MEMBER FORUM
Fall 2006
Submitted by Stephanie Odenwald Clemens
Master Well Owner Network
Pennsylvania Master Well Owner Network Online Survey
The Penn State Master Well Owner Network is a program created to train volunteers throughout Pennsylvania about proper location, construction, and management of private water systems. This network, initiated by the Pennsylvania Institute of the Environment and facilitated locally by Penn State Cooperative Extension educators, has a goal of educating residents that own private water systems about how to ensure their drinking water is safe for consumption.
Pennsylvania is home to over one million private water wells that provide drinking water to over three million rural residents, with an additional 20,000 new water wells drilled each year. Since all aspects of private well location, construction and management are voluntary, little is known about them and how they perform for homeowners. This makes it difficult to create educational programs to meet the needs of existing and future well owners.
In 2006, researchers at Penn State received funding to conduct the first statewide survey of private well owners across the state through the end of the year. The purpose of this research study is to learn about the characteristics and management of private wells in the state along with homeowner opinions.
Penn State University in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Water Resources Research Center is offering Pennsylvania well owners an opportunity to contribute through an online survey regarding private water wells. Pennsylvania residents whose water supply comes from a well, not from a public (city) water supply or from a spring or cistern, are invited to participate in the online survey. Well owners must be at least 18 years old to complete the online survey, which usually takes less than 10 minutes to complete.
Please forward this information to Pennsylvania well owners. Their knowledge and opinions will help shape Penn State programs in the next five years for existing and future well owners.
Survey Information:
An easy way to access the survey is to use the water extension web site address http://water.cas.psu.edu. A link to the survey is prominent on the web site. Questions can be directed to Stephanie Clemens at 814-865-2250.
For more information on the Master Well Owner Network please visit: http://mwon.cas.psu.edu/Default.html.