A half-billion-dollar lead-pipe program pushed Denver Water into unfamiliar territory: financing infrastructure buried on private property.
Angela Bricmont, chief financial officer for Denver Water, explains that utilities traditionally borrow against assets they own. Customer-owned lead service lines did not fit that model—even though replacing them would deliver a major public-health benefit.
Working with WaterNow, Denver Water used GASB Statement 62 to record the replacement costs as a regulated asset recoverable through water rates. The utility also secured an IRS ruling allowing tax-exempt bonds to help finance the work.
That approach supports a 15-year program designed to replace tens of thousands of lead pipes at no direct charge to customers. Borrowing provides capital sooner and spreads the cost over time rather than placing the full burden on current rates.
Denver Water is now testing the same accounting mechanism for nonfunctional turf removal on government properties. Those conservation investments would be placed on the utility’s books as regulated assets and amortized over 30 years.
A second idea remains exploratory. Bricmont has discussed with WaterNow whether long-term financing could support watershed health projects, including forest mitigation that reduces wildfire risks to reservoirs and water quality.
The larger opportunity is to finance distributed conservation projects more like treatment plants, tanks and other infrastructure—giving utilities access to capital for measures that reduce demand and protect existing supply.
Episode at https://youtu.be/lUNjeFsgsQM?si=G0vJ5liscIIGepw8
Resilience in the Rockies is produced in collaboration with WaterNow and made possible in part by a grant from the Colorado Water Conservation Board, with support from PCL Construction, Norris Design, Merrick, and the City of Greeley.
waterloop is a nonprofit news outlet exploring solutions for water sustainability.
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