Oregon to Help Well Users Whose Properties Were Affected by Wildfires
Well users in Oregon whose properties were affected by wildfires are eligible to get help paying for water testing.
The Oregon Legislature allocated funds to Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to support domestic well water testing for an estimated 2,000 households that rely on wells for drinking water. These homes were affected by the 2020 wildfires, reported The Register-Guard.
A key part of this legislature is that if demand exceeds supply, people with low income and communities of color will be prioritized, according to The Register-Guard.
Actions well owners can take to recover their wells include:
- Repair and replace damaged well components;
- Re-pressurize and refill the well;
- Flush water lines;
- Treat the well for microbial contaminants; and
- Applying for free private well water testing.
OHA will provide free testing vouchers to private well users who were impacted by the 2020 Oregon wildfires through May 15, 2021. Well users can find steps needed to access the funds at healthoregon.org/wells.
source=gmail&ust=1614801504531000&usg=AFQjCNHHnXYxUmq8es0-iLXIhz3U8JFJqg" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDIsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTAyMDIuMzQ0NjM0MDEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy5vcmVnb24uZ292L09IQS9QSC9IZWFsdGh5RW52aXJvbm1lbnRzL0RyaW5raW5nV2F0ZXIvU291cmNlV2F0ZXIvRG9tZXN0aWNXZWxsU2FmZXR5L1BhZ2VzL2luZGV4LmFzcHgifQ.Qy18ty7ZKpajJjX-RXBuNgoyAasvf1aDoY2Q0P-ezqI/s/641436968/br/96951186641-l__;!!OxGzbBZ6!L5XLRNAxT73yEo93o7QA3tG6UpS9mdkf_Vjh8xxzZbrUgEwplfc3MZQ7TeXmqUof_q_JV-yQBGOMcQtT$" target="_blank">healthoregon.org/wells.The well owners can select from a list of approved environmental laboratories in Oregon that honor the vouchers for testing services and the tests will look for presence of lead, bacteria, nitrates, arsenic, and other hazardous byproducts of fire.
Nearly 23% of Oregonians rely on domestic wells, or private wells, as their primary source of potable water, according to the state.
The state currently has an Oregon Domestic Well Safety Program (DWSP) to protect groundwater resources. Steps needed to access the funds can be found here.
Applications can be found here.
