Davis College
News/Events

Homeowners who rely on private water systems as their home drinking water supply may be at risk of drinking contaminated water. In West Virginia, public drinking water supplies are the only water supplies regularly tested and protected against contamination. The management of private water systems (including maintenance, testing, and treatment) are the voluntary responsibility of the homeowner so residents need to take the proper measures themselves to ensure that their drinking water is safe for consumption.

Residents of West Virginia will be offered an opportunity to attend a free training workshop on how to properly manage their home’s private water well, co-sponsored by West Virginia University’s Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences and Extension Service.

This free workshop is offered as part of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Master Well Owner Network, a program intended to teach volunteers from across Mid-Atlantic region about proper management of their own private water system. In return, the volunteers must go out into their local community to educate others about the importance of proper management of private drinking water supplies.

“During the training, we’ll cover proper well location, construction, and maintenance, land-use activities associated with individual pollutants, drinking water standards, water testing, and water treatment,” says Stephanie Clemens, coordinator of the Master Well Owner Network.

All volunteers will receive a handbook of educational materials, a certificate for completion of the training workshop, and access to regional water experts. Resource professionals will offer this training from* 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 21, at the Exhibit Hall at the Berkeley County Youth Fair Ground in Martinsburg, WV. To attend this workshop, applications must be submitted by Monday, March 2, 2009.

For more information, please contact Clemens at (814) 865-2250. Visit the Master Well Owner Network website for an application. *Application deadline is Monday, March 2, 2009.