Haswell Receives $160,000 Grant

By Sharon Pearson

April 30, 2004

The Town of Haswell has received a $160,000 Community Development Block Grant to address an on-going issue with Nitrate levels in the town’s water supply.

According to Haswell Town Clerk Sharon Pearson, the grant was written by Michelle Nelson, a member of the town’s Board of Trustees, and will provide the financial means for the small western Kiowa County community to alleviate the lingering Nitrate issue that has plagued the town’s water supply for at least two years.

According to Pearson the tested levels of Nitrate were not "staggeringly high", but were above the threshold permitted by the Colorado Department of Health and Environment and needed to be brought down to accepted standards. Pearson stated the town, still recovering from the embezzlement of over $45,000 by former Town Clerk Kathy Eikenberg, could ill afford the cost of measures required to fix the Nitrate problem, so the grant funds were pursued.

The grant comes on the heels of another $10,000 grant, also written by Nelson, the Town of Haswell received that must used for the Environmental Impact Study required by the state before work can progress on addressing the Nitrate issue.