DEQ reports nitrates in the Weyoming Community related to septic systems – Mountain Journal

by Sophie Ciris

The main concern for the residents is drinking water in the area and its high concentration of nitrates, which regularly exceed the maximum permissible nitrate concentration of the Environment Agency for consumption of human consumption of 10 milligrams per liter.

Phil Powers, CEO of Protect Oour Waters Jackson Hole, said Mountain Journal The fact that everything over 2-3 milligrams per liter shows some human intervention, which leads to compromising water.

The investigation is investigating the potential cause of elevated nitrates in underground waters at Hoback Junction, which has a population of about 1600 people. According to the report, “it seems that the main known source of nitrates in groundwater is related to the density of domestic septic systems in the area.” Fertilizers, wildlife and livestock can also affect nitrate levels.

Consumption of high levels of nitrates can be harmful to respiratory and reproductive systems, and can also be dangerous for the fetus and babies, according to EPA.

To date, it is not confirmed whether Hobak residents have experienced health problems associated with elevated nitrate levels in the underground waters of the area. Phone calls to Wyoming Deq and the comment of the Wyoming Health Division were not returned immediately.

“I have the feeling that we are swimming upstream … with regard to the treatment of water in a place where we must be at the same time or before that we deal with the root cause.” – Phil Powers, CEO, protects our waters Jackson Hole

Hoback Junction sits south of Jackson Hole and is not on a public sewer line. Many residents break through private wells that touch groundwater. “Because septic systems add wastewater nearby, many of these wells produce non -standard water, including higher levels of nitrates,” Powers says.

Powers said the issue was concerned with hundreds of people in the Hobak community. Between 2022 and 2024, its organization financed and distributed over 10,000 gallons of clean drinking water to more than 50 Hoback Junction households as a temporary solution.

“I feel like we’re swimming upstream, without a pun, in terms of water treatment in a place where we must be at the same time or before dealing with the root cause,” he said. “I think we will find other places in our valley in time, where there are similar problems.”

Through a special excise duty approved by the voters in 2022, the county financed $ 3 million for a clean water treatment plant to Hobak residents. The facility will cure water from the Snake River, but Powers says it will probably not be completed for at least a few years. And he is not convinced that this is the perfect solution to the problem.

“People have the right to clean the water,” Powers said, “and this is our responsibility as management management to make sure they have access to it.”