Chris Pelletier, Nederland. This month represents my eighth year working for the town and a considerable amount of accomplishments and changes have happened during this time. In the water distribution system, all the Pressure Reducing Vaults have been updated, several hydrants have been replaced, GIS mapping of valves and other infrastructure is taking place and multiple historical leaks have been repaired. When I first started with the town, the average daily demand at the water treatment facility was approximately 300,000 gal/day. Today average consumption has been reduced to an average of 160,000 gal/day.

Upgrades to the water plant in the last 8 years include the Clearlogics coagulation system, the addition of a streaming current monitor, the construction of a lab and office, the addition of the backwash settling process, and the construction of the intake structure. Clearlogics is a treatment and chemical dosing optimization process that helps to improve water purification.

The collection system has had an incredible number of repairs and upgrades with over 10,000 linear feet of pipes lined and sealed, multiple manholes have been rehabilitated, dozens of service taps have been repaired and sealed and overall I&I (inflow and infiltration) has been reduced significantly.

The waste treatment process itself has changed drastically since my time here from a lagoon system to a mechanical/biological process. The biosolids facility will represent a huge milestone in local waste water treatment and is the next step to streamlining this process in Nederland.

The Streets Division has also improved dramatically in the last 8 years with the completion of a town shop facility and the acquisition of several new vehicles. Mapping of the town’s drainage infrastructure is ongoing and improvements to equipment maintenance and tracking has never been better.

With all these great accomplishments, the most important achievements are the growth and development of the Public Works staff. Nederland has one of the most talented water treatment operators and has developed a highly skilled utility staff. The Streets staff is more skilled than ever with very capable machine operators that are dedicated and committed to making town better. When I first started, I was the only employee who knew how to operate the backhoe. Public Works looks forward to continuing this pattern of growth.

Public Works was recently invited to the elementary school to talk with first and second graders about the importance of ADA accessibility and upgrades at Chipeta Park. It was fun and refreshing to talk with these kids and the star of the show was Nicki Dunn, who did a fantastic job interacting with the children. The town of Nederland is very fortunate to have such a dedicated and committed staff.

(Originally published in the March 21, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)