The Texas Well Owner Network, TWON, will host private water well screenings for residents in Kerr County May 19 – 20 in Kerrville.
The cost of the screening is $15 per sample, and residents may submit as many samples as they would like. Water samples will be screened for contaminants, including total coliform bacteria, E. coli, nitrate-nitrogen and salinity.
The TWON program serves residents who depend on household wells for their water needs, said Joel Pigg, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service program specialist and TWON coordinator, Texas A&M Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Bryan-College Station.
“The TWON program was established to help well owners become familiar with Texas groundwater resources, septic system maintenance, well maintenance and construction, and water quality and treatment,” Pigg said. “It allows them to learn more about how to improve and protect their community water resources.”
Well owners are encouraged to bring water samples from all of the wells on their property and before and after any water treatment systems that may be attached to the wells.
Water sampling and meeting information
Water samples can be dropped off May 19 from 8:30-11 a.m. at the AgriLife Extension office for Kerr County, 3775 Highway 27, in Kerrville, or at the Headwaters Groundwater Conservation District, 125 Lehmann Drive, in Kerrville.
The follow-up meeting to explain the results of the screenings will be from 9-10:30 a.m. on May 20 at the Kerr County Extension office, 3775 Highway 27, Kerrville. Topics covered will include water well basics, water wells 101, water quality and sample results.
Sampling instructions
Attendees are asked to follow the water sample instructions available at twon.tamu.edu.
Pigg said it is essential for those submitting samples to attend the follow-up meeting to receive results, learn corrective measures for identified problems and improve their understanding of private well management.
For more information on the screenings, contact Pigg at 979-321-5946 or j-pigg@tamu.edu.
The screenings are presented by AgriLife Extension and Texas Water Resources Institute, a unit of Texas A&M AgriLife Research that brings together expertise from across The Texas A&M University System.
Funding for TWON is through a Clean Water Act nonpoint source grant provided by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
