Contacts:       
Craig Sanders, Environmental Protection Supervisor
Jefferson County Department of Health and Environment
303-271-5759

Maria Vanderkolk
Assistant to the City Manager
Public Information Officer
City of Arvada
(720) 898-7507

South-Central Arvada Residents Using Well Water for Drinking
Urged to Have Water Tested for Metal Contaminants

Arvada-- Jefferson County Department of Health and Environment and the City of Arvada's Water Quality Division urge residents using private wells for drinking water in the vicinity of 51st Avenue between Garrison St. and Allison St. to have their water tested for possible elevated metal levels. The concern over well water quality in this area of Arvada was announced after test results received from four groundwater monitoring wells in the area showed elevated levels of certain metal contaminants. Water samples from these groundwater monitoring wells were found to be above the Colorado Primary Drinking Water Standards for five specific metals: barium, cadmium, chromium, lead and mercury.

While it is virtually impossible to know exactly how these metals entered the groundwater, water quality specialists suggest that since they did not find evidence of other manmade contaminants and there are no known nearby landfills or dumps, the elevated levels of metals found is the result of natural weathering and decomposition of existing mineral deposits. "The foothills to the west along Clear Creek are heavily mineralized and the area was mined extensively for gold and silver. All of the elements found in these water samples are commonly associated with ore deposits and it is very possible that they were carried downstream by Clear Creek over thousands of years and deposited along its flood plain," says Craig Sanders, JCDHE Environmental Protection Supervisor.

It is important to recognize that the water samples were from groundwater wells and not drinking water wells and therefore do not necessarily indicate that drinking well water in the area of concern is contaminated. However, since many of the wells in the area are old and relatively shallow, it is possible that these elevated metal levels may also be present in drinking well water. The groundwater samples were collected from existing monitoring wells as part of the planning process for the City of Arvada's drainage improvement project, referred to as the "Arvada Channel" along 51st Avenue.

The only way for residents to know if their well water is safe for drinking is to have the water tested.  The City of Arvada's Water Quality/Environmental Services Section is coordinating water quality testing efforts with a private laboratory for residents who use well water in the vicinity of 51st Avenue between Garrison St. and Allison St. Please call the Water Quality/Environmental Services Section at 720-898-7800 for details. Until drinking well water has been tested, residents should consider using bottled water for drinking and cooking purposes, as well as, for their pet's water supply. It is generally safe to use the water for bathing and clothes washing.

JCDHE and the City of Arvada are working together to notify residents who live in the area of concern via letters and educational information including options to take if private well water is found to be contaminated such as tapping into the Valley Water District or the City of Arvada for a fee.

For more information, please call:

• City of Arvada, Water Quality/Environmental Services at 720-898-7800 or after hours at 720-898-7820
• Craig Sanders, Jefferson County Department of Health and Environment at 303-271-5759
• For more information on drinking water contaminants and possible health effects see accompanying fact sheet or visit the Environmental Protection Agency's Groundwater and Drinking Water site at: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/mcl.html#mcls