Does your water come from a well, spring, or cistern? Do you want to learn more about the quality of your water and how to care for your water system?
The goal of the Virginia Household Water Quality Program is to improve the water quality and health of Virginians with private water supplies, such as wells, springs and cisterns. Drinking water clinics are being held in counties across the state to give people with private water systems access to affordable water testing, help interpreting their water test results, and information about possible treatment options.
Participants attend a short, evening Kickoff Meeting on May 9 in the Bland County Courtroom or May 15 at the Pearisburg Community Center (KJ) at 6 p.m., where they receive information about how to collect water samples and a sampling kit. The water sample collection day will be May 17. At this collection point, the samples will be iced in coolers and taken to the Biological Systems Engineering Water Quality Lab in Blacksburg for analysis. The analysis and creating the water test reports takes about 4 weeks. Once the analysis is complete, an Interpretation Meeting is held to distribute the results to each participant. At this meeting, water test results are explained, and information provided about possible treatment options participants may consider. All participant information is kept strictly confidential. What does the water test include? Iron, Manganese, Sulfate, Sodium, Copper, Nitrate, Hardness, Arsenic, Fluoride, pH, Total Dissolved Solids, Coliform bacteria, E. coli bacteria, and Lead.
This is an opportunity that you will not want to miss!! The cost per sample is $55 which is a significant discount from the $200 to $300 fee that many outside labs charge. The Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (http://www.sercap.org/). SERCAP can also provide funding through loans and grants for people to fix or replace their systems if needed. Please call the Giles Extension Office at 540-921-3455 or email [email protected] to register.
-Submitted by Jeannie Layton-Dudding, ANR Agent serving Giles & Bland Counties
