U.S. Water News Online
DENVER -- The Environmental Protection Agency says Colorado's oversight of sewage-treatment plants has lagged and the facilities operate under expired permits that allow too many pollutants to flow into drinking water.
More than 40 percent of Colorado's 103 major sewage treatment plants have outdated permits, an October survey by the EPA found. Only seven states had worse records.
``They're playing catch-up, and catch-up is a tough game to play,'' said Bruce Kent, of the EPA's Denver office. ``They have improved in the past year, but Colorado has made some horrible mistakes, and we've had to baby-sit them.''
Permits are supposed to be updated every five years to reflect scientific developments in water-quality protection. Some Colorado sewage plants have run since 1996 under expired permits that were extended but not updated, federal records show.
Among the biggest trouble areas is the South Platte River. Officials in Thornton say they may have to spend $30 million to remove sewage-based pollution from the river, which is a key source of drinking water.
Thornton officials blame much of the pollution on the Littleton/Englewood sewage plant, which has operated under an expired permit since 1996. That permit set no limits on nitrate pollution, which results from feces and fertilizer. A new permit would almost certainly contain nitrate limits, regulators said.
Ten miles downstream from Littleton/Englewood's discharge pipe is the intake for Thornton's drinking-water plant.
``The state needs to be more stringent on discharges into the South Platte River,'' said Bud Hart, water quality manager for Thornton, which serves 100,000 people. ``The state has done a poor job protecting the South Platte.''
State health officials say they have struggled because of management changes and Colorado's recent population boom.
Dave Holm, director of the water quality division of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which is responsible for monitoring the sewage plants, said state regulators have done their best with limited resources.
``Compared to other states in the region, we have many, many more permits to regulate but not really much more staff,'' Holm said. ``This is an issue we've been working very diligently on for a year now. The trend is improving. We're making significant headway.''
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