With many residents of Woodlands County utilizing well water, the municipality hosted a virtual workshop on October 21 on managing wells. The event streamed live and enabled attendees to ask questions in real-time. Multiple specialists were on hand, including Jeff Hammer, a Public Health Inspector for Alberta Health Services.
Hammer discussed the importance of testing water and why it’s essential to do so. “We have two types of tests available at the health units. One is a bacteriological bottle which we test for total Coliform and E. coli. Total Coliform is an indicator of bacteria, and E. coli is basically fecal matter which you never want to see. The other type of test we have is a chemical water sample. It does a bunch of minerals and metals and has some more health parameters associated with it.” Hammer said that some of the minerals and metals tested for include manganese, lead, arsenic, and the pH value of the water.
He said that testing well water is vital to help establish a baseline because water quality can change over time. “If you are in an oil and gas region and they do some drilling, and your water quality changes, and you don’t have proof of that change, then you’re going to have a hard fight on your hands. You want to have a good history of what your water quality is just in case something funky happens with resource development in your area.”
Routinely checking water quality also comes down to safety. “A lot of times, taste or smell is not evidence of a...
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