Click the link to read the article on the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel website (Dan West). Here’s an excerpt:
April 27, 2025
The town of De Beque is seeking Congressionally directed spending to help it secure a secondary water source, as it currently relies solely on the Colorado River to supply water to the community. De Beque Town Treasurer Katherine Boozell said the town is looking at drilling a well near the town’s Water Treatment Plant. According to Boozell, the well could cost in excess of $400,000 to drill.
“At present, the Town of De Beque relies solely on the Colorado River as its drinking water source,” Boozell wrote in an email. “This dependence leaves the community vulnerable during periods of high turbidity, which occur frequently due to mudslides from wildfire burn scars upstream or sediment disruption caused by storms. When turbidity levels spike, we are forced to shut down intake to our treatment plant because the water is too muddy to process.”
The town does have a tank where it can store treated water, but that is a temporary solution, she said. When the tank is dry, the town is unable to provide treated water until the river’s water conditions improve. This poses a public health risk, she said, making a secondary water source an urgent need…According to a fact sheet about the proposal, a new well would not only improve reliance for the town’s water but also improve the water quality as well.