By Susan Boser, Extension Educator

For the second year, the Extension Drinking Water Team has received a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Health to provide drinking water testing free of cost to 35 households in each of 18 Pennsylvania counties.

Households with wells, springs and cisterns in Pennsylvania are responsible for the testing and treatment of their water supply to ensure it meets drinking water standards. However, 40 percent of people using these private water supplies have never had them properly tested.

For the second year, the Extension Drinking Water Team has received a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Health to provide drinking water testing free of cost to 35 households in each of 18 Pennsylvania counties.

Funding for this program was made available from the Pennsylvania Department of Health cooperative agreement with CDC Environmental Health Capacity building initiative (Grant #1NUE1EH001414-01-00) and support from the Master Well Owner Network grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Ground Water Association.

Counties chosen for this year's project are those that have been underserved in the past by Extension drinking water programming and include those with a significant population of homeowners using private water systems.

The 18 counties included in this year's project are Potter, Warren, Clinton, Erie, Crawford, Butler, Bedford, Armstrong, Cambria, Adams, York, Perry, Schuylkill, Lebanon, Chester, Lackawanna, Wayne, and Susquehanna.

Educational Webinars

Participants will take part in an initial educational webinar where they will learn about protecting and maintaining their private water supply.

After the webinar, participants will be provided with a water test kit to have their home water supply tested for a variety of health-based parameters including bacteria, nitrate, manganese, arsenic, sodium, barium, lead, and copper by a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Accredited Laboratory.

The Water Team is also offering free testing and education to up to 60 additional private well/spring owners who contact Penn State Extension or PA-DOH with special concerns about their water quality and who may lack the financial means to have their water tested on their own.

Workshops will be held January through June of 2022.

Click Here to register for a workshop that is being held in your county.

(Reprinted from Penn State Extension Watershed Winds newsletter.  Click Here to sign up for your own copy.)

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[Posted: February 22, 2022]

2/28/2022