About us
The Water Quality Control Commission is the administrative agency responsible for developing specific water quality policy in Colorado, in a manner that implements the broader policies set forth by the Legislature in the Colorado Water Quality Control Act. We adopt water quality classifications and standards for surface and groundwaters, as well as various regulations aimed at achieving compliance with those classifications and standards.
We usually meet the second Monday (and Tuesday, if necessary) of each month, with some variations due to holidays or joint meetings with other bodies.
The meetings are held in the Sabin Cleere Conference Room of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South, in Denver unless otherwise noticed.
Current Commissioners:
Jeni Arndt currently serves as the Mayor of Fort Collins and has formerly served as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives for the 53rd District (Larimer County). While at the Colorado General Assembly, she held leadership positions as the chair of Agriculture, Livestock and Water Committee and chair of Water Resources Review Committee. Commissioner Arndt also serves on the boards of Platte River Power Authority, Fort Collins/Loveland Airport, Urban Renewal Authority, and Boxelder Basin Regional Stormwater Authority. She has focused on water, agriculture, small businesses, and public education, and is a life-long member of Colorado Water Congress. She has resided in Fort Collins since she was a child, but has also served in the Peace Corps in Morocco and has lived and worked in Mozambique, Africa. She has a PhD in Literacy and Language from Purdue University in Indiana, a Master of Arts degree in Geography from the University of Colorado, a Masters of Arts degree in Special Education from Purdue, and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Colorado College. She and her husband of 32 years have three adult children and in her free time she enjoys running, biking, swimming, reading, and talking to people. Commissioner Arndt represents a community regulated by the Water Quality Control Division, and is employed by an entity that is subject to fees set pursuant to Article 8. First term, expires 2/25. Registered Democrat.
Jennifer Bock serves as the Assistant City Attorney for the City of Steamboat Springs. She has over 14 years of experience working on water law issues including the Salton Sea, mining discharge, and water rights in California and Colorado, for government, tribal, and non-profit organizations. Prior to working for the City, Jennifer worked for High Country Conservation Advocates in Crested Butte and served as a Hearings Officer for the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. She has lived in India and South Africa, and took a year off to travel the globe with her husband before clerking for Justice Gregory J. Hobbs of the Colorado Supreme Court. Jennifer has a BA from Georgetown University, and a JD from UC Berkeley School of Law with a certificate in Environmental Law. Commissioner Bock represents a community regulated by the Water Quality Control Division, and is employed by an entity that is subject to fees set pursuant to Article 8. Second term, expires 2/27. Registered Democrat.
Blair Corning serves as Deputy Director at South Platte Renew where he oversees Environmental Programs. Commissioner Corning has over 25 years of experience in water quality management, regulatory compliance, and sustainable resource stewardship. With a strong background in water science, he works for public utilities leading initiatives that improve water treatment processes, enhance environmental protection, and promote collaborative water solutions. He grew up in Colorado, and understands the importance of protecting Colorado’s water quality for future generations. Commissioner Corning has a Master of Science in Environmental Science from the University of Idaho. He has a Graduate Certificate in Water Quality from CU Denver and got his Bachelors degree in Biology from Adams State College located in his hometown of Alamosa, Colorado. He is a graduate of the AWWA Utility Management Institute and DU High-Performance Leadership programs. He is a Certified Water/Wastewater Operator in Colorado and is a Qualified Environmental Professional (QEP). First term, expires 2/27. Registered Democrat.
April Long is a professional engineer with 17 years of experience in water resources management. For 11 years she served as the Stormwater Manager and Clean River Program Manager for the City of Aspen, focusing on water quality and river health improvements for the Roaring Fork River, a 303d listed stream. Her work ranges from writing policy, regulations, and technical design guidelines to master planning, design and construction of award-winning capital projects that use creative and natural approaches for removing pollutants from stormwater runoff. Commissioner Long serves as the Executive Director of the Ruedi Water and Power Authority, a quasi-governmental organization that works to preserve and protect the water resources of the Roaring Fork Valley. She is an alumnus of the Colorado Water Leaders program and is the legislative appointee to the Colorado River Basin Roundtable. Commissioner Long grew up in Alabama and has a degree in Biosystems Engineering from Auburn University. She lives in the Roaring Fork Valley and enjoys exploring western lands and waters with her family by foot, bike, or raft. Commissioner Long represents a community regulated by the Water Quality Control Division, and is employed by an entity that is subject to fees set pursuant to Article 8. Second term, expires 2/25. Registered Democrat.
Katharine Lotspeich grew up on a dairy in western Utah, where her family still milks 5,000 cows and farms forage crops for their herd. After studying at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, she graduated from Utah State University with a Bachelor’s degree in dairy science and agricultural leadership, and a minor in political science. She began her career as a dairy nutritionist, and then spent several years working for AGPROfessionals in Greeley, where she honed her skills in customer relations and policy interpretation by helping dairy and beef producers navigate state and federal environmental regulations along with advising on manure and waste stream management. She currently works as the US Sales Lead and Customer Success Manager for Peacock Technology, a Scottish agri-tech company, focusing on artificial intelligence monitoring and labor solutions for dairies. Having grown up in Utah and residing in Colorado for 9 years, Commissioner Lotspeich has a deep understanding of the water challenges facing agriculturists in western states. Her focus on the commission is to ensure that agriculture interests and other state water considerations find common ground and mutual agreement to solve our state’s water challenges by working closely together. In her spare time, she coaches the Platte Valley FFA Milk Quality team, is co-host of the Millennial Ag Podcast, and enjoys working with her husband and two young children to improve their small acreage. First term, expires 2/27. Registered Unaffiliated.
Nicole Poncelet-Johnson is the Executive Director of the One Water Program for the City of Fort Collins. Commissioner Poncelet-Johnson is a 25+ year veteran of the water and wastewater industry. She operated water and wastewater treatment plants and systems, and managed construction of treatment plants, including Aurora Water's Prairie Waters treatment plant. She also served as a principal investigator and lead negotiator for Denver Water's Reduction Program Plan. She is a professional civil engineer who graduated from Purdue University and completed an MBA through Colorado State University. Commissioner Poncelet-Johnson represents a community regulated by the Water Quality Control Division, and is employed by an entity that is subject to fees set pursuant to Article 8. First term, expires 2/26. Registered Unaffiliated.
Vacant
Mike Weber is an employee of Bryant Consultants working as a water resource engineer with a focus on hydrologic connections between soil matrices and underground building envelopes. His focus is on hydrology in complex systems including best management practices, earthen dams/retention ponds, rivers/stream bank movements, and underground pipeline transmission lines. Commissioner Weber has an interest in the nexus between water quality and soil mechanics from infiltration and subsurface movement from naturally occurring events on projects across the United States. His background in agriculture and soil health have led him to work on various projects that have nonpoint source pollution remediation along with innovative technologies that help with increased productivity for agriculture. He has worked with lease-fallowing, irrigation improvement projects, soil health, and Colorado Water Plan Basin Implementation Plans. Commissioner Weber has a strong background in water rights for the Arkansas Basin and understanding water law in western United States. His degree is in civil engineering from Colorado State University and has served on the Arkansas Basin Roundtable, Fountain Creek Watershed, Flood Control, and Greenway District Boards and helps the USCID and Ditch and Reservoir Company Alliance non-profit organizations educate and promote water delivery in semi-arid climates. Commissioner Weber is an advocate for nonpoint source pollution reduction through water resources and preserving agricultural production. Second term expires 2/26. Registered Unaffiliated.
Julie Zahringer is the Laboratory Director, owner, and certified chemist of SDC Laboratory in Alamosa, Colorado. She serves a wide variety of municipalities and water agencies throughout Southern Colorado, focusing on drinking water, wasterwater, ground water and surface water quality projects. Much of her work revolves around integrated water solutions to meet the needs of both water users and the environment. Commissioner Zahringer has 28 years experience in the analytical water industry and is focused on ensuring all Coloradans have access to safe, clean, and affordable drinking water. Commissioner Zahringer is proud to serve the Commission and being part of a team that builds increased equity, inclusivity, and diversity in the water decision-making. Commissioner Zahringer is a native of the San Luis Valley, a region which her ancestors on both maternal and paternal sides relocated from Spain in 1649 under the Spanish Land Grant. Her formative years were spent helping on the generational family farm and ranches near the first permanent settlement in Colorado, known as San Luis del la Culebra on the Sangre de Cristo Grant. For Commissioner Zahringer, science and the life-giving force of water are inseparable. First term, expires 2/25. Registered Democrat.