Where DOES Your Water Comes From?
Your water works hard to get to you
By Mike Marcum, RWSD General Manager

When we turn on the tap for a drink of water, to wash our car, or to water our yards, we don’t stop to consider where our water comes from. We turn on the tap and expect water to flow. In Roxborough, if you followed your water to the source, you would find that water starts as snowmelt and rain in the Rocky Mountains and travels hundreds of miles through streams, rivers, and ultimately ends up at Strontia Springs Reservoir.
From Strontia Springs, raw water for Roxborough travels through a tunnel into the Aurora Rampart Reservoir just southeast of the District’s office. There, two large transmission pipelines that transport water to RWSD’s Larry D. Moore Water Treatment Plant. After undergoing treatment, this high-quality drinking water is delivered to Roxborough’s homes and businesses.
Roxborough is the only community in Douglas County that gets 100% of its water from pristine surface water (rivers and lakes), not from groundwater. We are also a ‘first user’ of water, meaning our water intake is not below any regional wastewater treatment facility, unlike other Front Range communities.
Our top priority is providing safe, reliable, great-tasting water to the community. Your RWSD team takes our responsibility to provide high-quality drinking water very seriously. Our drinking water meets all State of Colorado and the U.S. EPA standards.
We pride ourselves on being transparent about our water quality and encourage you to read RWSD’s 2024 Water Quality Report. We produce this report annually to demonstrate that your water is safe. This comprehensive report analyzes all constituents required by the U.S. EPA and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
When you think about where your water comes from, consider conserving this precious resource. Water throughout the Western U.S., including here in Colorado is very scarce due to drought. We encourage you, our customers to help us save water. Conserving water is crucial for sustainability and can help reduce your water bills. Follow the outdoor water conservation tips we shared in our July newsletter. Together, we can create a culture of conservation to protect and use our precious water wisely.