Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, August 16, 1994 TAG: 9408160070
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
The process will be explained in two public meetings, scheduled for 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 30, in the Board of Supervisors room in the county Administration Building.
The board and Pulaski County Public Service Authority are joining the Extension Service in supporting the study, said county Extension Agent Richard White.
``I think it is a good program,'' Supervisor Pete Crawford said. He said the board is encouraging people to have their wells and springs tested, and that he will probably do so himself. He said the county is funding half the costs of the project.
White said local groundwater supplies and drinking water contaminants will be discussed. Testing kits will be available for $15 for each water source.
Water collection dates have been set for Sept. 13 and 27. Water samples will be brought to the Administration Building to be sent to laboratories for analysis.
A meeting will be scheduled in October to review the findings.
Recent studies show water quality as a greater health problem than either AIDS or radon, White said.
In Pulaski County, 33.4 percent of all homes use private water systems. A 1988 state report on water and waste issues estimated that half of those are inadequately built, privately drilled wells.
Two neighboring counties, Montgomery and Wythe, recently completed water testing programs.
White said that Pulaski County, along with Giles and Montgomery and Floyd counties, lies in geological areas with a high potential for groundwater pollution, he said.
Crawford said contamination sources in all New River Valley counties include petroleum products such as underground storage tanks, landfills, and septic tank drain fields, which are the biggest single waste problem.
The water samples will be tested at a Virginia Tech laboratory for nitrates, chloride, fluoride, sulfate, iron, sodium, copper and manganese, and such qualities as hardness, acidity, water corrosion and dissolved solids. A second test, to be done by a private lab in Roanoke, will look for contamination from bacteria.
The Extension Service hopes to test 10 percent of the county's 4,400 private water supplies, White said.
This will establish an inventory of groundwater quality data to help local government in its decisions on land use and groundwater management by providing a precise map of tested wells.
Because groundwater ignores jurisdictional boundaries, White said, a regional approach will be necessary in the New River Valley.
While all private water systems are eligible for testing, priority will be given to people who attend one of the Aug. 30 meetings.
``All analysis and results will be held strictly confidential,'' Crawford said, and any action taken as a result of the samples will be up to the property owner.
Further information is available by calling the county Extension office at 980-7761.
by CNB