Mystery solved for Fountain Creek contamination

Federal officials think they have finally solved one of the great mysteries of the Pikes Peak region: Who is defecating in Fountain Creek?

But there may be no “who” in this whodunit after all. After the usual suspects – humans, livestock, deer, pets – all had rock-hard alibis, researchers developed a theory on what is causing high levels of bacteria E. coli in the creek, one that surprised most everyone involved.

“After doing some detective work and talking to the city of Manitou Springs, it became likely pigeons might be the source,” said David Mau, hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.

That’s right, it was pigeons. In Manitou Springs. With their droppings.

“Not a good mystery novel,” acknowledged Rich Muzzy, environmental planning manager for the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments, which worked with the USGS on the study.

The results of the study will be discussed at a public meeting Wednesday in Colorado Springs. The public is encouraged to attend to voice thoughts on the E. coli problem and ways to deal with it.

E. coli is a bacteria found in human and animal gastrointestinal tracts that can sicken and kill people if consumed. Researchers, looking at a 12-mile stretch of the creek from the confluence with Monument Creek to Green Mountain Falls, found concentrations in recent summers that exceeded state standards for almost the entire stretch below Ruxton Creek in Manitou Springs. The concentration sometimes swelled to more than 50 times water-quality standards.

Officials had long known about contamination in the creek, and it has long been a point of contention between Colorado Springs and downstream Pueblo, where some blame sewage spills and leaks for the high levels. Researchers expected tests would show the bacteria came from humans, possibly in leaking sewer lines or creek-side homeless camps, or feces from livestock or deer.

“It totally surprised us. We really expected to see something. If it wasn’t human, we expected it to be cows,” said Brian Vanden Heuvel, a Colorado State University-Pueblo biology professor who has been sampling Fountain Creek between Colorado Springs and Pueblo.

So how did researchers conclude birds are to blame?

Fictional sleuth Sherlock Holmes said, “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.” Researchers followed his advice.

Molecular microbiology tests matched E. coli in the water with that found in humans, and while some was found in the creek, it wasn’t enough to explain the summer spike. Next they ran tests for cows, deer, elk, dogs and cats, and they still didn’t find enough matches to explain the high levels.

“It has to be coming from some other source, these high E. coli concentrations, and the only potential source after looking at the area was that birds may be the source,” Mau said.

Researchers talked to Manitou officials, and learned there is in fact a healthy pigeon population. While there is no test to link E. coli with pigeon intestinal linings, Mau said one is in development.

“I think it’s birds too,” said Vanden Heuvel, the CSU-Pueblo professor. “We’ve tried every marker we’ve got, human, cow, pigs sheep, and nothing’s come up.”

Colorado Springs Utilities, which contributed $134,000 for the $450,000 study, has long been blamed by some downstream for the E. coli problem, because of occasional sewage and wastewater spills into the creek.
“We’ve been very confident, certainly with the amount of money we’ve invested in our wastewater system, that it wasn’t from our system,” Utilities spokesman Steve Berry said. “We’ve said all along it’s a large watershed and there are potentially multiple sources of E. coli that wind up in the waterway.”

Researchers also determined Manitou Springs’ aging sewage system was not to blame, Muzzy said. A few leaking lines were identified and fixed, but high levels remained, he said.

Muzzy hopes people will show up at Wednesday’s meeting with feedback on the theory and ideas to tackle the problem. The solution will involve the PPACG and officials from El Paso County, Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs.

“What we’re trying to do is work with the public and stakeholders, based on the knowledge we have, in order to bring the stream back into compliance,” Muzzy said.

A final report from the USGS is expected in November. If the pigeon theory holds, a solution could involve keeping pigeons away from the creek in Manitou – “Elementary, my dear Watson,” as Sherlock Holmes might say – but

Muzzy said no ideas have been discussed.

Calls to Manitou Springs officials this week were not returned.

E. coli causes an estimated 73,000 illnesses and 60 deaths each year in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

PUBLIC MEETING ON E. COLI IN THE CREEK

Local, state and federal officials will present results of the E. coli study on Fountain Creek and hear ideas from the public on addressing the problem, at a public meeting Wednesday, Sept. 9.

The meeting will be at 6 p.m. at the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments, 14 S. Chestnut St., in Colorado Springs.