Cleaning up the tap

Meanwhile, the silt load remains the most immediate problem, and the city and the Florida River Conservancy are undertaking dramatic steps to remedy the problem. For Durango, the biggest solution will come with a $1 million upgrade to the plant. The money, which is being drawn primarily from the city’s water fund, will go toward the expansion of the water treatment plant’s solids-handling facilities. According to Rogers, with this permanent fix, the city will be more capable of handling future sediment load, something that certainly is on the horizon. In addition, sedimentation-settling basins will be added to the plant to the tune of $137,000 to further remove debris and sediment.

Rogers says the city also will undertake test drilling off East Animas Road on the old Kroeger Ranch in an effort to find an alternative water source. “Wells would be a good standby source of water in the event the water quality problems continue,” says Rogers. Though preliminary approval has been gained from the Division of Water Resources for the wells, impacts on other residential wells have to be considered. Test holes will be drilled to 140 feet later this week to determine if the aquifer would support municipal use.

Cloud seeding in the Florida River drainage is a less orthodox plan that the city plans to follow to remedy the water-quality situation. This winter, six additional seeding stations to the tune of $5,000 will be added in an effort to boost snowpack, a veritable bargain some commission members say.

“$5,000 seems cheap if you get the water,” said Water Commission member Bob Wolff.

Holding back the flows

The Florida Water Conservancy District and the U.S. Forest Service also are undertaking substantial on-the-ground efforts to improve water quality in the Florida River.

“What we’re trying to do in the Florida River Basin is try to implement some best management practices to reduce the storm runoff in severely burned areas,” said Peter Foster of Wright Water Engineers. “We’re trying to really pinpoint some priority areas and work on them to enhance the water quality for the city of Durango’s drinking-water intakes.”

The Conservancy District has created “check dams” as well as log erosion barriers and “trash racks” in two separate drainages all aimed at removing debris and sediment from the river. This effort, combined by a similar one by the Forest Service, has seen immediate and dramatic results.

“They’ve had great success already at minimizing the storm runoff up there,” said Foster.

Seeding and mulching also are being undertaken in “an effort to give Mother Nature a kick start,” he added. While the progress has been strong, there is still ground to cover. “The problem with it is there are more drainages than these two, so it will take some time for the whole river to see the improvements,” says Foster.

And Mother Nature will likely need more than a kick start to recuperate from this summer’s burns and the resulting flooding. However, with talks of El Nino brewing, everyone’s hopeful for one thing that will give Durango a large head start on next year.

“I just remember that after the 1977 drought, 1978 and 1979 were huge snow years,” said Wolff.