Water is a basic necessity of life and something that most of us take for granted. Issues regarding water quality are vast. Standards for water quality are set for public use by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The standards are then followed at the local level by each individual city or township. The provider of city water is required by law to provide a water quality report to consumers on a yearly basis.

If you are a homeowner with a private well then it is your responsibility to have the water tested yearly to ensure your water is still safe to drink. Taking a water sample and sending it to your state laboratory is easy. The cost for the testing varies depending on what type of testing is done. The more specific a test is, the more expensive it is. You can contact your local public water system or county health department to determine if there are specific water constituents you should test for.

If your water test results show there is an increased level of one of the items tested, you should follow-up on this to ensure your water is safe to drink. For example, if your test results indicate that coliforms are present, the water should be tested again to verify the test results. The repeat sample should also be analyzed for fecal coliforms.

The ERRNIE Project group provides a full well screen for all project participants. The information we collect from the full well screen will help parcipating families understand more about the health of their home environment, while providing data to the ERRNIE group.

What contaminents does a full well screen test for?

• Coliforms - bacteria
• Heavy metals -hardness of water, lead, copper, arsenic
• Herbicides - chemicals to repel weeds
• Pesticides - chemicals to repel pests
• Petrolium - byproducts from fuels like gasoline, diesel, lighter fluid, etc.
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) - contaminants from degreasers like dry cleaning solvents
• Nitrates - from agriculture, confined animal feeding operations, septic system discharges, and lawn or garden fertilizers.

What kinds of health effects occur if exposed to high levels of these contaminents?

• Coliforms can cause diarrhea and kidney failure
• Lead in drinking water can seriously effect development of the nervous system in children, and cause kidney problems or high blood pressure in adults
• Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds can cause liver or kidney damage, increased cancer risk, anemia, or nervous system damage
• Nitrates can cause "blue baby syndrome" or methemoglobinemia in infants and unborn children, nitrates have also been associated with bladder cancer in women.

How can drinking water be made healthy for children?

If you have your water tested, and one or more contaminents is found in high levels, there are ways to protect yourself and your family from being exposed. Click on the link below from the Gallatin Local Water Quality District (GLWQD) for detailed instructions on how to disinfect your well.

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Gallatin Local Water Quality District Well Disinfection Procedure