Officials urge testing of wells

By Jim Tiffin
Cibola County Bureau

CIBOLA-MCKINLEY COUNTIES — If you get your water from a privately owned well somewhere in Cibola or McKinley county, health officials urge you to check your drinking water for contamination.

Flood waters are often contaminated with fecal material, raw sewage and if flow into private wells can contaminate the water making people sick, states the New Mexico Environment Department late Thursday afternoon.

Cibola County's Emergency Management Coordinator Peggy Jordan said whether the property owner thinks their wells are contaminated or not, if they are in an area that has flooded, she urges them to check their water.

Water test kits are available from businesses in Cibola and McKinley counties for less than $27 and if samples taken from wells are positive for total coliform or E. Coli, well owners will be notified within 24 hours of the sample being submitted to these businesses, representatives said.

Coliform contamination
Dr. Nick Augenstein, a Grants internal medicine physician, said E. Coli is one of many coliforms, which are intestinal bacteria.

"E. Coli has gained notoriety, we've all heard the stories about how it contaminates and makes people sick" he said.

"It is virulent and antibiotic resistant," he said.

"You can bleach your water, or pump thousands of gallons of water out of your well and keep testing it, but in that case, you just put the contaminated water in the ground and it soaks into the aquifer, which I'm sure is not good," he said.

"The safe bet is an osmotic filter which is used by campers," he said.

"The filters allow campers to use a syringe to suck water up our of a stream and drink it," he said. But, those filters are small and allow only a limited amount of water to be consumed.

"It does help in a pinch, though," he said.

People can take showers in contaminated water but it is important to keep your mouth shut and make sure no water gets into your nose, he said.

"If the water comes in contact with your intestinal system, you'll get sick."

Most problems caused by coliform or E. Coli contamination in people are nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, Augenstein said.

The Centers for Disease Control states severe illness is possible. A few years ago when Jack-in the Box fast food restaurants did not cook its hamburgers well enough, people became ill, some violently, when they consumed the hamburgers.

The culprit then was E. Coli.
Disinfect wellClarence Freeman, owner of AAA Water Witch in Milan, said water well owners need to put calcium hydrochloride, or bleach into their wells to disinfect.

"You should put in four to five gallons, followed by 10 gallons of clean water, but first, turn off the power to the well," he said. "It would do no good to have a live wire working and get water or bleach on it."

One thing well owners need to look out for is bleach sold over the counter loses 25 percent of its effectiveness each month.

"If you buy bleach that's four months old it's not going to do any good," he said. The state's environmental department offers tips for well owners to disinfect their wells in an accompanying article.

One other guideline to use, Freeman said, is one cup of bleach for every 100 gallons of water in the well.

"When we work on a well, we always disinfect it before we allow the well owner to use the water," he said.

Freeman may be contacted at (505) 290-7000.

Cibola water test kitsIn Milan, water test kits are available from the New Mexico Microbiology Laboratory, a division of Culligan water.

Test bottles are available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m., said Amanda Dawson, the lab technician.

"We only accept samples Monday through Thursday," she said.

It is important for well owners to understand they cannot use their own samples containers, such as glasses or bottle because they are not sterile or contain the chemicals the lab uses to help process the sample.

Each bottle from the lab costs $26.64, she said, and each customer is notified within five business days what the sample tests out, but if positive for total coliform or E. Coli, are notified within 24 hours.

"It's important for customers to give us a telephone number where we can contact them if we need to if the sample is positive," she said.

Let the water run for one to five minutes from the faucet, she said. Then, fill the sample bottle to the EPA Fill Line.

Immediately put the lid on it and lock it and it must be brought into the lab on the same day or the sample will not be able to be tested.

Ice the sample"The sample must be put on ice when you get it and transport it," she said. A bag of ice, a cooler, whatever an be used to ice the sample down is acceptable.

The lab is at 1057 Elkins Road in Grants. Dawson may be contacted during normal business hours at (505) 287-2208.

McKinley water test kitsIn Gamerco, just outside of Gallup, the Gallup Micobiological Laboratory also offers water testing. Hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday. All the conditions mentioned by Dawson are identical for the Gallup lab as well.

The Gallup lab is at 710 Grand Canyon Road and is a division of Water Works, said Melody Lucero. The telephone number is (505) 863-2001.

To contact reporter Jim Tiffin call (505) 287-2197 or e-mail: tiffin.independent@yahoo.com