Water availability and water quality are becoming critical issues for most communities. Water is used in the home for drinking, bathing, cleaning and gardening. Farming and industry requires huge amounts of water for irrigation and
production. As demand increases conflicts arise. A safe water supply is essential to the health and well being of every person.

Is it safe to drink the water?
We drink it, we cook with it, we bathe in it, but how safe is our water? Although we use tremendous quantities of it everyday, most of us don't give much thought to our water -- until there's a problem.

Surveys have shown that as many as half of the private individual water supplies in Pennsylvania do not meet acceptable drinking water standards. Public water systems also have problems. During the 1980s, about 300,000 customers of public water supplies were required to boil their drinking water because of contamination.

How do you know if your water is fit to drink? If it comes from a municipal water system, state and federal standards are in place to regulate its safety. But 2.5 million Pennsylvanians get their water from private, individual supplies, which are unregulated by government agencies. Most of these private water supplies are deep wells fed by groundwater. In either case, there are no guarantees that the water you drink always is safe. There are about a million individual water supplies in the state, and about 20,000 new wells are drilled in Pennsylvania each year. Every well, if not sited or constructed properly, provides a potential pathway for contaminants to enter groundwater. To be sure wells and other water sources are kept free of contamination, individuals and communities need to know how water moves in the environment and how land use and human activities affect water quality and quantity.

How to Test Water:
If you don't know whom to contact to have your water tested, contact your local health department or check the yellow pages of your telephone book. Make sure the testing lab has been certified by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. To take the sample, follow the instructions that came with the sample container. The test will probably cost less than 20 dollars if you take the sample and return it to the lab. Costs will go up if you request a more complete
analysis.

What you test the water for depends on what problem you suspect. If your family or guests have become ill, test for coliform bacteria, nitrate and sulfate. If the water looks foamy, check for detergents. And if the water supply is being used for an infant under 6 months, test for nitrate. A positive test result may not mean there's a health risk. A local health department official can help you evaluate the test results and decide what...if anything...you need to do.

Links:
Forest Stewardship
IPM Program
Agribility