Keeping your private well water safe

The Washington County Extension office will host a free, one-hour learning session for private well owners on April 2, 2024. The program will help attendees understand their well’s water quality and connect them to resources to manage their well.

Did you know that Iowa has a unique funding source for free or low-cost annual testing of private wells? Or that some water pollutants are odorless, tasteless and will not be removed by boiling water? If you’re curious about the answers to these questions, then take advantage of the upcoming learning session which will detail how to test your well and who can help, common contaminants, and factors that affect well water quality.

The program will be taught by Catherine DeLong, Water Quality Program Manager for ISU Extension and Outreach. According to DeLong, “About 230,000 Iowans rely on private wells as their home’s main water source, yet many do not know they should be testing once a year and that Iowa has a unique funding source to help cover the cost of testing.”

The free program will take place on April 2, 2024 from 6 — 7 p.m. at the Washington County Extension office located at 2223 250th St. in Washington. Preregistration is requested; to RSVP go to https://go.iastate.edu/NKHCPC or contact the Washington County Extension office by phone (319-653-4811) or email (hollyb1@iastate.edu).