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Water Quality
Parker Water & Sanitation District provides both drinking water and wastewater services to our customers.
Drinking Water Treatment
PWSD’s water portfolio includes both ground and surface water sources including the Water Infrastructure & Supply Efficiency (WISE) partnership, Cherry Creek, Newlin Gulch, and the Denver Basin Aquifer. How and when PWSD pulls from those sources depends on multiple factors, including season, daily water demand, and drought conditions.
PWSD treats its drinking water in various ways depending on the source. Groundwater from the Denver Basin Aquifer meets primary drinking water standards when pulled from the ground. However, PWSD treats aquifer water for iron and manganese and applies a disinfectant before sending it through PWSD’s distribution system.
PWSD stores its Cherry Creek and Newlin Gulch surface water resources in Rueter-Hess Reservoir and treats it at its Rueter-Hess Water Purification Facility, a state-of-the-art plant using ceramic membrane filters that removes particles down to 0.1 microns in size. Using its Binny Water Treatment Plant, the City of Aurora treats PWSD's surface water originating from PWSD's participation in the WISE partnership.
Currently, 60 bacteria drinking water samples are collected and analyzed each month. Samples are taken from each water supply source and analyzed for organic, inorganic, and radiological constituents based on a monitoring schedule from Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The results are reported in the annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Drinking water is regulated by federal and state agencies operating under the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act. PWSD tests its water for more than 130 substances, including bacteria, minerals, pesticides, and microorganisms.
Wastewater Treatment
PWSD’s two wastewater treatment plants make use of advanced water treatment technologies to remove pollutants.
The wastewater plants are designed to remove not only conventional pollutants, but also algae-promoting nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. The removal is accomplished by the biological process (activated sludge) and the use of Advanced Water Treatment Filters.
Wastewater is treated to permit specifications determined by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). PWSD tests for over two dozen different pollutants on a routine basis testing and analyzing the community’s water quality.