Certified labs by state
Louisiana
Louisiana treats private wells as owner-managed: the Louisiana Department of Health says it is only required to test public water systems, so private well owners are responsible for sampling and maintenance. Louisiana’s Private Well Owner Network is especially useful because the state highlights hurricane and flood recovery, aquifer-specific screening tools, and contaminants such as arsenic detected in some alluvial aquifers.
Checked against official sources on October 4, 2026. Rules and links change; confirm with the office listed before you act.
- Certifies drinking water labs
- Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), Office of Public Health Laboratory Certification Program
- Official certified lab list
- Official page →
- Free or low-cost testing
- LDH’s Private Water Well Assessments page and related PWON materials say residents can request a no-cost visual well assessment, and a limited number of no-cost water chemistry test referrals are available through that program.
Official resources in Louisiana
Main Louisiana private-well page with stewardship guidance, testing links, sample drop-off mapping, and aquifer-quality tools.
State page explaining annual well maintenance, testing options, and Louisiana’s private-well brochure.
LDH page for certified drinking-water laboratories, including chemistry and microbiology lab lists.
Official instructions for ordering, collecting, and dropping off private-well bacteria samples in Louisiana.
Louisiana program page for in-person well assessments that identify construction and contamination vulnerabilities.
Key facts for Louisiana
- LDH’s Office of Public Health Laboratory Certification Program certifies Louisiana drinking-water labs for chemistry and microbiology testing.
- LDH recommends private-well owners test Total Coliform/E. coli at least annually.
- LDH materials recommend nitrate/nitrite testing for rural wells and metals testing including arsenic, lead, and cadmium.
- LDH says arsenic has been detected in some Louisiana alluvial aquifers associated with the Red and Mississippi rivers.
- LDH says studies found unsafe levels of radon, arsenic, uranium, manganese, fluoride, nitrates/nitrites, and bacteria in private wells.
- PWON’s aquifer tools use more than 40 years of DEQ and USGS well data for parish, contaminant, date, and aquifer searches.
What to do next
- Use the Louisiana Private Well Owner Network first: check the sample drop-off finder, then arrange an annual bacteria test and ask whether nitrate/nitrite and metals are appropriate for your well.
- If your well was flooded after a hurricane or major rain event, follow LDH disinfection guidance and do not drink the water until bacteriological testing shows it is safe.
- Use Louisiana’s aquifer-quality mapping tools to see nearby contaminant patterns, then choose a certified lab from LDH’s list for any needed chemistry testing.
Helpful guides
- How to choose a state-certified drinking water lab
- What to test your private well water for (and how often)
- How to collect a well water sample without ruining the test
- How to read a water test report: MCLs, units and flags