-Well)
SITE 1 WELL NO 2 (Groundwater-Well)
OWNERS WELL NO 2 (Groundwater-Well)
OWNERS WELL NO 4 (Groundwater-Well)
SUPPLEMENTAL WELL 1B (Groundwater-Well)

EPA Hazardous Waste Generators, Permitted Wastewater Discharge Sites, Aboveground, Underground and Leaking Storage Tank Sites, Solid Waste Sites, Existing/Abandoned Mine Sites, Other Facilities, Commercial/Industrial/Transportation, Low Intensity Residential, Urban Recreational Grasses, Deciduous Forest, Evergreen Forest, Septic Systems, Road Miles


Terms and Abbreviations

  • Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) − The highest level of a contaminant allowed in drinking water.
  • Treatment Technique (TT) − A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
  • Health-Based − A violation of either a MCL or TT.
  • Non-Health-Based − A violation that is not a MCL or TT.
  • Action Level (AL) − The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment and other regulatory requirements.
  • Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL) − The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial contaminants.
  • Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG) − The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.
  • Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG) − The level of a drinking water disinfectant, below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.
  • Violation (No Abbreviation) − Failure to meet a Colorado Primary Drinking Water Regulation.
  • Formal Enforcement Action (No Abbreviation) − Escalated action taken by the State (due to the risk to public health, or number or severity of violations) to bring a non-compliant water system back into compliance.
  • Variance and Exemptions (V/E) − Department permission not to meet a MCL or treatment technique under certain conditions.
  • Gross Alpha (No Abbreviation) − Gross alpha particle activity compliance value. It includes radium-226, but excludes radon 222, and uranium.
  • Picocuries per liter (pCi/L) − Measure of the radioactivity in water.
  • Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU) − Measure of the clarity or cloudiness of water. Turbidity in excess of 5 NTU is just noticeable to the typical person.
  • Compliance Value (No Abbreviation) – Single or calculated value used to determine if regulatory contaminant level (e.g.  MCL) is met. Examples of calculated values are the 90th Percentile, Running Annual Average (RAA) and Locational Running Annual Average (LRAA).
  • Average (x-bar) − Typical value. 
  • Range (R) − Lowest value to the highest value.
  • Sample Size (n) − Number or count of values (i.e. number of water samples collected).
  • Parts per million = Milligrams per liter (ppm = mg/L) − One part per million corresponds to one minute in two years or a single penny in $10,000.
  • Parts per billion = Micrograms per liter (ppb = ug/L) − One part per billion corresponds to one minute in 2,000 years, or a single penny in $10,000,000.
  • Not Applicable (N/A) – Does not apply or not available.
  • Level 1 Assessment – A study of the water system to identify potential problems and determine (if possible) why total coliform bacteria have been found in our water system.
  • Level 2 Assessment – A very detailed study of the water system to identify potential problems and determine (if possible) why an E. coli MCL violation has occurred and/or why total coliform bacteria have been found in our water system on multiple occasions.

Title: Blue Horizontal Line

Detected Contaminants

SNAKE RIVER WD routinely monitors for contaminants in your drinking water according to Federal and State laws. The following table(s) show all detections found in the period of January 1 to December 31, 2023 unless otherwise noted. The State of Colorado requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less than once per year because the concentrations of these contaminants are not expected to vary significantly from year to year, or the system is not considered vulnerable to this type of contamination. Therefore, some of our data, though representative, may be more than one-year-old. Violations and Formal Enforcement Actions, if any, are reported in the next section of this report.

Note: Only detected contaminants sampled within the last 5 years appear in this report. If no tables appear in this section, then no contaminants were detected in the last round of monitoring.

 

 

 

Disinfectants Sampled in the Distribution System
TT Requirement: At least 95% of samples per period (month or quarter) must be at least 0.2 ppm OR
If sample size is less than 40 no more than 1 sample is below 0.2 ppm
Typical Sources: Water additive used to control microbes

Disinfectant Name

Time Period

Results

Number of Samples Below Level

Sample Size

TT Violation

MRDL

Chlorine

December, 2023

Lowest period percentage of samples meeting TT requirement: 100%

0

10

No

4.0 ppm

 

 

 

 

Lead and Copper Sampled in the Distribution System

Contaminant Name

Time Period

90th Percentile 

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

90th Percentile AL

Sample Sites Above AL

90th Percentile AL Exceedance

Typical Sources

Copper

06/20/2023 to 09/20/2023

0.04

20

ppm

1.3

0

No

Corrosion of household plumbing systems; Erosion of natural deposits

Lead

06/20/2023 to 09/20/2023

3.3

20

ppb

15

0

No

Corrosion of household plumbing systems; Erosion of natural deposits

 

Disinfection Byproducts Sampled in the Distribution System

Name

Year

Average

Range
Low – High

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

MCL

MCLG

MCL Violation

Typical Sources

Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM)

2023

7.5

6.5 to 8.5

2

ppb

80

N/A

No

Byproduct of drinking water disinfection

 

 

     

 

 

Radionuclides Sampled at the Entry Point to the Distribution System

Contaminant Name

Year

Average

Range
Low – High

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

MCL

MCLG

MCL Violation

Typical Sources

Gross Alpha

2021

2

2 to 2

1

pCi/L

15

0

No

Erosion of natural deposits

Combined Uranium

2021

0.73

0.73 to 0.73

1

ppb

30

0

No

Erosion of natural deposits

Gross Beta Particle Activity

2021

5.4

5.4 to 5.4

1

pCi/L*

50

0

No

Decay of natural and man-made deposits

*The MCL for Gross Beta Particle Activity is 4 mrem/year. Since there is no simple conversion between mrem/year and pCi/L EPA considers 50 pCi/L to be the level of concern for Gross Beta Particle Activity.

 

Inorganic Contaminants Sampled at the Entry Point to the Distribution System

Contaminant Name

Year

Average

Range
Low – High

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

MCL

MCLG

MCL Violation

Typical Sources

Arsenic

2023

0.33

0 to 0.65

2

ppb

10

0

No

Erosion of natural deposits; runoff from orchards; runoff from glass and electronics production wastes

Barium

2023

0.02

0.02 to 0.02

2

ppm

2

2

No

Discharge of drilling wastes; discharge from metal refineries; erosion of natural deposits

Cadmium

2023

0.05

0 to 0.11

2

ppb

5

5

No

Corrosion of galvanized pipes; erosion of natural deposits; discharge from metal refineries; runoff from waste batteries and paints

Fluoride

2023

0.12

0 to 0.23

2

ppm

4

4

No

Erosion of natural deposits; water additive which promotes strong teeth; discharge from fertilizer and aluminum factories

Nitrate

2023

0.17

0.11 to 0.23

2

ppm

10

10

No

Runoff from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, sewage; erosion of natural deposits

 

 

 

 

 

Secondary Contaminants**
**Secondary standards are non-enforceable guidelines for contaminants that may cause cosmetic effects (such as skin, or tooth discoloration) or aesthetic effects (such as taste, odor, or color) in drinking water.

Contaminant Name

Year

Average

Range
Low – High

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

Secondary Standard

Sodium

2023

25.45

22.1 to 28.8

2

ppm

N/A

Total Dissolved Solids

2021

142

142 to 142

1

ppm

500

 

 

Unregulated Contaminants***

EPA has implemented the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) to collect data for contaminants that are suspected to be present in drinking water and do not have health-based standards set under the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA uses the results of UCMR monitoring to learn about the occurrence of unregulated contaminants in drinking water and to decide whether or not these contaminants will be regulated in the future. We performed monitoring and reported the analytical results of the monitoring to EPA in accordance with its Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR). Once EPA reviews the submitted results, the results are made available in the EPA’s National Contaminant Occurrence Database (NCOD) (epa.gov/dwucmr/national-contaminant-occurrence-database-ncod) Consumers can review UCMR results by accessing the NCOD. Contaminants that were detected during our UCMR sampling and the corresponding analytical results are provided below. 

Contaminant Name

Year

Average

Range
Low – High

Sample Size

Unit of Measure

perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)

2023

5.8

5 to 6.6

2

ppt

perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)

2023

11.2

9.3 to 13

2

ppt

perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)

2023

17.5

13 to 22

2

ppt

perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)

2023

4.6

3.1 to 6.2

2

ppt

perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)

2023

6.6

5.2 to 8

2

ppt

perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)

2023

4.2

4.2 to 4.2

1

ppt

perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)

2023

5.5

5.5 to 5.5

1

ppt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Violations, Significant Deficiencies, and Formal Enforcement Actions

Non-Health-Based Violations
These violations do not usually mean that there was a problem with the water quality. If there had been, we would have notified you immediately. We missed collecting a sample (water quality is unknown), we reported the sample result after the due date, or we did not complete a report/notice by the required date.

Name

Description

Time Period

LEAD & COPPER RULE

FAILURE TO MONITOR AND/OR REPORT

10/01/2023 - 10/26/2023

Additional Violation Information

Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.

Describe the steps taken to resolve the violation(s), and the anticipated resolution date:  For the lead and copper non-health-based violation, the samples were collected on time but were not reported by the lab on time.  The results were reported on 10/17/2023.  Additionally, a unavailable high risk sites document was not submitted on time and was submitted on 10/26/2023 which is the return to compliance date.