WATER TESTING HAS BEGUN!

PLEASE STOP IN AT THE HIGH SCHOOL OFFICE TO PICK UP A SAMPLE CONTAINER!

This years goals of testing:

• Determine if arsenic advisory area should be extended to Shawano County.
• Attempt to verify/correlate arsenic level to well depth, location, other problems.
• Provide statistics of health problems to Arsenic concentration
• Present information to public. 

How your water gets tested:

 

1.  A collection bottle with instructions can be obtained from the Seymour Community High School Office.  It is then also dropped off there.

The Questionnaire and Instructions can also be downloaded here: http://www.freewebs.com/shsscienceclub/Community Drinking Water Testing Project.doc

2.  Students use a LabPro and a new Laptop and test the waters pH and conductivity.

3. LaMatte Chemical Kits are also used to test for Arsenic, Iron, and Copper, and Sulfides.

4.  Samples with high student-tested arsenic levels will be eligible to be sent to Badger Labratories.

www.badgerlabs.com

5.  Results are delivered to owner.

 

What We Know About Arsenic

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has issued an Arsenic Advisory to parts of Outagamie and Winnebago Counties.  This advisory area extends to 5 miles of both sides of the St. Peters Sandstone Formation.

 

 

This map shows the municipal wells with arsenic levels greater than that of the new EPA standard (MAP ABOVE).  Seymour is one of these municipalities.  The arsenic problem seems to be somewhat spread across the state, but upon viewing the same map with private drinking wells above the EPA limit, the story seems to change. (SEE MAP BELOW)

It is because of this major problem that an arsenic advisory has been issued for parts of Outagamie and Winnebago counties.  As you can see the arsenic is correlated to the St. Peter's Sandstone formation.  This formation continues into other counties.  In 2006, we would like to determine if arsenic continues into Shawano county.  We would like to educate the citizens in Shawano county if their is a problem.

Within the St. Peter Sandstone formation, their is a layer of Sulfides.  In 2006, we will be trying to correlate a high level of arsenic in a water sample to a high level of Sulfides.

FAQ's:

Question:  I didn't have a arsenic problem last year, why do I have a problem this year.

Answer:  There are many reasons that a groundwater sample may suddenly become alarmingly high.  As the groundwater level falls, which is happening, more and more sulfides are becoming exposed to the air below the ground.  As this sulfides are exposed to the air they become sulfates and release other elements that are held inside.  One of these elements is Arsenic.  Sudden arsenic problems can also be caused by other things such as the chlorination of one's well.  This is the reason it is important to get your water tested frequently.  We reccomend once a year.

Other Links:

National Resources Defense Council - Clean Water & Oceans: Drinking Water: In Brief: FAQs Arsenic in Drinking Water
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National Academy Press - Web Search for "Arsenic"
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National Academy Press - Arsenic in Drinking Water 2001 Update, 226 page online report - Summary Section
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Harvard University - Chronic Arsenic Poisoning: History, Study and Remediation
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University of California - Berkeley Arsenic Health Effects Research Program
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United States Geological Survey - Arsenic in ground water of the United States
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West Bengal & Bangladesh Arsenic Crisis Information Center Website
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*Maps above were borrowed from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Website