City Encouraged by Northern Integrated Supply Project Developments, Releases Comments on Reports

Dated Press Release
NOTICE: This press release was released 241 days ago!
(Release Date: Mar-26-2009)

Kevin Gertig, Water Resources & Treatment Operations Manager, 221-6637,

John Stokes, Natural Resources Director, 221-6263,

The City of Fort Collins is pleased that the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District (Northern) and the Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) are undertaking efforts to respond to the City’s concerns about the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP). Many of the City's comments on the NISP Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) related to a critical lack of data and/or analysis on matters that impact the City's water quality. To the extent that more data is made available, it is welcome. However, until all of the necessary data has been developed and analyzed, the City of Fort Collins will continue to work to protect its citizens' health, safety and environment by diligently monitoring and responding to new developments related to these issues. Although the City of Fort Collins is not a partner in NISP, it plays a role in the federal permitting process due to NISP’s potential impacts on Fort Collins’ drinking water supply, wastewater treatment facilities, and the Poudre River.

The Army Corps recently agreed to the City’s request for a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS). This unusual step by the Corps was prompted by detailed comments from the City, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, the City of Greeley, and many other organizations and individuals. The Army Corps anticipates that the SEIS will be completed in 2010.

More recently, Northern issued three reports outside of the Army Corps’ federal permitting process pertaining to drinking water, wastewater, and contamination at a former missile site near the proposed location of Glade Reservoir.

The City of Fort Collins and the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District will discuss the details of these new reports as well as other matters in ongoing staff level meetings.

“Throughout the federal process we have been sharing substantial amounts of data with all parties involved,” said Kevin Gertig, City of Fort Collins Water Resources & Treatment Operations Manager. “Now we’re having face to face conversations about the analysis.”

The City’s response to these new reports is available online at http://fcgov.com/nispreview


Response to Report Findings

The recent reports include new information not previously available to the public. The drinking water report indicates that the impact to Fort Collins’ drinking water quality might not be as severe as originally believed.

However, based on the information currently available, impacts to the City’s water treatment facility are still potentially significant and could result in considerable costs to City ratepayers. The City continues to believe that contamination at the former missile site poses a potential danger to Fort Collins, the river and downstream communities. Additional groundwater monitoring and environmental impact modeling must occur to fully understand the situation.

The following concerns and questions must also be addressed with respect to the City’s wastewater treatment facilities. They are potentially significant and could result in considerable costs to City ratepayers.:

o Impact of water temperature changes due to lower Poudre River flow levels
o Impacts from potential reclassification of the Poudre River to non-degradation status by the State of Colorado (Water Quality Control Commission)
o A full description of NISP operational details

In addition, the City of Fort Collins continues to believe that more analysis is required to determine possible biological impacts to the Cache la Poudre River. A thorough disclosure of all biological impacts is necessary in order to develop detailed descriptions of how they are to be avoided or mitigated.

The City of Fort Collins hopes that these issues, and many others, will be addressed in the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement.

“We’re encouraged by the recent decisions to heighten and expand the analysis of potential impacts from NISP,” said Gertig, “the staff level meetings, the new information provided in the drinking water quality report, and the action by the Army Corps to require a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, are all steps in the right direction.”