The Lefthand Creek watershed is located north of Boulder, Colorado and drains about 85 square miles. It covers an area ranging in elevation from 4,000 feet on the plains east of Longmont to over 13,000 feet near the Indian Peaks Wilderness at the Continental Divide. It contains the Lefthand, James, and Little James creeks and numerous small streams with intermittent flow.

The Lefthand Creek provides drinking water to about 18,000 residents and agricultural producers in unincorporated Boulder County via the Lefthand Water District. The water is also used in the town of Niwot. Lefthand Water eventually makes it to taps as far east as I-25 in Weld County.

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Current Activities:

• We have hired a new Watershed Coordinator. He is Glenn Patterson, who brings to the position 30 years of experience as a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. You can contact Glenn at 303-747-2089.
• Recently concluded a two year study with CU's Prof. Joe Ryan, Susan Bautts, and Seacrest Labs Director Shannon Phelps examining the metal contamination in the sediments and waste rock piles in the watershed.
• The LWOG leads a group of dedicated volunteers to monitor sites along the Little James and Lefthand Creeks. Our goal is to determine metal impacts and monitor clean-up effectiveness. Samples are processed and posted online using the Division of Wildlife's RiverWatch Program.
• Currently we are updating our watershed plan to incorporate new analysis and to reflect completed clean-ups.
• Beginning work on clean-up of Porphyry Tailings .Site