At their meeting Nov. 28, members of the Falcon/Peyton area master plan advisory committee turned their attention to water resources.Guest speakers included Kathy Hare, president of the Upper Black Squirrel Ground Water Management District, and Kip Peterson, general manager of the Cherokee Metropolitan District.Upper Black Squirrel districtThe Upper Black Squirrel district is authorized by the Colorado Ground Water Commission to protect water and water quality within the district. About 75 percent of the planning area, including Falcon and Peyton, is within the Upper Black Squirrel district.Hare, who was a member of the committee for the 1993 plan, said the Falcon/Peyton area has grown faster than expected. “Look at the Peyton area very carefully and realize that it is going to grow. Within 20 years, Peyton is going to look like Falcon, and you really need to start planning for that,” Hare said.”Two-and-a-half-acre lots with individual septic systems and individual wells are not going to cut it.” She said she is concerned that sewage from septic systems will contaminate water wells because the wells and septic systems are too close to each other and because former city dwellers don’t know that septic systems need to be pumped out on a regular basis. “Water is a very limited commodity in this area, but it doesn’t matter how much water you have if you can’t drink it,” Hare said.The Upper Black Squirrel district could require septic cleanout as part of the district’s mandate to protect water quality. “We are looking at it. The biggest opponent would be the board of county commissioners because we would be usurping their authority,” Hare said.Stopping the approval of two-and-a-half-acre lots on individual septic systems is one of the best things the county could do to protect water quality in the planning area, Hare said. She suggested the master plan include a provision requiring developers to include regular septic cleanout as a homeowner association requirement.Committee member Dave Elliott said when he dealt with the county on a subdivision with individual septic systems, county representatives said septic maintenance is a health department issue. Hare said the health department is just starting to look at septic maintenance as a health issue.Carl Schueler, manager of El Paso County’s long-range planning division, said less than five-acre lots are supposed to meet a higher standard of scrutiny.However, Hare said the county could still approve the Sanctuary of the Pines development with its two-and-a-half acre lots on individual septic systems. The development is located at the headwaters of the Upper Black Squirrel and will be in a prime position to contaminate water in the Upper Black Squirrel basin. “I see degraded water quality as a trend nationwide,” Hare said.If developers are required to have central wastewater treatment, they are going to want higher density than two-and-a-half-acre lots, Schueler said.Cherokee Metropolitan District“The Cherokee Metropolitan District has provided water and sewage treatment services since 1958,” Peterson said. The district receives no tax revenue and funds its operations solely through the sale of water, wastewater treatment and other services. Cherokee obtains all of its water from the Upper Black Squirrel district.Cherokee currently operates an aerated lagoon wastewater facility south of Highway 94 and west of Peterson Road. It processes wastewater from Schriever Air Force base and discharges into the east fork of Sand Creek.Stricter wastewater treatment standards have required that the district plan a new mechanical wastewater treatment plant at the intersection of Drennan Road and Milne Road. Peterson said the district plans to award the contract for building the facility within the next 60 days and be in operation in early 2010.Cherokee is looking at expanding the district’s area and Cherokee representatives are talking to developers about providing services to them, Peterson said. For example, sewage from the Meridian Metropolitan District will be treated at the new Cherokee facility. Paint Brush Hills sewage may also be treated there. “We can only accept a few commitments due to pipe size,” Peterson said.Cherokee also is working on a recharge facility that would allow wastewater treated to 90 percent of the quality of drinking water to filter into the aquifers. The water will percolate through 90 feet or more of sandy soil and “be cleaner than the water that is already there,” Peterson said.Cherokee studies indicate they will be able to start withdrawing recharged water about six months after recharge starts. “We hope to have the recharge facility up and running in the third or fourth quarter of 2010,” Peterson said. “There is no room for failure on this project.”He also said the district is looking at building a wastewater and recharge facility north of Judge Orr Road in the next five to seven years. “Growth is going to occur in the planning area. Having central water and sewer is essential,” Peterson said.”The lack of wastewater treatment in Falcon and Peyton has stopped commercial development,” Hare said. “A developer is not going to spend millions of dollars on a property that has no wastewater treatment.”The Upper Black Squirrel district is in favor of Cherokee’s plans for a northern wastewater treatment and recharge facility, Hare said. “Colorado is way behind on recharge,” she added.Peterson agreed with Hare on the subject of septic systems. “The proliferation of septic systems will create groundwater problems due to nitrate contamination,” he said.Nitrates in water inhibit the body’s ability to absorb oxygen, Schueler said. In babies, the inability to absorb oxygen causes them to turn blue and is known as blue baby syndrome, which is often fatal, he said.Committee member Kevin Butcher asked if it would be better to have one district providing all the services instead of so many different districts.Schueler said districts are difficult to combine because they have different debt arrangements.Hare said combining districts will happen when it’s to their economic benefit. “They aren’t going to want to give up their cash cows,” Hare said.Presentation to the board of county commissionersCommittee chairperson Lynne Bliss will give a status report on the committee’s work to the board of county commissioners Dec. 20.Special public meetingThe committee will hold a special public meeting at the new Falcon High School at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 23 and at Peyton High School at 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 31. The purpose of the meetings is to present a draft plan and get feedback from the community.The committee’s next regular meeting is 3 p.m. Jan. 2 at the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department in Colorado Springs. The public is welcome. The committee’s Web site is www.hbaa.com/Falcon-Peyton-MP.
