The Eagan YMCA is looking for people to serve on its volunteer community board. The board works with the YMCA staff by assisting the executive director with overall management and raising funds through the annual campaign to provide scholarships for membership and program subsidies. Board members also serve as advocates for the YMCA in the community.
The board term is for three years, and a member can serve two consecutive terms.
To get an application form, stop by the member service desk at the YMCA at 550 Opperman Drive. Applications need to be returned by Jan. 31. Interviews with the branch executive and current board members will follow, with final board approval at the March board meeting
For more information, call Mike Lavin 651-683-4700.
Dakota county
High nitrate levels found in private wells
A Dakota County study of private wells found high nitrate levels in almost a third of of them.
Water with a nitrate concentration of more than 10 milligrams per liter is unsafe for infants and pregnant women to drink, according to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, which funded the study with money from the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.
The "Targeted Townships" study sampled water from private wells in the cities of Coates, Hampton and Hastings and the townships of Castle Rock, Douglas, Hampton, Marshan, Nininger, Randolph, Sciota, Vermillion and Waterford. It found that 226 of the 742 wells tested exceeded the 10-milligram-per-liter standard. Nitrate is a common byproduct of nitrogen fertilizers, which can leach into groundwater and increase the nitrate levels in private wells.
As a result of the findings, Dakota County is encouraging residents with private wells to have their water tested regularly and offering free testing this spring. Residents with high nitrate levels in their wells can reduce contamination by installing a reverse-osmosis treatment system. However, even with a home treatment system, the Minneosta Department of Health recommends infants younger than six months not drink well water or formula made with well water that had tested high for nitrate in the past.
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