Protecting and Improving Water Quality

What Broomfield has done

With frequent monitoring of water quality, trends beyond the natural fluctuations of water quality can be detected. As with any ecological system, management for long-term health is challenging. Broomfield strives for a chemical-free approach that minimizes other potentially adverse effects. Some measures that have been implemented are:

• Pond circulators in Alexx and Michael's Pond
• Solar-powered pond circulator in Plaster and Sagar Reservoirs
• Application of barley pellets (an algistat, which inhibits the growth but does not kill off algae so it must be applied early, before a bloom occurs) into the Trails Pond
• Operation of aerators during daytime hours, when oxygen levels usually drop, at several ponds
• Provision of natural buffers (cattails) for the uptake of nutrients and as cover and food source for birds and other wildlife

What you can do

Some examples of what you can do to protect water quality are:

• Properly apply fertilizers
• Use phosphorus-free fertilizers
• Minimize need for fertilizers by engaging in other lawn care practices (e.g., composting, Xeriscaping)
• Clean vehicles at car washes to keep the detergents, waxes, and ammonia out of the stormwater drains
• Pick up and properly dispose of pet waste

Remember: Keep it clean 'cause we're all downstream!

We all live in an area called a watershed, which is an area of land where all the water that falls in it drains to the same place. Small watersheds feed into larger watersheds. All water that begins in the headwaters of the mountains and falls on the ground will migrate with the changing topography of the land and continue flowing until it reaches the ocean. The water we take for drinking, irrigation, to flush our toilets, and wash our clothes is treated and released back into the watershed to continue to flow downstream for the next community to use. Most of Broomfield is located within the Big Dry Creek Watershed, which feeds into the South Platte Watershed that extends through eastern Colorado.

Keep it clean, 'cause we're all downstream!