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A woman wearing a mask runs past the remains of a neighborhood Friday, Dec. 31, 2021. The Marshall fire ripped through Boulder County powered by high winds on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021, destroying close to 1,000 homes. About 35,000 people were evacuated in Louisville and Superior.

A woman wearing a mask runs past the remains of a neighborhood Friday, Dec. 31, 2021. The Marshall fire ripped through Boulder County powered by high winds on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021, destroying close to 1,000 homes. About 35,000 people were evacuated in Louisville and Superior.

Aug. 3—The Town of Superior announced a granular activated carbon filtration (GAC) system has been successfully installed, filtering water from the town's treatment facility.

After ash and debris from the Marshall Fire last year polluted the water and banks of the reservoir, residents complained about their water quality, specifically odor and taste.

Although the Public Works and Utilities department began a cleanup of the banks in early January, and the water was tested and deemed safe to drink by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and Boulder County Public Health, the water supply was compromised, said Public Works and Utilities Director Alex Ariniello.

An outside contractor, Corona Environmental Consulting, was hired by the town in late winter and determined that a granular activated carbon system would filter out contaminant microparticles and mitigate the smoky color, taste and odor in the water.

In April, the Board of Trustees approved the installation and rental of the GAC, however, Ariniello said Monday the department would be budgeting for the outright purchase of the system in 2023.

Completing the project in a little more than three months was "a big deal," Ariniello said.

"Normally, it would take a minimum of a year to two to go from concept to the construction phase," Ariniello explained. "In three months, we were able to get this up and operating. It was a herculean task to get this done."

Ariniello said Superior consulted with the town of Johnstown, which integrates a GAC with its water supply.

"We learned how not to make some of the same mistakes, and the process went more smoothly than I initially thought," Ariniello said. "If you look at the extent of what we did, with all the supply chain issues, it was quite a feat."

In June, the Environmental Protection Agency lowered the standards for PFAS composition — frequently referred to as "forever chemicals" — in drinking water. Last week, the City of Thornton notified residents the level of toxic chemicals in the city's water was more than 1,000 times higher than the new federal health standards.

With the new EPA standards and Superior's investment in the GAC, Ariniello said purchasing the system outright made the most sense for the town, and he was optimistic that funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will offset the costs to the town.

So far, Ariniello said there's only been a modest response from residents since the filtration system was activated in the mid-July.

"We've gotten a few compliments that the water tastes better," Ariniello said. "But we're not getting complaints, and not getting complaints is better."

Visit Colorado Hometown Weekly at https://www.coloradohometownweekly.com/

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