Cool, clear water

This year, a $10,000 grant from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service is funding the Idaho Home*A*Syst Hispanic Farmworker Training Project.

The project aims to help farm workers identify water quality issues affecting their communities, and to teach practices for safeguarding well water quality. Currently, the project focuses on agrarian Hispanic communities in Caldwell, Homedale, Parma, and Payette.

Ninety-six percent of IdahoÕs public drinking water comes from groundwater, 27 percent from individual wells. According to the Idaho Association of Soil Conservation Districts (IASCD), 15 percent of the stateÕs wells fail to meet one or more primary health drinking water standards.

For migrant farm worker communities the percentage may be higher. A recent study by Washington stateÕs health department found that three of every five water systems serving migrant workers there failed to meet public health standards.

UI extension educator Kristin Keith and IASCD Idaho Home*A*Syst coordinator Lance Holloway oversee the Idaho program.

At Farmway Village near Caldwell, Hispanic families are learning how to keep their well water clean. Photo by Troy Maben.

As a first step, farm workers fill out 13 assessment worksheets covering topics such as fertilizer, pesticide, and animal manure storage; home waste management; and septic system maintenance. The worksheetsÑprinted in both Spanish and EnglishÑare filled out with help from bilingual project coordinators Delia Gonzales and Maria Gonzales Mabbutt, who direct efforts on the ground.

High nitrate levels, for example, can be caused by inappropriate chemical storage near well heads.

"It is so common in Mexican culture to simply boil water to make it safe for drinking," Mabbutt said. "But when it comes to nitrates, boiling increases the concentration of nitrates, instead of eliminating them. And for children 6 months and under, high nitrate levels can be extremely dangerous."

The next task for Mabbutt and Gonzales is to gather more detailed information about current practices. They can then begin to teach farm workers about changes that will safeguard the water, and the health of the families who use it.

-Donna Emert