Frequently Asked Questions: Soil Amendment Program

Before Denver Water will set new meters, property owners must amend their soil with compost so the soil more efficiently retains water. This rule applies to all new residential, commercial, government and industrial properties within Denver Water’s service area. Each 1,000 square feet of soil must be amended with 4 cubic yards of approved compost.

Soil amendment is compost, which is a mixture of decaying organic matter, such as leaves and manure, that retains water in the soil and provides plants with nutrients.

Amending your soil with compost retains soil moisture, allowing water to go to plants for longer periods of time. Compost provides small amounts of important plant nutrients, including nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, which improves root growth. It also opens clay soils for better drainage and closes sandy soils to prevent water from leaching away too quickly.

Yes. See the approved soil amendment product list.

The soil amendment products on the approved list have met Class II standards, which are set by soil analysis tests at an independent testing lab. Customers may use any approved product. Also, customers can submit any compost and its soil analysis to Denver Water Conservation for consideration for the approved list.

Yes.

All new residential, commercial, government and industrial properties within Denver Water’s service area requesting a meter set. Fire lines and scrape offs are not included.

See Chapter 16 of the Operating Rules.

All new properties within Denver Water’s service area, including residential, commercial, government and industrial, must amend their soil. It does not apply to fire lines. All properties will be inspected. A property may be exempt if it has no permeable area, but that will be determined by the Denver Water inspector.

Every property must pay the fee and be inspected. The Denver Water inspector will determine the exemption at the time of inspection. Denver Water has no way to know how the property will actually be developed between the time the tap is purchased and meter is set.

Yes, each applicant must pay the administration fee. All permeable area is required to have soil amendment installed regardless of irrigation. Soil amendment benefits landscape that is watered by irrigation systems, hand watering or natural precipitation.

If weather and ground conditions prevent a soil amendment inspection, the meter-set applicant may deposit 25 percent of the system development charge for the property. Denver Water will then schedule the meter inspection without a soil amendment inspection. A soil amendment inspection must be rescheduled when conditions permit, no later than June 1 of the upcoming growing season. Once the property has passed the soil amendment inspection, Denver Water will refund the applicant’s deposit but will not pay interest on the deposit.

Denver Water cannot perform a soil amendment inspection if the property is landscaped. Denver Water is not responsible for any monetary or property loss from removing landscaping in order to perform an inspection.

Documentation of soil amendment product — invoice or load ticket — must be provided to Denver Water before an inspection appointment.

Documentation may be:

• E-mailed to soilamendment@denverwater.org
• Faxed to 303-628-6238 (indicate soil amendment) 
• Mailed to
  Denver Water Conservation-SA
  MC 330
  1600 W. 12th Ave.
  Denver, CO 80204

On the day of the inspection, the conservation specialist will notify the applicant of the inspection results (pass or fail) with a hard-copy notice at the property. If the property is served by a master-meter distributor, Denver Water also will notify the distributor’s representative of the inspection results. Denver Water will not set the meter until the property passes the soil amendment inspection. Note: There is a $70 fee for each reinspection.

Yes. Most cities along the Front Range of Colorado have similar soil amendment requirements.

Landscapes with amended soil will require less water for healthy plants. Should the Front Range suffer drought conditions, plants, trees and shrubs planted in amended soils will have a better chance of surviving with less water.

Denver Water’s ability to provide reliable water supplies in the future relies as much on conservation as it does on developing new supplies and recycling water. By making water conservation a part of our lives, we can preserve Denver’s heritage and quality of life.

Requiring soil amendment is one of the many conservation efforts that will reduce outdoor water use. More than half of outdoor water use is for irrigation. Amending soils, planting low-water plants and trees, and educating customers that their landscapes can still be healthy with less water are all important ways to cut back on water use.