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| I can counter a lot of your answers, one you state cows break fence down to get to water. Ok, once cows break out of a pasture it's like candy then they will find new water source and not go back to old one. Old fence or new fence? I had situation like here, FS lands we put an old well back into use. Hadn't been pumped for cattle ever. However right next door to a potato farm, guys cows that broke out went to pivots on crops to drink. Rancher accused well of being bad from farms use of chemicals. I called B.S. on it and said I will put my cattle in there. The whole problem was the cows were breechy and tore into fence. Then you couldn't hold them off lush green vs. dry rangeland. I put my cattle in there, never was a problem but the farm had to build a new fence because it was their responsibility to do so.
So, spring bred cows, sounds like more a bull problem 30 head would be around what a bull would service. Unless all confirmed pregnant going into your pasture, then losing them. How many total cows ran there? Sure, could be a trich problem within herd. Was testing done to rule that out? I'm suspecting if high concentrations of "bad stuff" if first introduced to the cows they should have been physical problems, like staggering, tipping over, poisoning effects. Cows take on a lot of the heavy metals, toxins, they should tip over and die before aborting if in a situation like that. Vet was right in telling you to take them off water, however he should have been running a whole panel of tests to confirm his suspicions. Cattle can build a tolerance to these type of substances over time, need to work with vet and nutrition person.
As far as well goes contact your https://dwr.colorado.gov/services/water-administration/water-rights talk to them about looking up your well and see if drillers log is filed. Might be that your well was never filed on, or no record of it. However, they should have hydrology reports of the area and other wells to piece together the information you need. How far was dry creek bed from your well? Did casing have proper well seal on top and underground around casing to keep surface water from getting into it? That's why you need to know hydrology of the land in question how far would contaminates have to travel to get into aquifer.
So right now, I would take a loader and dig a dirt pond to pump this water into. I would pull soil samples around well and dry creek area. Try to take water sample when well first turns on. Then pump it till it clears up for a 1/2 hour or so pull sample. Then send it to pond, need to take soil sample there first, then fill with water letting it run for a day or two if you can if site will allow it. Pull sample before turning it off. Then let water sit in pond say 24 hours, pull sample out of top of pond. Then compare water samples trying to map out what's going on.
So, filter through info, then decide if your calling EPA, water quality of Colorado. If there is a problem with contamination it could have come from a long way away. Just not this dry creek bed. If your water table is a long way down how did this crap get into your aquafer?
I had a company offer to haul compost to me this spring from big city waste treatment plant. I declined because how did they get heavy metals, etc. out of their compost. They offered a good price to haul 60 miles and spread it, but where did all the soaps, etc. go in the composting procedure?
Edited by Russ In Idaho 4/1/2025 23:23
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Pasture rent price
