The Colorado River this spring ran high, fast and so full of sediment pushed downstream from wildfire burn scars that the water treatment plant in Hot Sulphur Springs couldn’t keep up.
The sediment repeatedly clogged the town’s intake valves, forcing town leaders to issue an emergency order in April and call for residents to voluntarily cut back on water use.The 700-person town 30 miles northwest of Winter Park is the most recent Colorado community to deal with impacts to water supplies due to wildfires.
That dirt, rock, ash and debris eventually settles in reservoirs, reducing the amount of space available for water and sometimes clogging systems that take water from the reservoirs for treatment and use. A section of the East Troublesome Fire smolders off of Highway 40 near the town of Hot Sulfur Springs on Oct. 24, 2020. Three years later, sediment from the burn scars caused by the fire continues to impact water treatment in the area. Hot Sulphur Springs was able to provide enough water for its residents through the spring, but it came at a cost.
The city of about 3,500 people spent $100,000 shortly after the fires to replace filters on its water system because it couldn’t handle the amount of sediment in the water, said Trey Fonner, the town’s public works director. The town had to slow down water treatment to give more time for sediment to settle out of the water, he said.
The nutrients in the water from the fire have also increased algae blooms in Willow Creek Reservoir and Granby Reservoir, which means more treatment is required before the water is used.
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