A number of residents in rural areas near the community of Prineville (Crook County) have raised concerns about contaminants in their domestic (private) well water. These include concerns about human health, animal health, plumbing and appliances, and the odor, taste, and appearance of well water. Local and state officials contacted the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to ask whether OHA could help answer community questions about possible health risks from using the water for drinking, cooking, bathing and other daily uses.
DEQ's contractors sampled about 60 domestic wells in the community during April and May 2025. The focus of the sampling was metals. However, DEQ's contractors also tested for total coliform (bacteria). For most of those wells, this was a second round of sampling following sampling that occurred in November 2024. The April/May sampling effort analyzed samples for all the same contaminants as the earlier November 2024 round. OHA emailed each household their results immediately after receiving them in January 2025, along with an offer to speak with an OHA toxicologist to help interpret the results.
OHA received the results of the second round (April/May 2025) of sampling in June 2025 and finished sending the results out to individual well users in early July. Along with the results, OHA included health information about the metals that were detected and informational resources about treatment. OHA again offered individual consults with a toxicologist to all recipient households.
The full results and report for the November 2025 and April/May 2025 sampling are available on DEQ's Crook County Groundwater Investigation webpage. Click HERE to read the summary memo. OHA will draft a Health Consultation report for the community based on the results of both the November 2024 and April/May 2025 sampling. OHA plans to release a draft of the Health Consultation for public comment in the Fall of 2025. For a description and examples of a Public Health Consultation, see the EHAP Reports webpage.
Previous Work
May 2024: In order to assess whether the well water in this area poses a risk to human health, OHA needs to know what harmful chemicals are in
the water and in what amounts. OHA relies on
data from environmental testing laboratories and environmental agencies like
the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) or Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA). Those organizations produce data about what is in the
environment, and OHA evaluates the data to understand what it means for public
health.
To inform community sampling efforts, OHA worked with Crook County Public Health to host an open house and information gathering meeting with interested community members. This meeting occurred on May 30th, 2024 at the Crook County Public Library. Click
HERE for a meeting flyer with more information. OHA prepared a
video to describe the services OHA is able to offer community members. It played on a loop during the open house on May 30th, 2024 and you can also watch it by clicking
HERE.
February 2025: DEQ's contractors sampled about 60 domestic wells in the community during November 2024. The focus of the sampling was metals. However, DEQ's contractors also tested for total coliform (bacteria). OHA notified households that tested positive for total coliform by sending emails or letters in November 2024. This notification included information about recommended next steps and resources to address this problem. Total coliform in well water does not necessarily mean that people drinking the water will get sick, but it does mean that germs are getting into the well somehow. At any time, some of those germs entering the well could be pathogenic (disease-causing). The health effects associated with pathogenic bacteria in well water are gastrointestinal with symptoms like stomach cramping, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting.
OHA received and sent the results of metals testing to households in January 2025. In the same communication, OHA included health information about the metals that were detected and informational resources about treatment. OHA offered individual consults with a toxicologist to all recipient households.
Questions about getting well testing or your results?
If you have already had your well tested, you can contact us at ehap.info@odhsoha.oregon.gov to schedule a call with one of our toxicologists to discuss your results and any potential health risks associated with your well water.
If you have not tested your well yet, you can find accredited laboratories on
OHA's Laboratory Lists and Reporting Information webpage. Contact toxicologists at
ehap.info@odhsoha.oregon.gov to request help deciding what to test for before sampling, and after you have test results to interpret the results. See OHA's
Crook County Domestic Well Testing Recommendations for more information.
Resources for Crook County Domestic Well Safety Information Gathering
- Event flyer: Click HERE
- Electronic questionnaire: Click HERE
- Watch video: Click HERE
Domestic Well Safety Resources