Water Quality

Accessibility Assistance

We are committed to ensuring that all our documents are accessible to everyone. The City of Fort Collins is dedicated to providing equal access to information and services for all residents. We strive to create and distribute documents that meet the highest accessibility standards. The City of Fort Collins encourages individuals with disabilities to request accommodation or modifications to help ensure their effective participation in our programs and services. Examples include sign language interpretation, assistive listening devices, alternative document formats and modifications such as large print and audio playback of written content.

If you encounter any difficulties accessing, viewing or reading the attached document, we are here to help.

How to Get Assistance
For immediate assistance, please reach out to the City’s ADA Coordinator:
• Email: adacoordinator@fortcollins.gov
• Phone: 970-416-4254
• Office: 300 Laporte Ave. Fort Collins, CO 80522, Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

View 2024 Water Quality Report(PDF, 765KB)

Fort Collins Utilities adds fluoride to its drinking water based on the recommendations of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the American Dental Association (ADA). City Code Sec. 26-50, states that City Council is authorized by public vote to fluoridate the water supply system to levels established by CDPHE.

Fort Collins Utilities’ water comes from Horsetooth Reservoir and the Poudre River. The water has naturally occurring levels of fluoride typically between 0.15 and 0.20 mg/L. Fort Collins Utilities adds additional fluoride to the treated drinking water, to reach concentrations near 0.7 mg/L.

Fort Collins Utilities purchases high purity fluoride in the form of hydrofluorosilicic acid (HFS). Utilities’ standard practice and vendor contract require the HFS meet both the current American Water Works Association standard and NSF Standard 60 for products used in the treatment of drinking water.

Geosmin is a naturally occurring compound that gives water an earthy odor and is very difficult to remove during water treatment. Geosmin is produced by some species of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) and actinomycetes (filamentous bacteria).

Fort Collins Utilities monitors the occurrence, sources, and transport in both watersheds. Monitoring geosmin in our source watersheds provides early warning for potential taste and odor issues that can be mitigated through water treatment processes or operational changes.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of thousands of man-made chemicals that include Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS). One common and concerning characteristic of PFAS is that the compounds may break down slowly and build up in people, animals, and the environment over time.

Current scientific research suggests that exposure to certain PFAS may lead to adverse health outcomes. However, research is still ongoing to determine how different levels of exposure to different PFAS can lead to health effects. Research is also underway to better understand the health effects associated with low levels of exposure to PFAS over long periods of time, especially in children.

PFAS are used to make carpets, clothing, furniture and cookware water-resistant to water, grease-resistant, and stain-resistant. These substances are also used to fight fires at airfields and are included in some industrial processes. Wildfire-fighting retardants do not contain PFAS.

PFAS enter the natural waterways when people use, wash, rinse or clean products containing the chemicals. Those chemicals then drain into natural waterways through a sewer system.

Fort Collins Utilities is committed to protecting public health and the environment and will continue to monitor and test for PFAS in raw and drinking water in accordance with state and federal guidelines within our service area. If water is being supplied by another provider, please contact that provider for more information.

What are common sources of PFAS?

• Shampoo
• Non-stick cookware
• Stain-resistance products
• Paint
• Pesticides
• Fast food packaging
• Certain textiles
• Makeup and personal care products
• Manufacturing facilities
• Industrial processes

Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 4)

Between April 2019-June 2020, Fort Collins Utilities participated in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Fourth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 4).

Approximately 6,000 utilities nationwide monitored unregulated contaminants for a year to help the EPA determine the occurrence of these contaminants in drinking water and whether they need to be regulated in the future. EPA uses the UCMR to collect data for contaminants that are suspected to be present in drinking water and do not have health-based standards set under the Safe Drinking Water Act. We are committed to protecting public health and support EPA’s research.

UCMR 4 included monitoring for a total of 30 chemical contaminants:10 cyanotoxins (nine cyanotoxins and one cyanotoxin group) and 20 additional contaminants (two metals, eight pesticides, one pesticide manufacturing byproduct, three haloacetic acid [HAA] groups, three alcohols, and three semivolatile organic chemicals [SVOCs])

Additional Information

• EPA's UCMR 4 Fact Sheets
• National Contaminant Occurrence Database 

The City of Fort Collins is collaborating with the Colorado State Forest Service to protect essential infrastructure at Michigan Ditch, near Cameron Pass. To learn more about this project and its efforts, please visit the CSFS's project site, Michigan Ditch Pre-Fire Mitigation Project.

The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) defines "contaminant" as any physical, chemical, biological or radiological substance or matter in water. Drinking water may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. Some contaminants may be harmful if consumed at certain levels in drinking water. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk. Read more about types of drinking water contaminants from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 

Emerging contaminants are trace concentrations (at the nanogram/L or part per trillion level, or less) of the following types of chemicals:

• Personal care products (fragrances, sunscreens, insect repellents, detergents, household chemicals)
• Pharmaceuticals
  • Improper disposal of pharmaceutical medications can contribute to undesirable compounds and chemicals passing through wastewater treatment plants to local waterways, where they can have adverse impacts to wildlife and the aquatic environment.
  • Safe disposal practices for unused prescription and over-the-counter medications are important to keep pharmaceuticals out of water bodies. Do not flush medications down the sink or toilet.
• Hormone-disrupting chemicals
• Pesticides and herbicides

Fort Collins Utilities manages water supply and demand through careful research and analysis regarding streamflow, diversions, climate, customer demand and population estimates to ensure a clean, reliable water supply for customers now and into the future.

Utilities supplies water to approximately 75% of residents and businesses within the Fort Collins city limits. The remaining customers are serviced by surrounding water districts, including East Larimer County Water District and Fort Collins-Loveland Water District. 

Each year, Utilities typically:

• Delivers an average of around 24,000 acre-feet per year of treated water to customers
• Uses approximately 3,000 acre-feet of raw water to irrigate Fort Collins' parks, golf courses, cemetery, and other green belt areas
• Delivers about 4,500 acre-feet of other raw water obligations