BOARDMAN, Ore. — The Oregon Health Authority is providing vouchers for residents of Morrow and Umatilla counties to test their private wells for nitrate contamination.

Applications for vouchers will be accepted through May 15, and expire June 7.

The program comes amid concerns of dangerously high levels of groundwater nitrates in the region, with some wells testing four to six times higher than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s safe drinking water limit.

Gabriela Goldfarb, environmental public health section manager for OHA, said testing is “an essential first step” that allows OHA to identify contaminated wells and offer solutions — including treatment systems or alternative sources of water.

“It’s important that everyone in this area of concern who relies on a domestic well finds out whether they are exposed to high nitrates and other common contaminants in their drinking water,” Goldfarb said.

The state Department of Environmental Quality established the Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater Management Area, or LUBGWMA, in 1990 to address groundwater nitrates.

The area spans parts of northern Morrow and Umatilla counties along the Columbia River. OHA estimates there are 4,500 domestic wells within the LUBGWMA.

Consuming nitrates in excess can pose serious health risks, such as respiratory infections, spontaneous abortions and certain cancers, according to OHA. It can also cause “blue baby syndrome” in infants, which occurs when not enough oxygen enters the blood.

The EPA’s safe drinking water limit for nitrate is 10 milligrams per liter, though at least one well in the LUBGWMA has tested as high as 63 milligrams per liter, said Nella Mae Parks, senior organizer with the nonprofit Oregon Rural Action.

The group has partnered with the Morrow County Health Department to test wells for approximately 540 households between Boardman and Irrigon since last year, going door-to-door collecting water samples.

Of those, 40% exceeded the safe drinking water limit for nitrates, Parks said. In Boardman, the figure is closer to 70%.

Approximately 86% of domestic wells in the LUBGWMA remain untested.

As of March 22, OHA has distributed 38 well testing vouchers in Morrow County, and one in Umatilla County. The state legislature has allocated $881,987 to pay for 800 tests and 84 reverse-osmosis treatment systems, though the funding expires in June.

Another $3 million is also being considered in Gov. Tina Kotek’s proposed budget to continue this work for the next two years.

To be eligible for a free voucher, the well water must be used for drinking, bathing, cooking and washing dishes, and not part of a public water system.

OHA officials acknowledged that end-of-tap treatment systems like reverse osmosis are not effective when nitrate levels exceed 25 milligrams per liter. In those cases, the agency is seeking alternative water supplies with support from the state Department of Human Services.

EPA visit

On March 20, the EPA’s regional administrator, Casey Sixkiller, visited Boardman to meet privately with community members affected by contaminated water.

Parks said about 35 people attended the meeting, including local residents and representatives of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

“He made it really clear that, in 2023, everyone should have access to safe water. The EPA, at its core, is a public health organization,” Parks said. “That was his commitment, that he is going to continue putting pressure on the state to make progress.”

Environmental groups have petitioned the EPA to take emergency action in the LUBGWMA, exercising the agency’s authority under Section 1431 of the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Parks said the community wants to see strict, rapid deadlines for testing all affected wells; control of nitrate sources, including agricultural sources; and a community-wide health assessment, including cancer screenings.

Sixkiller made no specific commitments, Parks said, but did discuss the EPA’s emergency powers.

“From our reading of it, we would be a perfect case for that,” Parks said.

While residents were happy to meet Sixkiller, Parks said the mood was one of cautious optimism. They discussed how they’ve lost pets and livestock to mysterious illnesses that they suspect may be linked to the water, and shared stories of cancer and miscarriages.

“We’ve had a lot of people come in here and say they’re gonna help us, gonna help us solve this problem,” said Mike Brandt, a longtime Boardman resident. “Forgive me if I’m skeptical, but why should we expect anything different now?”

Residents requesting a voucher from the Oregon Health Authority for free well tests in the Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater Management Area can apply at https://bit.ly/40Doq51.