COUNTY BOARD REQUIRES TESTING OF PRIVATE WELLS
Law protects 20,000 households from contaminated drinking water
COMMITTEE NEWS RELEASE: May 23, 2007
Contact: Chris Crane, Committee Coordinator
Tel: (914) 995-2104; ChrisC@westchesterlegislators.com
Adding a measure of protection for the county’s 20,000 households who rely on private wells for their drinking water, the County Board passed legislation this week that requires property sellers to test their wells for pollutants before they sell their property and landlords to test their wells on a periodic basis.
County Legislator Tom Abinanti, Chair of the Environment & Energy Committee that shepherded the legislation, noted that both public and private water systems are monitored but that this law is the first to require testing of private wells for contaminants in Westchester.
“Everyone takes drinking water for granted," said Abinanti. “But we've viewed private wells as if they were somehow immune from contamination. Groundwater contamination from industrial and commercial activities, pesticide applications and septage leakage could occur anywhere."
The new law requires testing for parameters that surpass those reviewed in typical water tests conducted by potential real property purchasers, including a broader range of both organic and conventional contaminants.
The new law mandates that the water testing must be conducted by a certified lab following strict Health Department guidelines. Test results must be given to both the proposed buyer and the Health Department which will develop a database to track water quality and identify problem areas.
Reports show that 25% of private drinking water wells were found to be contaminated after similar legislation was enacted in New Jersey in 2001. In the fifteen months since Rockland County’s private well water testing law went into effect, over half flunked the water test.
“Clearly, this legislation is needed to get wells tested that are not now being tested and to raise the public’s awareness of the importance of periodic testing,” said Abinanti.
