Water Treatment and Resources | Town of Superior, Colorado

Potable Water

The Water Division provides services to residential and commercial water customers, maintains compliance with water regulatory requirements, develops and administers water conservation programs, and participates in regional water industry projects and organizations.

To report taste and order issues please email the Public Works Department at pwu@superiorcolorado.gov. with your location and any contact info you would like to leave.

If you are experiencing health/sickness issues or other symptoms please contact your physician and contact Boulder County Public Health’s Disease Reporting Line at 303-413-7523.

Cross Connection Control

The Town of Superior maintains a program to monitor backflow prevention and cross-connection control on non-single-family water connections in order to protect the municipal potable water supply. Customers are required to perform annual testing of backflow prevention devices and surveys for cross-connections. This primarily applies to business owners and property managers. Questions may be directed to the Public Works & Utilities Department.

Reclaimed Water

Reclaimed water is treated, effluent water from the wastewater treatment plant; this is former sewage that has been chemically treated to remove solids and impurities for commercial landscape irrigation. Reuse water has its own distribution system and appurtenances - meter vaults, sprinkler heads, etc. - which are painted purple for identification and delineation from the drinking (potable) water system.

All customers using reclaimed water for irrigation must comply with the Town's requirements. Please contact the Public Works & Utilities Department or view this Annual User Training Presentation for information on these requirements.

Water Resources

The Town receives the majority of its raw, untreated water from snow melt in the Upper Colorado River Basin as part of Northern Water's Big Thompson Project. The water travels through a series of pipelines, intermediate reservoirs and canals before finally making its way to Terminal Reservoir at the water treatment plant south of Original Town. Terminal reservoir can hold approximately 130 million gallons (about 400 acre feet) of water; on average, the Town treats about 2 million gallons per day. View this map showing the journey our water takes to get to your faucet.

More information can be found about the Windy Gap Firming Project presentation from the 10/26/2020 Board Meeting.

To view information from the board meeting please click the 10/26/2020 Board Meeting link - 10/26/2020 Board Meeting

To view the presentation please click the Windy Gap Firming Project link - Windy Gap Firming Project

Marshall Fire

Background and Introduction

The Town’s water treatment facilities suffered damage from the Marshall Fire and ash was deposited on and near the Town’s water storage reservoir. For more information on the Town’s drinking water quality, please view the Town Board’s discussion from January 12, 2022, and the video update March 3, 2022 update.

Visit the following resource link to learn more: The Marshall Fire: Scientific and policy needs for water system disaster response

What was done?

Reservoir Ash Removal: Completed in spring 2022
Chlorine Dioxide: Completed in spring 2022
Granular Activated Carbon (GAC): Completed in summer 2022
Reservoir Draining: Completed in summer 2022
Water Testing: Ongoing

What you may consider doing:

Home Filtration Systems: Home water filtration systems, especially those using activated carbon, may effectively remove taste and odor-causing compounds. This is the same technology that is currently being planned for implementation at the water treatment plant where it can be monitored daily. Your water is safe for all uses without the home water filtration system. Homeowners are responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of any home water filtration system. Some home filtration systems may remove chlorine and fluoride, which serve to protect public health.

Marshall Fire FAQS

My water smells or is discolored. What’s causing this and how do I fix it?

There are several reasons why your drinking water may not seem right. The most common complaint is brown water. This is most often due to sediment getting into the system during a water main break, the use of fire hydrants, or construction activities. The best course of action for homeowners and business owners is to run cold water only through your faucets for 10-15 minutes or until the water is clear. Most dirty water situations will clear up in this time. If not, turn the water off, wait 10-15 minutes, and repeat the flushing again.

What about bubbly or cloudy water?

Can brown water come from inside my home or business?

There's still a problem with my water.

Wastewater

The Town of Superior Wastewater Treatment Facility (WWTF) collects and treats wastewater from the Town’s residents. The capacity of the current system is 2.2 million gallons per day (mgd) and 6,000 pounds per day (ppd) of BOD5. The system consists of several processes to remove and treat the wastewater to meet the State of Colorado reuse requirements and the requirements of the Town’s current discharge limits. Here’s a quick overview of the treatment process:

Headworks

Headworks. This is the first step in the treatment process and is the newest structure at the WWTF. The structures include screening and grit removal. Screenings are stringy materials such has hair, sticks, clothing, and personal care items. Grit is heavier, more dense inorganic material such as sand. Removal of these screenings and grit first improves the effectiveness of the rest of the treatment process. These processes are also referred to as preliminary treatment.

Secondary Treatment Process

Secondary Treatment Process. The secondary treatment process consists of an aeration basin and secondary clarifiers. Collectively, these systems promote the growth or microorganisms that are responsible for biological treatment of the wastewater. In the aeration basins, the microorganisms (collectively called mixed liquor) are mixed with air to promote the oxidation of organic matter and ammonia. Ammonia is very toxic to aquatic life including trout. In the secondary clarifiers, the mixed liquor is removed from the treated water via gravity. The settled mixed liquor solids are recycled back to the aeration basin to assist with treatment while the treated water flows to the next treatment process. A portion of the recycled mixed liquor is wasted from the system each day and sent to the aerobic digesters for further treatment.

Filtration

Filtration. The settled treated water is filtered through a sand filter similar for further removal of suspended solids materials. This process is required to meet the State of Colorado Reclaimed water regulations. With this process, the Town of Superior is able to reuse approximately one third of the wastewater generated in the Town! The reuse water is utilized to irrigate parks and commercial areas in the Town.

Disinfection

Solids Handling

Wasted mixed liquor from the secondary process is pumped to an aerobic digester. In the digester, air is blown into the digester to promote the degradation and stabilization of the biosolids. Once digested, the biosolids are dewatered (the process of separating water from the biosolids). The dewatered biosolids are then trucked offsite and recycled as a soil amendment (a Class B biosolid).
Sustainability Facts about the Superior WWTF