City of Boulder
Its service area also reaches St. Vrain Creek (9.0%).
Boundary traced. About 64 km².
Where the water comes from
| Facility | Kind | Water |
|---|---|---|
| BARKER RESERVOIR | Intake | Surface water |
| LAKEWOOD RESERVOIR INTAKE | Intake | Surface water |
| BOULDER FEEDER CANEL INTAKE | Intake | Surface water |
| BOULDER RESERVOIR BASIN INTAKE | Intake | Surface water |
These are EPA's facility records, not DWR structures. Which decreed rights sit behind an intake is the next phase; nothing here is inferred.
Wholesale connections
Sells water to 6 systems: BOULDER MEADOWS MHP, HOOVER HILLS WSD, LEFT HAND WD, MILE HI WATER INC HAULER, SAN LAZARO MFCTD HOUSING COMMUNITY, COLORADO MOUNTAIN RANCH.
DWR structures that name this system
Source Probable join · fetched 2026-09-09 · matched on DWR's recorded contact or an EPA intake name; verify on the dossier
38 structures on DWR's record name this system as their contact (38). A match says who DWR lists, not who owns the water: a ditch company can own the headgate while the system owns shares, and a consultant can be the contact. The dossier holds the decree.
| Structure | Type | Source | District | Matched on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALBION RES 0604269 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| ARAPAHOE PIT M-1977-077 AUG 0602533 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BARKER MEADOW RES 0604172 | RESERVOIR | MIDDLE BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER CITY PL 0600599 | PIPELINE | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER CR MIN FLOW C 0602100 | MINIMUM FLOW | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER ENTITY WDID 0602529 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER KIDS FISHING PONDS AUG 0602544 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER PL 3 AT BARKER R 0600943 | PIPELINE | MIDDLE BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER SEWER 0602314 | OTHER | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BOULDER UTE PARK AUG 0602508 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| BRENTON BUILDING DEWATERING AUG 0602553 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF (LHERITIER, ISABELLE) |
| DAVIS RES 1&2 0604175 | RESERVOIR | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| E BOULDER PARKS AUG 0602659 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GERHARDT DITCH 0600862 | DITCH | ROCK CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: COUNTY OF BOULDER |
| GLACIER SUMMER CITY D 0600660 | DITCH | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GOOSE LAKE 0604489 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GREEN LAKE RES NO 1 0604252 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GREEN LAKE RES NO 2 0604253 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GREEN LAKE RES NO 3 0604254 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GREEN LAKE RES NO 4 0604255 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| GREEN LAKE RES NO 5 0604256 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| HARRIS DITCH 0600611 | DITCH | COAL CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| HERON LAKE 0603363 | RESERVOIR | SOUTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: COUNTY OF BOULDER |
| ISLAND LAKE 0604236 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| L F SPICER DITCH 0600691 | DITCH | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| NORTH BOULDER FARMERS D 12TH ST RETURN 0602307 | OTHER | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| SILVER LAKE 0604238 | RESERVOIR | NORTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| T N WILLIS DITCH 0600622 | DITCH | COAL CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| TELLER LAKE RES NO 5 0604228 | RESERVOIR | SOUTH BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| WALDEN & SAWHILL NORTH DITCH 0600778 | DITCH | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| WALDEN & SAWHILL PONDS 0604026 | WELL | GROUNDWATER: BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| WALDEN & SAWHILL SOUTH DITCH 0600779 | DITCH | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| WALDEN PONDS 0604014 | WELL | GROUNDWATER: BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| WALDEN PONDS AUG 0602667 | AUGMENTATION/REPLACEMENT PLAN | UNDEFINED | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER COUNTY |
| WILLIAM C HAKE DITCH 0600621 | DITCH | COAL CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: BOULDER, CITY OF |
| WITTEMYER POND NO 3 0604011 | RESERVOIR | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: COUNTY OF BOULDER |
| WITTEMYER POND NO 4 0604012 | RESERVOIR | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: COUNTY OF BOULDER |
| WITTEMYER POND NO 5 0604013 | RESERVOIR | BOULDER CREEK | Boulder Creek | contact: COUNTY OF BOULDER |
Compliance record
Source Register of another agency · fetched 2026-09-09 · verify at EPA ECHO ↗
Nothing open today, but 2 health-based violations appear on the federal record historically. The history is below.
EPA's own summary: violations in 1 of the last 12 quarters. In violation for, in EPA's words: 0300=Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule.
What happened
All 2 violation records on file, grouped into the 1 distinct thing EPA's codes describe. Dates are the compliance period the violation is filed against.
Rule: Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule.
Every violation record, as filed (2 of 2)
| Compliance period | What | About | Kind | Status | Measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-07-01 – 2017-09-30 | MCL, Average | Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) | health-based | returned to compliance (2017-12-05) | 0.061 MG/L (limit 0.06) |
| 2017-04-01 – 2017-06-30 | MCL, Average | Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) | health-based | returned to compliance (2017-12-05) | 0.06081 MG/L |
What the regulator did about it
22 enforcement actions on this system's federal record. In Colorado the state is the primacy agency, so most actions are the state's; EPA acts directly on tribal systems and when it steps in.
| Date | Action | By |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-12-04 | St Compliance achieved SOX MOR submitted in accordance with the rule FCL 1/28/2025 |
state |
| 2024-11-05 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2024-11-05 | St Public Notif requested | state |
| 2023-03-24 | St Public Notif received PN met with CCR. slh 3/31/2023 |
state |
| 2022-08-03 | St Compliance achieved | state |
| 2022-07-18 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2022-07-18 | St Public Notif requested | state |
| 2017-12-05 | St Compliance achieved | state |
| 2017-11-09 | St Public Notif received | state |
| 2017-10-25 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2017-10-25 | St Public Notif requested | state |
| 2017-08-04 | St Public Notif received | state |
| 2017-07-11 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2017-07-11 | St Public Notif requested | state |
| 2017-06-28 | St Public Notif received | state |
| 2017-03-02 | St Compliance achieved | state |
| 2017-02-23 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2017-02-23 | St Public Notif requested | state |
| 2017-02-23 | St Violation/Reminder Notice | state |
| 2017-02-23 | St Public Notif requested | state |
20 most recent of 22; the rest are on the ECHO report.
Lead and copper
The latest 90th-percentile lead result is 0.002 mg/L (sampling period ending 2025-12-31) against an action level of 0.015 mg/L, below it. 7 results on file.
The action level is not a health limit: it is the level at which the rule requires a system to act (corrosion control, public education, and in some cases replacing lead service lines). Lead mostly enters water from household plumbing, so a system-wide percentile does not tell you what comes out of one tap.
Violation, enforcement and lead/copper records are EPA SDWIS federal reporting, fetched monthly; the summary is EPA ECHO. Code names come from EPA's own REF_CODE_VALUE table. SDWIS carries violations, not routine sample results — nitrate, disinfection by-product and PFAS values are not in it, and a clean record here means nothing was reported as a violation, not that nothing was ever detected. For what was measured, ask the system for its Consumer Confidence Report.
PFAS and lithium: EPA's UCMR 5 monitoring, 2023–2025
Source Register of another agency · fetched 2026-09-09 · verify at EPA UCMR occurrence data ↗
11 samples, 240 results, 2023-02-14 to 2023-11-06. No PFAS was detected at the reporting limits; lithium was not detected.
| Contaminant | Results | Detected | Highest, µg/L | Reporting limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HFPO-DA | 8 | 0 | < 0.005 | 0.005 |
| PFHxS | 8 | 0 | < 0.003 | 0.003 |
| PFNA | 8 | 0 | < 0.004 | 0.004 |
| PFOA | 8 | 0 | < 0.004 | 0.004 |
| PFOS | 8 | 0 | < 0.004 | 0.004 |
| lithium | 8 | 0 | < 9.0 | 9.0 |
Rows shown: every detected contaminant plus the regulated PFAS and lithium; the rest were below their reporting limits. These are UCMR monitoring samples, not compliance samples. EPA's April 2024 rule set 4.0 ng/L (0.004 µg/L) for PFOA and PFOS, the same as UCMR 5's reporting limit, so any detection of either is at or above it; the rule's compliance date and its other limits have been under revision since 2025 and are not applied here. State PFAS sampling is on CDPHE's pages ↗.
Common questions
Who provides drinking water in Boulder, Colorado?
The City of Boulder is the public water system serving 166,080 people in Boulder County, from surface water. Its EPA public water system id is CO0107152.
Where does the City of Boulder get its water?
The City of Boulder reports surface water as its primary source. EPA lists its source facilities as BARKER RESERVOIR, LAKEWOOD RESERVOIR INTAKE, BOULDER FEEDER CANEL INTAKE, BOULDER RESERVOIR BASIN INTAKE.
Does the City of Boulder have any drinking water violations?
EPA's compliance record shows no open health-based violations for the City of Boulder at the last monthly fetch. Older and non-health-based entries, if any, are listed on this page.
Places this system serves
Census places its EPA service-area boundary substantially covers. Each page lists every system serving that place.
Every provider in Boulder County.
The record
EPA SDWIS federal reporting as of 2026-09-08; the compliance record above is EPA's own, fetched monthly, and the ECHO report carries the rest. Report a problem →