The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

Local News

May 24, 2010

Ansted water tests show regulated metals

By Andrea Lannom Register-Herald Reporter

Residents in the Ansted area are concerned after getting results back from tests done on their drinking water.

Well water and streams were tested in the area, along with water on Fayette Station Road. Ben Stout, biology professor at Wheeling Jesuit University, said Fayette Station Road was a marginal concern with the amount of manganese in it. However, well water was the primary concern.

“Overall the water isn’t horrible compared to some coal towns in the area, but there is a big concern with some of the metals that we found in the wells,” he said. “In the tests, we found barium, arsenic, lead and antimony in the water, which can have effects on a person’s health.”

Stout says these metals are regulated under the Environmental Protection Agency for drinking standards, but since the supply comes from wells on private property, it isn’t under the regulations. Stout said he didn’t know what would cause these metals to get into the drinking water, but further tests would find the answer.

“Right now, we are just scratching the surface of what’s wrong with the water,” he said. “The most efficient thing, which I would recommend, is to get on the public water supply, but we need to see who is in the greatest need of all the communities.”

For now, Stout recommends people to get wells tested for these metals and also to use bottled water as much as possible.

“They need an alternate water supply,” he said. “Using bottled water helps, but it won’t help too much if you’re still brushing your teeth, showering and cooking with the well water.”

Bev Walkup, resident of Ansted, has been spearheading the effort to expand city water to the area for around two years. She started the effort when auto-immune disorders started popping up over the area and she wanted to figure out why.

“I was trying to see what all of us had in common and it came down to the air we breathe and the water we drink,” she said. “I was surprised the first time I had my water tested because it looks perfectly clear.”

Walkup said she went through the health department earlier to have action taken on the drinking water but to no avail.

“The problem is that they only tested for bacteria, not for the harmful metals,” she said. “Since bacteria couldn’t live in the water because of the metal, they said the water was just fine.”

The next step, Walkup said, was to get the Region 4 Planning and Development Council to apply for grants to expand city water. She says she has provided officials with the health data and results from the water testing. Now, it’s all a matter of waiting.

“Right now, we are hung up on funding,” she said. “It looks like even now, it’s still going to be another two to three more years till it’s extended, but I’ve been fighting for this for a long time and I believe that everyone deserves clean, safe water.”

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