Free bottled water is coming to up to 42,000 Stanislaus-area homes with tainted wells
Up to 42,000 people in Stanislaus and Merced counties soon will get free bottled water because their wells are high in nitrate.
The cost of at least $1 million a year will be borne by farmers and other parties whose land contributed in the past to the problem. Nitrate can impede the body’s uptake of oxygen, especially in infants and pregnant women.
The program is set to launch May 7, under the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. It is one of several about to start in high-priority parts of the Valley.
The program will be in place while work continues on long-term solutions on nitrate, such as connecting to city water lines and improving farm practices. That could take a few years in some spots and a few decades in others.
The program will not be for customers of city water systems, which already have treatment for nitrate or have retired problem wells.
Qualifying residents no longer will have to buy bottled water by the case in grocery stores. They can choose to get a dispenser for 5-gallon jugs that are replaced as needed, or an under-the-sink nitrate filter that is changed regularly.
The program next year might add water-filling kiosks at shopping centers or other convenient locations. That will depend on how the delivery and filter options work over the first year.
An interactive map can help residents see if they might qualify for the free bottled water in Stanislaus or Merced. It was created by the Valley Water Collaborative, formed last year by farmers, food processors, city sewage managers and other partners.
“This is the quickest way to make sure people have safe drinking water,” Executive Director Parry Klassen said in a phone interview.
Bad water from Salida to Delhi areas
The program area covers the Modesto and Turlock groundwater basins. It is bounded by the Stanislaus River on the north, the San Joaquin River on the west, the Merced River on the south, and roughly the Tuolumne County line on the east.
The map shows extensive nitrate hazards generally west of Highway 99 from Salida to Delhi. Another large zone stretches north, east and south of Turlock. Smaller hot spots are near Oakdale, Waterford and east Modesto.
The program is open to people of any income, and to renters as well as homeowners.
They can start the process by requesting free testing to see if their wells meet the threshold of 10 parts per million of nitrate. If they do, the collaborative will guide them through the steps for free bottled water or filters.
A reading between 8 and 10 ppm signifies a possible nitrate risk and will qualify the resident for another free test in a year.
The program drew cautious support from two environmental leaders involved in the issue over the past decade.
“We’re thrilled that the outcome we’ve been working towards for so long is within reach,” said an email from Jennifer Clary, state director for Clean Water Action, a national group.
“But success is dependent on effective outreach that reaches community members most in need, including those who may not have access to the internet, are renters or who speak languages other than English.”
Clary said the program should not just involve nitrate, but pollutants such as coliform bacteria, arsenic, uranium and trichloropropane.
The same point was made by Michael Clairborne, directing attorney in Sacramento for a group called Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability.
He also would like to see a much shorter timeline for improved farming practices than the 35 years allowed by the regional water board.
The free bottled water could be needed for just a few years in areas where connecting to a public system is practical. Another option is drilling a new well to a depth where nitrate is not a problem.
Both fixes would have substantial costs. The collaborative plans to look into state and federal grants that could help.
A total of about 100,000 people are expected to qualify for these programs throughout the Valley. The other launches are to the south in the groundwater basins near the Chowchilla, Kings, Kaweah and Tule rivers.
‘Blue baby syndrome’ and other ills
Nitrate is a naturally occurring molecule with one nitrogen atom attached to three oxygen atoms. It cannot be seen or tasted, and boiling the water does not make it safe.
People who ingest too much nitrate can have breathing trouble, increased heart rates, headaches, abdominal cramps and other symptoms, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Ingestion by infants can cause the skin discoloration known as “blue baby syndrome.”
Nitrate can enter groundwater from poor handling of fertilizer and livestock manure. Stanislaus and Merced counties are major players in the dairy and poultry industries. They also grow an abundance of fruits, nuts and vegetables.
The regional board regulates how nitrate is applied, including the spreading of manure-laced water to irrigate dairy feed crops. The corn and other plants are supposed to take up enough nitrate to keep it from polluting the aquifer.
But the rules did not exist when the poultry and dairy industries emerged more than a century ago, nor when synthetic fertilizers appeared in the 1940s. And once nitrate pollutes the groundwater, it is hard to remove.
The collaborative is chaired by Alan Reynolds, who oversees Central Valley vineyards for E.&J. Gallo Winery of Modesto.
He said by phone that growers of many crops already are fertilizing in a way that keeps nitrate out of the aquifers. This includes applying only the specific nutrients the plants need, in the right amounts and at the right time.
“There’s a lot of things that are going on and continue to be researched in that area,” he said.
Reynolds also cited “fertigation,” where nutrients are delivered precisely through drip lines that also irrigate efficiently.
Funding could grow as program spreads
The money to carry out the program comes from assessments on permit-holders from the regional water board. They include dairy and poultry farms, crop producers, processing plants, sewage treatment plants and other operations that could release nitrate.
Klassen said the $1 million estimate assumed that no more than 30% of the affected well owners would request the replacement water. It could grow if the collaborative finds a larger demand.
The group’s board includes Ray Prock Jr., a dairy farmer near Denair.
“We have pulled together a remarkable coalition of farmers, dairies, other businesses and cities to provide access to clean drinking water,” he said by email. “We are proud to launch our program in early May. It will include free well testing and safe drinking water for households who have been impacted by nitrate.”
This story was originally published April 19, 2021 at 6:00 AM.
