As a private well owner, it is your responsibility to get your water tested for nitrates, arsenic, and other contaminants. Nitrates are the most common anthropogenic contaminant in Minnesota’s groundwater. Since you can’t taste it or see it, many people are not aware it is in their drinking water.
Join us on Wednesday, October 23 at the Brooten Pavilion to test your well water for nitrate and chloride at no cost.
At a minimum, private wells should be tested annually for coliform bacteria and every other year for nitrate. If nitrate has previously been detected at a rate greater than 3 parts per million, the well should be tested for nitrate every year. Every private well should be tested at least once during the life of the well to determine if arsenic is present in the water, and at what levels.
The Stearns County SWCD in partnership with the Minnesota Groundwater Association (MNGWA), Minnesota Well Owners Organization (MNWOO) and other supporting partners provide free nitrate and chloride water screenings for households that rely on private wells. If you can’t make this event, then sign up to be on our private well screening mailing list to be notified of future private well screening events.
- Find a clean sample container that can hold at least 1 quart of water. Collect the water sample on the day of the event from the cold-water side of your kitchen faucet.
- Use a permanent marker to label your container with your first and last name. If you have more than one sample, add an identifier like Sample #1 and Sample #2.
- Collect a minimum of 1 cup (8 ounces) of water in the container.
- If you have water treatment equipment installed (other than a water softener which has no effect on nitrate levels), we recommend taking a sample “before” and “after” to help you determine if your treatment equipment is working properly.
- Bring your water sample to the Brooten Pavilion between the hours of 1:00PM – 6:00PM on Wednesday, October 23. If you can’t make the event, then you can drop off your water sample before the event after 7:00AM. There will be a staff person with a cooler outside of the Brooten Pavilion starting at 7:00AM. If you are dropping off a water sample, there will be short registration form that will need to be filled out so we can contact you with the results.
- If you are attending the event, once you arrive, we will ask you to complete a short registration form asking you about your water, well, and water treatment system if you have one. Your sample will be transferred into one of our leakproof containers. If you can, bring a picture of your well and treatment system, it will help us advise you on water quality issues that may show up in the screening.
- Your sample will be analyzed while you wait.
- Once your sample is processed, one of our team of consultants will visit with you about your results.
For information on volunteering at the event contact Bruce Olsen sawdust2013@gmail.com or Jeff Stoner j_stoner@comcast.net
Private Well Screening Event https://www.stearnscountyswcd.net/privatewell
MGWA is committed to developing a just, equitable, and inclusive groundwater community. Click on the button below to read MGWA’s full diversity statement.
RSS - Posts
You must be logged in to post a comment.