The serious challenges we face in securing our community’s water future have become even clearer to me in the six months since I became CEO of Denver Water. As a result, we are accelerating our efforts to plan for and meet these challenges.
We have entered an era of heightened uncertainty and complexity — from growth and changing land-use patterns to economic challenges and the unknown consequences of changes in climate. Competition for limited water supplies has intensified. The interdependence among water providers, Eastern and Western slopes, and the agricultural and urban communities has never been greater. And in Denver, where we have the area’s oldest major water utility, we face an aging infrastructure.
We are keenly aware that the 1.3 million people we serve depend on us for a reliable, secure, safe supply of water 24 hours a day. Denver Water’s role in the regional water picture requires us to remain solid, secure and ahead of the curve in our planning and practices.
To meet our community’s needs requires Denver Water to pursue several approaches, and requires that we move on all fronts.
Here are 10 priorities for Denver Water that will be central to the water future of Denver and the region:
• Invest in maintaining and upgrading our system. Hundreds of miles of our pipes are more than 100 years old. We have treatment plants, pumps, reservoirs and other facilities that need upgrading or replacing. We also must maintain the security of our system and our ability to effectively respond to system emergencies.
• Serve our customers from a broad array of water supply sources. This includes conservation and water efficiency, the ability to reuse water, cooperative development of new supplies, and always keeping an appropriate strategic water reserve for emergencies.
• Maintain the water supply of our current system and increase the flexibility of our operations. If our current system is degraded, we not only force ourselves to replace lost water supply, we also compromise the resiliency of our system.
• Remain financially secure and be good fiscal stewards of our ratepayers’ money. We receive no tax dollars. All of our money comes from our customers. We have an obligation to make certain the money we spend goes to ensuring that our customers — and their children and grandchildren — have a reliable supply of clean water.
• Engage customers as important partners in how we use and manage our water supply. Their commitment to using water wisely will be a critical element of a secure supply far into the future.
• Be efficient, accountable and transparent in our operations and how we run our agency.
• Be good environmental stewards. We need to protect and enhance the health of our watersheds, the properties and public amenities of our system, and the environments we affect.
• Partner closely with multiple entities to improve regional cooperation to further the sustainable development of the Front Range. Denver city government, regional cities and counties, the state and water providers throughout Colorado are all vital to creating successful, cooperative strategies for land use, infrastructure development and water-supply management.
• Expand our leadership role in interstate water allocation, research, innovation and technology, the analysis of regional, national and worldwide trends, legislative and regulatory arenas, and in the water industry in Colorado and nationwide.
• We must attract and retain capable and talented employees, and ensure that Denver Water is a place where top-level performance, continuous learning and a commitment to serving customers are customary.
Denver Water is committed to acting responsibly with our customers to ensure their needs will be met for decades to come.
Jim Lochhead is CEO/manager of Denver Water.
