Park City officials on Tuesday are slated to continue to provide information about the future of Empire Creek, the waterway that flows out of the mountains south of Old Town, converges with Silver Creek in Old Town before passing the edge of City Park and leaves the community on a course that roughly follows the Rail Trail.
Empire Creek, widely known as Poison Creek in Park City, does not run throughout the year but is part of a waterway system that long suffered from issues related to contaminants from the community’s silver-mining era. The mining-era Judge Tunnel in Empire Canyon is located near Empire Creek and for decades, until 2013, water from the tunnel sometimes overflowed into the creek, according to City Hall
The municipal government halted using water from Judge Tunnel for drinking water in 2013 out of concern for the contaminants. The municipal government says water with the contaminants from the Judge Tunnel has gone into Empire Creek since then.
City Hall and state officials reached an agreement in 2014, followed by an amended agreement in 2018, addressing treated water from the Judge Tunnel and Spiro Tunnel. One of the points involves halting the flow of water from Judge Tunnel into Empire Creek based on water-quality standards for drinking water and stream water. Water from the Judge Tunnel will be treated at a new water-treatment plant, called 3Kings, with the expectation the plant will be operational in the summer of 2023.
The municipal government provided a prepared statement regarding the future of Empire Creek as the Tuesday event approached. It says, in part:
“To maintain compliance with Park City’s (Stipulated Compliance Order), beginning summer 2023, Empire Creek will no longer receive water from the Judge Tunnel. Instead, the Creek will return to its natural ephemeral state and Judge Tunnel water will be treated at the 3Kings WTP. Once Judge is diverted to 3Kings, Park City is required to augment the flow to Silver Maple Claims Wetlands by adding water from our other water sources, including water draining from the Park Meadows area. Under this mitigation plan, Park City will add the equivalent amount of water that entered the wetlands from sporadic Judge Tunnel overflows prior to 2013.”
The event on Tuesday is scheduled from 5 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. in the Community Room on the third floor at the Park City Library. Staffers from the municipal Public Utilities Department, which is the umbrella department for waterworks, will deliver a presentation and answer questions. The event will also be broadcast online.
More information about the event on Tuesday is available on the City Hall website, www.parkcity.org. The direct link to the event information is: https://www.parkcity.org/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/39305/15. More information about Empire Creek is available online at: https://engageparkcity.org/empire-creek.