On April 5, the Paint Brush Hills Metropolitan District, in coordination with the Colorado Rural Water Association, hosted the second in a series of stakeholder meetings at the district office in Falcon, Colorado, to continue the process of developing a source water protection plan.According to the April issue of The New Falcon Herald, the purpose of the SWPP (source water protection plan) is to determine what risks exist for the districtís source of water. Leon Gomes, district manager for PBHMD, said in the article that those risks could be anything from hazardous material spills and vandalism to well heads or acts of terrorism.Gomes said one goal of the meeting was to more thoroughly educate attendees about the districtís water system, including well sites and pump houses. ìWe wanted to make sure they understand both geographically and physically what we are talking about in terms of our source water infrastructure,î he said.The other goal was to address each well site individually to identify the potential risks for that particular site, he said.Through the work on the SWPP, Gomes said the district will also construct a working emergency response plan, developed by Paul Hempel, source water specialist with the Colorado Rural Water Association.ìEach district vehicle is equipped with our emergency response protocols, like what to do if we have a water-main break or a sewer event,î Gomes said. ìWe will see if the new emergency response plan covers what we are already doing or if it will be a bit broader.îThe next stakeholder meeting is May 24 at 2 p.m. at the PBHMD district office.
