Water
The City of Fountain Utilities water division operates and maintains approximately 18 square miles of system infrastructure that provides safe, reliable, potable water to all areas within the City limits. Water Operations serves just under 9,000 metered water accounts and supports a population of approximately 29,000. Every day, Fountain Utilities provides millions of gallons of treated water to its customers.
The City of Fountain has four water sources. Surface water sources include the Fountain Valley Authority, and the Southern Delivery System, making up 70% of the City’s supply portfolio. Groundwater sources include the Venetucci Project and local wells, accounting for the remaining 30%. The majority of the City’s water supply is stored is Pueblo Reservoir, and the remaining in a network of storage tanks.
Potable water is treated using multiple technologies before it is safely delivered to your faucet.
New Water Rates
City Council approved new water rate that has been effective since March 1st, 2025.
Resolution 25-007 City Council Meeting 2-225-2025
City of Fountain Water Fund Rate Study:
Water Quality
Fountain's Water
The City of Fountain receives its water supply from surface water stored in Pueblo Reservoir and ground water from four (4) city-owned wells, located in downtown Fountain. The water industry is highly-regulated and requires routine testing and sampling of water sources and distribution points to ensure Fountain routinely tests its water at every source: wells; connections to other water systems; connections to the Fountain Valley Authority (the treatment plant that treats the water delivered from the Pueblo Reservoir); and throughout its water distribution system. Water samples are obtained by Colorado State Certified Water Operators according to standard sampling protocols and tested by certified laboratories. Safe drinking water is delivered to the communities it serves.
PFAS in Fountain
In October 2015, the City of Fountain shut down its wells when Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) were discovered. During that time, the city provided water to the community sourced solely from Pueblo Reservoir, where PFAS is not detected.
In June 2018, the City of Fountain began treating groundwater with the Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) treatment units provided by the United States Air Force. GAC is a proven, effective, treatment method for removing PFAS. Fountain continues to operate these treatment units and is committed to ensuring that water entering into its drinking water system tests at non-detectable levels (less than 2 parts per trillion).
The City of Fountain delivers approximately5 million gallons of water per day to its customers. Water quality is monitored water quality and contaminant levels. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Act mandates that all water providers meet water standards established by Federal and State agencies. daily and samples are examined numerous times throughout the year to test
Fountain publishes an annual Water Quality/Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) in conjunction with posting at several public locations regarding water monitoring results per requirements established by the EPA. This report is designed to educate Fountain's residents about the quality of water and services being provided. The Report lists various tests completed by the Water Department related to contaminants, micro-biological contaminants, organic contaminants, non-regulated substances, and Fluoride.
Each year the report is published for the previous year in order to show yearly totals (i.e. 2018 data is produced and circulated to the public by July 2019).
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) is a federal law that protects public drinking water supplies throughout the United States. Under the SDWA, EPA sets standards for drinking water quality and, with its partners, implements various technical and financial programs to ensure drinking water safety.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of man-made chemicals that includes PFOA, PFOS, GenX, and many other chemicals. PFAS have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries around the globe, including in the United States since the 1940s. PFOA and PFOS have been the most extensively produced and studied of these chemicals. Both chemicals are very persistent in the environment and in the human body – meaning they don’t break down and they can accumulate over time. There is evidence that exposure to PFAS can lead to adverse human health effects.
For more information, please visit the Environmental Protection Agency's webpage on Per-and Polyfluoraoalkyl Substances (PFAS).
National Contaminant Occurrence Database
The National Contaminant Occurrence Database (NCOD) describes water sample analytical data that the EPA is currently using and has used in the past for analysis, rulemaking, and rule evaluation. The data have been checked for data quality and analyzed for national representativeness.
Visit the EPA's website, National Contaminant Occurrence Database, to locate more information.
Ground Water and Drinking Water | US EPA
Chemicals from firefighting foam and other sources | Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Construction Specifications & Standards
The City of Fountain provides a Water Specifications Manual to Builders and/or Contractors planning to build within Fountain's City limits. This specification manual incorporates all the City's rules, regulations, building codes, and construction specifications needed in order for construction to be approved and signed off by the City's Inspector.
These PDF's can also be printed to use for future reference.
If you have any additional questions regarding the specification's manual or drawings, please contact the City's Utilities Department at 719-322-2010 to speak to the City Water Inspector, Water Resource Engineer or Water Resource Manager.
Backflow Resources
Yearly testing of backflow assemblies is required by Federal and State law to safeguard water systems. Tests must be submitted through the Backflow Device Testing Form, and completed by a certified backflow tester NO LATER THAN JULY 31ST OF THE CURRENT YEAR.
Frequently Asked Questions
Providing our customers with reliable and safe service is our top priority in addition to providing safe water, our water utility maintains critical infrastructure to ensure proper emergency response.
FIRE HYDRANT FLUSHING
Fire hydrant flushing is an annual maintenance program which helps to ensure hydrants are in proper working order for emergency response.
Many hydrants throughout our community may go unused for a period of time. Crews perform hydrant flushing to make sure that fire hydrants are in working order during emergencies. This helps with response time, and the safety of our community! Hydrant flushing also helps with flushing sediment that may have entered into our water distribution system caused by construction and development throughout our community.
VALVE EXERCISING
Water operators perform annual valve exercising. Valve exercising is a preventive maintenance program intended to keep our water mains and valves in working order. Utility personnel may need to access these valves to control water flow during emergencies. Some of these valves may be located in intersections or primary streets throughout our community. While exercising these valves, crews may need to temporarily and briefly close intersections and/or lanes during these operations.
Most water softener settings are based on measurements of grains per gallon. Fountain's water hardness ranges from 165 ppm (10 grains per gallon) to 350 ppm (20 gains per gallon) based on the season. The range varies because during the winter, Fountain does not run its wells and distributes only Fry-Ark surface treated water; however, in the summer, Fountain blends its Fry-Ark surface treated water with Fountain's ground water wells. Fountain therefore recommends the following settings when using a water softener:
Recommended Water Softener Settings:
Winter (November thru April)
Formula - 165ppm ÷ 17.1 = 9.65
Water Softener Setting - 10
Summer (May thru October)
Formula - 350ppm ÷ 17.1 = 20.46 20
Water Softener Setting – 20
Measurement of Formula:
1 grain per gallon is equal to 17.1 parts per million (ppm)
PPM is equivalent to milligrams per liter (mg/l)
Calculations based on iron concentration of 1ppm or below.