Groundwater Quality Database Now Available on the Web

News Date August 01, 2007

The results of 15 years of groundwater sampling are now available in an online database designed to enable the public to learn about the quality of Colorado's groundwater.

The groundwater quality data gathering and analysis is a joint project of the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), Colorado State University Cooperative Extension and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). The database can be accessed at http://ids-nile.engr.colostate.edu/webkit/Groundwater/.

The groundwater quality data is gathered by CDA field staff from irrigation, stock water, and special sampling wells in areas throughout Colorado. The groundwater is then tested by CDA chemists for the presence of fertilizers and pesticides that may have leached into groundwater. Data analysis is conducted by CDPHE. Colorado State University provides outreach to the state's farm community on farming methods that protect Colorado's groundwater from contamination by fertilizers and pesticides.

"We have taken 15 years of groundwater monitoring data and made it available in a user-friendly format that allows the public to better understand Colorado's groundwater quality with respect to agricultural chemicals," said CDA program director Rob Wawrzynski.

The extensive sampling indicates that Colorado has generally high quality groundwater.

"Although there are a few problem areas with groundwater containing nitrate-nitrogen higher than drinking water standards, the database shows that there are very few detections of pesticides at levels above drinking water standards," Wawrzynski said.