Radium in drinking water becomes growing concern in Monument

UPDATE: Friday, Feb. 28

Around 40 people attended a workshop in Monument hosted by town officials Friday regarding the situation of radium levels in the water supply.

The meeting lasted for 90 minutes at the town hall; officials made a presentation to citizens about the town's water system, how it works and the effect of high levels of radium.

Officials also answered questions from the audience and addressed concerns.

The radium problem affects only the section of Monument west of Interstate 25; the east side of town is served by a different water provider.

Although some people said they should have been better informed -- and sooner -- about the radium issue going back to 2016, most said they understood the situation better after the meeting.

On Monday night, the Monument Board of Trustees will vote on a $700,000 plan to filter radium out of the water, as well as upgrading the town's water storage tank and booster station.

State health officials, including those who test Monument's water, will attend the meeting to answer questions from the public.

Laurie Clark, a trustee who has criticized officials about their handling of the issue, did not comment during the meeting but later said she remains dissatisfied with the situation.

"In the last board meeting, (the public works director) stated that we were out of compliance with state standards and radium levels were continuing to rise," she said. "Today, I heard an entirely different story -- that there are no safety concerns. I also heard that we disinfect the water with chlorine. People with autoimmune illnesses can't process (it) without severe medical consequences."

Clark also believes the town's manager and mayor have no authority to formulate a water plan without making her -- an at least one other trustee --aware of all the facts involved.

"Without the public being aware," she said. "Alternatives such as renewable water aren't being considered or discussed. (And) the accepted bid proposal for the work is from a vendor who submitted false invoices to the town on prior projects over the years, at the instruction of (town) staff. "

Town Manager Mike Foreman denied any wrongdoing and said more details about the vendor's past, current and future roles with water projects will be discussed at Monday night's meeting.

Officials said the water supply has met state requirements since a well with the highest radium levels was shut down for nine months and the water supply was diluted with water from other wells.

"We've been in compliance since the fall of 2017," an official said.

Still, officials revealed that the average annual radium level in the water supply is 5.3 picocuries per liter, which is just 0.2 below the state maximum of 5.5.

Ann Howe and Allison Thompson attended the meeting and are also running for seats on the Board of Trustees; they supported some of Clark's accusations.

"And you saw today, the concern," Howe said.  "So I think maybe there was something (radium notice) in somebody's bill.  But like most of us, we take the bill, write a check, put it in the envelope and pay our bills.  We don't necessarily pay attention to everything that's included."

"I really think the town can reassure its citizens," Thompson said.  "I'm hoping to see that reassurance or some kind of outreach from us -- that not only is your water safe to drink, but can your pets drink it, can you cook with it, and you can sell your home?"

Officials also are considering longer-range options such as drilling more wells in better locations, connecting to other nearby water systems in case of an emergency and mixing the town's water with water from Colorado Springs Utilities to further dilute the radium level.

PREVIOUS STORY: THURSDAY, FEB. 27

MONUMENT, Colo. (KRDO) -- Two upcoming public meetings in Monument will inform residents about rising levels of radium in the town's drinking water, and what the possible risks could be.

The situation reportedly centers around two of nine wells maintained by Monument's public works department and that occasionally provide water to residents west of Interstate 25.

One of the wells was shut down three years ago in an effort to reduce radium levels that had exceeded the state's limit of between 5.0 and 5.5 picocuries per liter. The levels initially dropped but rose again.

"We shut it down for nine months, tested the water, found that we had lower levels and put it back into operation," said Tom Tharnish, the town's public works director. "We diluted the water from that well with water from other wells. But it's just a temporary solution."

Radium is an element that naturally is found in water systems and system managers must regularly test for it to avoid long-term health impacts. It can lead to an increased cancer risk for children, the elderly, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems.

Laurie Clark, a member of Monument's Board of Trustees, said that before the well was shut down, the town received two notices from the state in October 2016 that it had exceeded the state's maximum limit for radium.

Clarke said the situation is concerning because she only recently learned of the extent of the problem and that at least one other trustee, and residents, were not informed of it.

"I do think that there's more than just me, but for sure, me," she said. "I was totally in the dark, and I am outraged that I was left in the dark, and even in this   year-and-a-half that I've been in this seat, I wasn't informed. I can't vote on an issue when I don't have all the information I need."

Town Manager Mike Foreman disagrees.

"As we are notified by the state that we either pass or fail, those go out and we always put those in the water bills and on our website," he said.  "We're very transparent about the quality of our water."

This year, Monument officials said they have budgeted $700,000 for a filtering system to address the problem -- the extent of which should be fully known when the town's 2019 water quality report is finalized and released late this spring.

Concern from residents about radium began growing after the town's Board of Trustees meeting last week.

To respond to that concern, trustees have scheduled a workshop from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday in the conference room of the Monument Town Hall Police Department, and will have state experts available during the next trustees meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Tri-Lakes Chamber of Commerce Building.

Board members expect to vote on the filtering system at Monday's meeting.

The situation apparently doesn't affect the water supply of Triview Metropolitan District on the east side of I-25 because it has better radium removal technology.