No unusual chemicals were found in the water at the Metro wastewater-treatment plant that would have caused ducks to die or get sick, according to plant officials.
More than 600 ducks died this year at the north Denver facility and at three other wastewater-treatment plants and a residential lake, according to Colorado Division of Wildlife officials.
Rates of dying ducks have gone down as the weather has gotten warmer, said Jennifer Churchill, wildlife spokeswoman.
Metro wastewater officials report no duck deaths in recent days. The Littleton Englewood Wastewater Treatment facility reported one duck died Friday, Churchill said.
Biologists with the state and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are continuing to investigate why the ducks were dying – focusing on the birds’ feathers, Churchill said.
On Friday, officials with the Metro Wastewater Reclamation District said water-quality tests over the past five weeks have identified no chemical compounds that would be unusual for wastewater.
Water-quality samples were taken Jan. 26, Feb. 2 and Feb. 14.
“We are pleased with the results of these tests,” said Steve Rogowski, director of operations and maintenance, in a statement. “Tests confirm what we had suspected, which is that we were doing nothing different operationally than we normally do.”
Dozens of ducks whose feathers were losing their waterproofing abilities have been rehabilitated and released in recent weeks.
Staff writer Jeremy P. Meyer can be reached at 303-954-1367 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com.
