Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory
Our Services
The Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory is a contract water testing facility and research laboratory. We offer water quality testing for public, private, and environmental samples.
The Laboratory is certified by the state of Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for microbiology, allowing the lab to provide drinking water analysis to public, private, and municipal clients.
Why Test Your Water?
About one third of the homes on Martha’s Vineyard rely on private wells as the source of their drinking water. Unlike water from a public drinking water system, private wells do not have experts regularly monitoring the water quality before it reaches the tap. Private well owners are responsible for the quality of their drinking water.
Regular testing is important to:
Identify existing problems
Ensure water is suitable for the intended use, especially if used for drinking by humans and animals
Track changes over time
Determine the effectiveness of a treatment system
The quality of a water source may change over time, even suddenly. Changes can go unnoticed as the water may look, smell, and taste the same. Frequent water testing will identify unsafe water and ensure that the home treatment system is doing its job correctly.
What tests should I have done?
Useful tests are available to help determine the health and safety of a water supply, and the performance of a water treatment system. We offer 3 residential drinking water packages for a comprehensive look at your well water.
For annual regular testing, Package A is generally sufficient.
If you are experiencing water discoloration, bad odors and/or strong taste from your faucet, you should consider Package B or C for a more complete picture of what is in your well.
For new construction or a newly purchased home, Package C is your best bet in order to have baseline data for your well.
Testing Parameters and Pricing
How often should I test my well water?
Private well water should be tested a minimum of once per year. Drinking water supplies obtained from shallow wells and surface water sources should be tested more frequently (i.e. seasonally), as they are more susceptible to contamination.
It is important to test your drinking water at the tap and at the source. Testing both will help you determine if your treatment system is performing correctly, and if the quality of your source water has changed.
Where can I get my well water tested?
The Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory is a full-service, MA DEP-certified (microbiology) water testing facility and research laboratory. We offer water quality testing for public, private, and environmental samples.
Samples must be collected in one of our designated sterile sample bottles. Samples that are not within one of these containers will not be accepted.
You can pick up Sample Containers at the following locations:
Conroy Apothecary, West Tisbury
Dukes County Administration Office, Edgartown
Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory, Aquinnah
The Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory will provide a report containing your results via mail or email within 2 weeks of receiving your sample.
water testing information
Water testing of public, private, and environmental samples
Beach Testing
Wampanoag Environmental Laboratory has been monitoring the waters of Martha’s Vineyard for over 15 years. Included in our monitoring is the Beach Water Testing Program.
Wamp weather
Realtime weather information for Martha’s Vineyard
Air Quality Monitoring
Monitoring the air quality on Martha’s Vineyard for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.