BARNSTABLE – The Barnstable County Commissioners recently received a pair of briefings on local water initiatives protecting the health of Cape Codders at home and in public swimming spaces.
Jay Gardiner, Director of the Department of Health and Environment and Beach Program Coordinator Jennifer McMullin delivered a presentation on the County’s Beach Monitoring Program, with Dr. Katie O’Neill and Tetra Tech Senior Project Manager William Phelps providing an update on the upcoming Private Well Water Quality Testing Program.
The county’s Private Well Water Quality Testing Program is providing free lab testing for contaminants of concern such as PFAS in the Cape’s private wells, which number over 14,000.
The program, funded by the American Rescue Plan Act passed during Joe Biden’s presidency and developed in partnership with MassDEP and Tetra Tech, is currently in its first phase and accessible through a public web portal.
If accepted, applicants will receive a self-sampling kit to be returned to Tetra Tech and the County’s Water Quality Laboratory.
The Beach Monitoring Program, which tested over 5,200 samples in 2024, has commenced its robust weekly analysis of fecal samples on public swimming beaches for the summer, with all beaches at the onset of collections receiving a passing grade in the Program’s Pass/Fail system for determining water quality.
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