WEATHERFORD — Anyone interested in private water well management in Parker and surrounding counties is invited to the free Texas Well Owner Network training Oct. 2 in Weatherford.
A free Texas Well Owner Network training will be held Oct. 2 in Weatherford. Attendees may bring well-water samples to the training for testing. (Texas Well Owner Network photo)
The training will be held from 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. at the Doss Heritage and Culture Center, 1400 Texas Drive, said Drew Gholson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service program specialist and network coordinator, College Station.
“The Texas Well Owner Network program is for Texas residents who depend on household wells for their water needs,” Gholson said. “Well owners who want to become familiar with Texas’ groundwater resources, septic system maintenance, well maintenance and construction, water quality and water treatment will benefit from this training.”
Participants can have their water well samples screened for $15, with payment due when samples are turned in at the training.
“We invite private well owners to bring in a water sample to be screened for nitrate, total dissolved solids, arsenic and bacteria,” he said.
Well owners who would like to have their well water sampled can pick up the two sample containers — one bag and one bottle — at the AgriLife Extension offices in Parker, Hood, Wise, Johnson, Palo Pinto and Jack counties. They can also be obtained at the Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District office, 1250 E. Highway 199 in Springtown.
After filling each bottle and bag with a sample from their well, participants should bring the two samples to the Oct. 2 training, Gholson said.
Well water analysis for E. coli bacteria will be done by the City of Fort Worth Water Department Laboratory. Sample bags and bottles for nitrate, arsenic and total dissolved solids screening also should be turned in the day of the training.
Bringing water samples to the training is not required, Gholson said, but if people want their water samples analyzed, they must attend the training.
Attendance is limited, so attendees are requested to register at twon.tamu.edu/training or by calling 979-845-1461 as soon as possible.
Gholson said the training is one of 14 being conducted statewide through the Preventing Water Quality Contamination through the Texas Well Owner Network project.
“The core content of this program is the same as other trainings, but the information is tailored to local water quality issues and aquifers,” he said.
Gholson said more than 1 million private water wells in Texas provide water to citizens in rural areas and increasingly to those living on small acreages at the growing rural-urban interface.
“Private well owners are independently responsible for monitoring the quality of their wells,” he said. “They are responsible for ensuring their drinking water is safe. They are responsible for all aspects of the water system — testing, inspecting, maintaining — and this training will help private well owners to understand and care for their wells.”
Funding for Texas Well Owner Network project 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. The project is managed by the Texas Water Resources Institute, part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, AgriLife Extension and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University.
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