Colorado Impact

"Hardness" is a property of water determined by the amounts of dissolved minerals it contains, specifically calcium and magnesium. Most people associate the term with water quality and also with a build-up of material in their shower or sink. This accumulation occurs because soapsuds can’t be produced until dissolved minerals in the water have been combined with soap. Those minerals that are removed from the water remain as an insoluble residue. 

How Water Becomes Hard

Water hardness is generally the highest in groundwater where the topsoil is thick and carbonate formations are present. As rain falls, it absorbs carbon dioxide produced from bacteria in the topsoil. The rainwater and carbon dioxide mix to form carbonic acid. Carbonic acid dissolves the carbonate compounds found in limestone and dolomite. This process is enhanced by acid rain. The degree of hardness increases as the calcium and magnesium amount increases and is related to the concentration of multivalent cations dissolved in the water.

Water Hardness Classification

Water hardness is a relative term and typically reported in milligrams per liter (mg/L) of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), or grains per gallon (gpg).

Colorado Water Hardness

Colorado Springs Utilities reports a hardness measurement of 1.3 – 2.8 grains per gallon (gpg), which gives its water a relatively soft rating. For comparison, Denver has a reported 4.2 gpg and the city of Pueblo has the state's hardest water at 10.6 gpg.

In an example on the far end of the spectrum, London's water is derived mainly from the River Thames and River Lea, which draw a significant proportion of their dry weather flow from springs and limestone aquifers. Consequently, drinking water there is very hard with 11.7 gpg of calcium carbonate.

Here in the U.S., people living in areas like Pueblo can use water softeners that replace the calcium and magnesium content of hard water with sodium. Plasticizers are another method of converting hard water into soft water. The process uses sodium, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and iron, which are dissolved to reduce calcium or magnesium.

Although treating hard water with salt and a water softener is common, most people don't know that if you use one of these devices, you are basically removing calcium and magnesium from your drinking water and adding salt to your diet. In addition, water softeners can be expensive to install, and many states actually have banned the use of salt softeners because of their harmful effects on the environment.

Hard water is not hazardous to your health, but it can be a nuisance. If you’re looking for alternative drinking water sources for your home or have questions about your home water as a Colorado resident, contact the Eldorado team. We're always happy to share our insights and help people get the high-quality drinking water they need to stay hydrated!

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), lead contamination in water is linked to developmental disabilities and other long-term health problems including anemia, neurological problems, kidney failure and even death.

Since 2012, some areas of Denver have experienced increasing levels of lead in drinking water due to outdated lead pipes. This has prompted a series of tests and ultimately a 15-year plan to replace the old lead service lines.

Sources of Lead in Denver Water

While Denver Water supplies lead-free water to most households and businesses, the water can become contaminated through many old systems that the water passes through. These systems can include lead service lines, copper pipes with lead solder and even faucets containing lead.

Lead pipes in Denver affect 64,000 to 84,000 homes. In addition, every time lead is introduced into a pipe in a home, it has the potential to enter a municipal water system connected to the house.

Denver Lead Service Lines

The service lines throughout Denver are the underground pipes that bring the mainline water from the street to the plumbing in a home. For centuries, lead was a convenient material used in water pipes because its malleability makes it easy to bend and mold to shape. In fact, the word plumbing itself comes from plumbum, the Latin word for lead.

With more information available today on the effects of lead exposure, the focus has shifted from material practicality to water quality and health. Today, Denver Water is conducting tests to identify service lines that need to be replaced.

Denver Water Lead Reduction Program

Denver Water will oversee the implementation of the Denver Lead Water Action Plan for the entire city. The plan consists of testing, surveys, pipe replacements and water filter installation. The lead service line replacement is estimated to take 15 years to fully complete.

As residents wait to have a suspected or confirmed lead pipe replaced, Denver Water will provide a free water filter to them. Denver Water is also taking steps to help customers with regular testing of their water by providing free lead test kits to anyone who requests one. The goal of the program is to reduce the likelihood of lead entering drinking water by bypassing lead pipes installed in the 1900s - which includes water pipes owned by customers. 

What’s in Your Water?

 Many of us are unaware of what’s really in our water or where it comes from. Since some Denver residents will be waiting as long as 15 years for lead pipes to be removed, many will turn to the free filters to remove lead in the short term.

Relying on filters to remove unwanted chemicals helps to reduce lead, asbestos,  and chlorine, but may not eliminate them completely. Filters may also be less than fully effective in removing contaminants such as ammonia, pesticides, trihalomethanes, pharmaceuticals and other unwanted chemicals.

Consequently, it's important to look at what a filter doesn't remove rather than being satisfied with what it does remove.  Also, if filters are not changed regularly, bacteria can reach high levels, and this can be a problem of its own.

Don’t Want to Wait 15 Years?

There is another alternative for getting better water in Denver. Right here in Colorado, there is a natural filter from Mother Earth that continually produces pure, perfect spring water. The artesian springs located in Eldorado Springs, Colorado (just outside Boulder, Colorado) emanate from one of the most unique water sources in the world.

Immense, natural artesian spring pressure forces the water through a layer of sandstone up to the surface in Eldorado Springs, creating a natural filtering system. Eldorado spring water is water in its purest form. It’s purity you can trust and taste. As we always say, “You can’t manufacture natural.”

 If you’re a Denver area resident and have thought about looking for a more natural source for your drinking water, now is a good time to consider spring water delivered right to your doorstep. And if you’re not sure how much water you and your family need, try our water calculator.

Don’t wait for lead in Denver drinking water to be resolved. Take charge of your health by ordering Eldorado Natural Spring Water delivered to your home today.

Currently, Colorado is experiencing severe drought in the southern half of the state, which is resulting in large fires consuming huge swaths of forest. State officials are now concerned about water contamination in watersheds. What exactly should officials be concerned about?

According to the Journal of Pollution Effects and Control, "The chemical water quality problems that may arise following a forest fire may consist of increased production of macronutrients, micronutrients, basic and acidic ions, decreased oxygen level and increased biological demand. Some of these chemicals come from the disturbed and bare ground and others are produced from the burned plant material." In layman's terms, water will contain higher levels of harmful organic material that may be above federal and state safety thresholds. This burned plant material becomes sediment, which ends up in rivers and streams.

These Impurities Can Make Drinking Water Unsafe

According to research done at the University of Colorado Boulder, “A wildfire will have a tremendous effect on the vegetation that results in the mobilization of material in the form of sediments,” said Fernando Rosario-Ortiz, the study’s lead author. “Ultimately, those sediments become turbidity and drinking water utilities need to remove that turbidity in order to produce water that is safer for consumers to use.” To remove these impurities, municipalities need to use more chemicals to treat the water to make safe. This is costly, and adding more chemicals is not always the best solution for consumers.

Watershed Protection Efforts

Colorado has begun to invest more money in watershed protection in recent years. When the High Park and Waldo Canyon wildfires ripped through Colorado in 2012, the water provider Northern Water worked with the Bureau of Reclamation, the US Forest Service, and the Colorado Forest Service to begin the Colorado-Big Thompson Project. The mission of this project is to restore forest and watershed integrity while still retaining the hydropower facilities that are located in the Big Thompson reservoir. Combined with other investments in the state water system, 21,000 acres of land have undergone fuel treatments to reduce risk of watershed damage from future wildfires.

Fortunately, Not All Groundwater Is Impacted by Wildfires

As Colorado gets drier and wildfires become larger and more frequent, watershed protection becomes extremely important. Municipalities will be forced to continue the fight to keep our water safe. Fortunately, Eldorado Natural Spring Water comes from a very special place. Our spring water originates as rain and snow just east of the Continental Divide. It then enters an aquifer under Eldorado Springs and artesian pressure pushes water through sandstone, creating a natural filtering system.

Lastly, but arguably most important, Eldorado Natural Spring Water has a thick layer of clay just above the sandstone which is impervious to surface water. This is extremely beneficial as contaminants resulting from wildfires are repelled by this line of natural defense. The beloved source of Eldorado water truly is unique and magnificent.

In recent years, there has been a bit of backlash against the massive all-you-can-buy, American-conglomerate, big-box superstores. Places where you can literally buy a fifty-pound bag of tater tots and stock up on nine hundred rolls of toilet paper. Very low prices, huge quantities, and (generally speaking) mediocre-quality merchandise are all the norm. With this trend, we have witnessed the construction of megastores with parking lots the size of Sports Authority Field and the largest selection of goods you can imagine. 

Local Economic Effects

Along with mediocre quality, we have witnessed unfortunate economic effects from the ubiquitous superstores. The destruction of Main Street is one sad result of huge chains. Mom-and-pop shops are unable to compete on price with these behemoths, which forces them to shut their doors. Furthermore, until recently, local merchants were forced to charge sales tax while online giants, like Amazon, did not. 

Over the past decade, a major movement has gained substantial momentum in which people have been beating the drum to buy local. These consumers stress the importance of supporting local businesses, which in turn support the local community by providing jobs, among other benefits. The argument is that you may pay a bit more, but this money is being funneled right back to you in a tight local ecosystem. Think of this money being put into your neighbor's pocket rather than some far away unknown pocket. According to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, for every dollar spent at a local establishment, forty-five cents recirculates the local economy, versus only fourteen cents from each dollar spent at a big box store.

Additional Benefits of Locally Owned Businesses

Consumers benefit by knowing more about the proprietors behind a product or service. Local business merchants tend to be longtime local residents with deep roots in the community, which results in piece of mind, knowing (for instance) that food was produced locally and local farmers are benefiting.

A great example of this is the Boulder Farmers Market, which is ranked the best farmers market in the United States. The New Economics Foundation, an economic independent think-tank, compared what happens when people buy produce at a supermarket versus a local farmer's market or community supported agriculture (CSA) program. The researchers found that twice the money stayed in the community when people bought locally.

Local businesses also contribute substantially to local tax coffers. This assists schools,  parks, and other projects to be completed to benefit local citizens. 

How to Support Your Community by "Buying Local"

Thankfully, these days shoppers have a plethora of options. Be it from a local farmers market or from a special "buy local" section of a large chain, consumers can almost always purchase local goods and services. In fact, even when shopping online,  consumers can now can find sections devoted just to local wares and services.

As a locally owned and operated company, we at Eldorado Natural Spring Water believe it is important to support local businesses. We use local vendors and suppliers whenever and however we can, we hire locally almost exclusively, and we are committed to continually giving back to the community that we love.

Because our water comes from a natural source right here in Colorado, you just can't get much more local than we are here at Eldorado Natural Spring Water. You will not only find our water in many local retail stores, but, if you are local to Colorado, you can have it delivered to your home or office, or even use our self-service facility near our pool in Eldorado Springs, CO.