A portion of the Southern Willamette Valley has been designated as a Groundwater Management Area by the Department of Environmental Quality due to elevated nitrate in well water. While it is especially important for households with pregnant women or newborns to test for nitrate because of a rare type of blue-baby syndrome, all homes with private wells should be aware of their nitrate level.  

For your free nitrate screening, bring about ½ cup of untreated well water in a clean, water-tight container. You may either wait for your results (the test takes 5 to 10 minutes if the well water clinic is not busy), or drop off your container with your contact information and we will mail your results and recycle your container.  

Visit http://wellwater.oregonstate.edu for more scheduled workshops and free nitrate screening clinics. Summer interns will be all over the Willamette Valley this summer hosting clinics. If you are interested in hosting a neighborhood screening on your driveway, please reach out to Chrissy.lucas@oregonstate.edu