Grey-Bruce residents can still access Public Health Ontario’s complimentary Well Water Testing Program this holiday season, but there will be some changes to the local sample drop-off/pick-up service schedule.

The service will operate as usual from Dec. 18-22, 2023, with a Public Health Ontario (PHO) courier picking up water samples each weekday at both Grey Bruce Public Health in Owen Sound and the Walkerton Community Centre in Brockton and a local courier servicing a Wednesday Bruce County route and Friday Grey County route.

All 14 local drop-off locations will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day.

From Dec. 27-29, 2023, samples will continue to be picked up daily from the Owen Sound and Brockton locations. However, the Wednesday Bruce County route and Friday Grey County route will not be operating.

The normal schedule will resume Jan. 2, 2024.

Grey Bruce Public Health launched this fall a locally developed service that provides all local households with equitable, timely access to PHO’s Well Water Testing Program.

The Bruce County route includes locations in Kincardine, Saugeen Shores, South Bruce Peninsula, Northern Bruce Peninsula, and Arran-Elderslie, while the Grey County route includes locations in Chatsworth, Meaford, The Blue Mountains, Grey Highlands, Southgate, West Grey, and Hanover.

Samples picked up by the local courier on Wednesdays and Fridays are collected by the PHO courier, which transports them, along with samples collected from the Owen Sound and Brockton locations, to a laboratory in London, Ont., for testing.

Samples are analyzed for the presence of bacterial indicators of contamination, specifically E. coli and total coliforms. Residents receive test results directly from PHO.

GBPH recommends households that draw their drinking water from wells or other private systems test their water at least three times a year, after any work is done to their system, and after significant weather events, such as a fast thaw or severe rain.

A list of pick-up/drop-off locations, which includes courier pick-up times, is available at the following link: Well Water Testing Service. A map of the sites has also been created.