Long-Term Objectives:

1. Determine the extent of nitrate, lead, and other contamination in the state's drinking water supplies.

2. Evaluate and improve private well water quality and the level of well protection.

3. Educate citizens on issues related to drinking water safety, including proper well protection, water testing, and water treatment options.

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Short-term Objectives:

1. Conduct county water screening and education programs for more than 2,000 citizens per year.

2. Produce fact sheets, displays, and videos to meet educational needs of citizens.

3. Develop and implement the Farm*A*Syst and Home*A*Syst environmental assessment programs for self-assessment of environmental protection by farmers and homeowners.

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Accomplishments:

1. Completed analyses of more than 12,500 individual water samples in more than 60 counties for nitrate, lead, and/or pesticides.

2. Developed and distributed more than 20 fact sheets on drinking water quality issues.

3. Conducted education programs for more than 10,000 residents on drinking water quality.

4. Completed the first component of the Farm*A*Syst environmental assessment program farmers.

More than half of the state's residents rely on ground water for their drinking water. Many of the more than one million private wells in the state have not been inspected or tested in recent years. With the increasing concern over agricultural source contamination and unsafe levels of lead dissolving from plumbing systems, it is imperative that citizens be aware of drinking water risks. We have budgeted our educational efforts to private well users and emphasized the importance of proper well construction, water testing, pollutant source elimination, and water treatment systems. Results of the program to date indicate that high-risk wells are shallow, old, poorly constructed, and located very close to pollutant sources such as chemical mixing sites, crop fields, septic systems, or animal production facilities. Our lead screening results indicate that any water system can be contaminated by lead dissolving from lead solder, copper pipe, or brass fixtures. High-risk water systems are old with copper plumbing.

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Future Plans:

1. Continue research and education in current and future watershed projects to address targeted water quality problems, sources, and solutions with emphasis on nonpoint source management.

2. Continue model/GIS development, testing, and application using new data and computing technologies.

3. Continue education programs with increased focus on equipping local resource managers and extension educators with necessary knowledge and support tools for watershed management.

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