What's Up Magazines

What's in the Water?

By Bridget Avila

Water is a defining characteristic of our region. It surrounds our homes, defines political boundaries, and provides us a veritable playground where boats and fishing rods abound. Shallow and deep wells provide drinking water for both public and private systems. Water sustains us: we literally can’t live without it. But what’s in the water may surprise you.
Last fall the disturbing story of fly ash waste leaching into private water wells in Gambrills made many homeowners look at their own wells with a dubious eye. Whether you rely on a public source of water or a well you may take for granted that your water is safe. And if you are encountering a well for the first time you may wonder what exactly you should be doing—if anything—to ensure the safety of your drinking water. But the thought of contaminated water causing health problems or even death should lead us all to wonder: what is in the water?

In large part the answer to that question depends on where you live, but there are precautions that all of us can take to ensure we’re drinking safe water.

Fly Ash to the West

The Anne Arundel County Department of Health began the investigation of the water in over 80 private wells in the Gambrills-Odenton area after being notified by the Maryland Department of Health and Constellation Energy Group about contaminants found in a private well in Gambrills—a well that was located within 1,000 feet of a coal ash fill site.
It appeared that the wells had been contaminated by an unlined pit where Constellation Energy had dumped smokestack waste that had been contained to prevent it from going into the air—material called fly ash. The contents of fly ash (including some cancer-causing agents) make up a nasty list: sulfate, aluminum, cadmium, arsenic, selenium, manganese, and other trace metals.

While testing determined that the water from the wells of most of the homes tested was unsafe and potentially hazardous, the problem occurred in a very small residential area. Public water sources also were tested for fly ash contaminants and none were found. The public wells in Anne Arundel County range in depth from 580 to 1,245 feet. They are much deeper, and therefore less likely to be contaminated, than many shallow private wells, including the affected wells in Gambrills.

Did my well run dry?

Tommy McKenzie, program supervisor in Kent County’s environmental health office, explains what’s really happened. “Typically in drought conditions the level of groundwater is lower and may go below the well so that the well can’t pump water out.” Shallow wells that depend on groundwater rather than deeper artesian aquifers were often drilled on properties that were originally intended as summer homes. As these homes became used as year-round residences, their wells may have “run dry,” being used beyond what they were built for.

Arsenic on the Shore

Proximity to industrial waste is not a prerequisite for problems with drinking water. Arsenic is a naturally occurring mineral that plagues certain geographic areas. Most notably in the United States, perhaps, are municipalities in the West that have struggled with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its standards for arsenic levels in drinking water.

Much closer than the wild west is Maryland’s own Eastern Shore, where pockets of naturally occurring arsenic have recently proved problematic for homeowners trying to get permits for their wells. The problem was significant enough for the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health to conduct an arsenic health hazard evaluation of the area.

The evaluation includes a massive compilation and analysis of data, including GPS data, to map areas of elevated arsenic in groundwater in each county. The intention is that these maps could be used to guide the drilling of residential wells to avoid sources of arsenic. The Hopkins team will also use the data to compare levels of arsenic in groundwater used to supply drinking water and the incidence of bladder and lung cancers.

Homeowners who discover arsenic in their wells find that treatment devices to remove the arsenic from the water are available. Costs for these devices run $2,600 for a dual-tank filtration system and, to be even more careful, another $825 for point-of-use reverse osmosis systems.

However, John Nickerson, director of environmental health for Queen Anne’s County, urges residents to consider the new arsenic standard in the context of overall health. “On a scale of parts per billion, it can be difficult to detect the significance in health effects between 10 ppb [the new standard, also expressed as 10 micrograms per liter] and 20 ppb [an approximate measure found in water in Centreville schools after the ruling]. There are many nutritional and lifestyle choices we make every day that likely have greater impact on our health than arsenic might have.”

Public Water Challenges

Since the EPA changed its standard for arsenic in drinking water from 50 micrograms per liter previously to 10 micrograms per liter as of January 2006, some public sources of drinking water on the Eastern Shore have tested above the new standard. The EPA is working with counties on the Eastern Shore to implement treatment systems to lower the level of arsenic to below the new standard.

Going in the Water

 Ever wonder about the water you wade into? The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) compiles an annual report on water quality at the nation’s beaches. County health departments regularly test at local beaches and close them if they deem it necessary. The health departments publicize closures; some counties have e-mail services that automatically notify residents of closures that may affect them. The NRDC reports that for 2006 nearly one-half of beach advisory and closure days in Maryland were in Kent County. Beach closures are often due to sanitary sewer overflow or contaminants from storm water runoff.

Radium in the North

About 10 years ago, by chance, a study by the Anne Arundel County Health Department found radium in 22 wells in northern Anne Arundel County; 15 of these exceeded the level established by the EPA for public drinking water supplies. The cousin of radon gas, radium is a colorless, odorless, radioactive solid that is known to cause bone cancer.
 Though no cancers in the county were found to be attributable to radium, since 2002 all new and replacement wells in northern Anne Arundel County must be tested for radium to be permitted. Fortunately, a treatment device can be installed to remove radium from the water supply. Such a device is costly—prices can range from $1,375 to $3,000 for NSF (formerly the National Sanitation Foundation)-approved water softening systems, which remove some radium. If more removal is needed, a point-of-use reverse osmosis system, for another $825, may be necessary. For individuals with a low or fixed income it can be a challenge to meet this cost. So the county has a need-based assistance program to defray the cost of treatment devices (see aahealth.org for more information).

Bottled Water: Health or Hype?

 Somewhere along the line many of us bought into the idea that bottled water was somehow safer or healthier for us than water coming from the tap. The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) conducted a study in 1999 testing 1,000 brands of bottled water. While most were found to be of high quality about one-third of the waters tested contained contaminants—including synthetic organic chemicals, bacteria, and arsenic. Though packaging and marketing from bottled water sellers promote the idea that their product is healthier than water from public sources, those sellers are under far less scrutiny than the suppliers of public water. This can be particularly problematic for anyone who is immunocompromised and therefore more vulnerable to contaminants.

Some Key Differences Between EPA Tap Water and FDA Bottled Water Rules

Disinfection Required?	Confirmed E. Coli & Fecal Coliform Banned?	Testing Frequency for Bacteria	Must Filter to Remove Pathogens or Have Strictly Protected Source?	Must Test for Crypto-sporidium , Giardia , Viruses?	Testing Frequency for Most SyntheticOrganic Chemicals
No	No	1/wk.	No	No	1/yr.
No	No	None	No	No	None
Yes	Yes	Hundreds/mo.	Yes	Yes	1/quarter (waivers available for clean source)

Table found here .

To view Annapolis’s annual water quality report, visit www.annapolis.gov . For Anne Arundel County’s water report, visit www.aacounty.org/DPW/Utilities .

Testing the Waters

Except for obtaining a county permit when a well is initially drilled homeowners with private wells are solely responsible for maintaining and testing their wells. While lenders or home insurers may require well testing, once a well is permitted, it might not ever be tested again. Generally a properly installed well should provide safe water over a 30-year life span with little incident, but maintenance and disinfecting are musts.

Most residential wells draw groundwater that is replenished by rainfall entering the ground within a radius of a few miles. So what homeowners, their neighbors, and even those outside their community do to the landscape is an important factor in the quality of drinking water. Possible sources of well contamination include septic systems, leaking underground fuel tanks, landfills, industrial spills or discharges, animal wastes, fertilizers, and pesticides. Prolonged periods of heavy rain can flush contaminants into groundwater supplies.

Detecting groundwater contamination requires regular testing. Some experts recommend testing your well annually for bacteria and nitrates. More frequent testing should be done if one sample shows elevated levels of these contaminants.
Anne Arundel County Health Officer Frances Phillips says that while there’s no set standard for how often to test residential wells she recommends yearly testing if anyone in the home may be more susceptible to health risks (the very young, very old, or immunocompromised). Homeowners who notice in their water any unusual odors, colors, or cloudiness or an interrupted supply (such as pumping air or sediment) should consider testing. A damaged casing would also warrant testing and repair.

When wells are flooded or somehow submerged in water above ground they should be tested. Brian Chew, supervisor of the Anne Arundel County Health Department’s well water program, says his office tested nearly 1,500 wells after Hurricane Isabel. “We normally test 800–1,000 new wells for permits each year. But Isabel flooded many residential wells, so we offered testing to residents. Such extenuating circumstances are a matter of public health,” Chew says.

Call the Lab

Some counties in the area provide bacterial and chemical well tests for homeowners (usually for about $60 or so); others may refer residents to private labs. The following are labs that the Anne Arundel County Health Department refers residents to for well testing:
Chesapeake Environmental Lab
(800) 300-8378
Environmental Testing Lab
(800) 222-4833
Water Testing Lab
(800) 833-9355

Protect Your Supply

Since well water safety is a homeowner’s responsibility, how do you go about ensuring that your water supply stays safe? The University of Maryland Cooperative Extension offers these tips for protecting your well water supply:
Prevent surface water contamination. Grade your lot so that water drains away from the well casing. Wells should not be drilled on a low part of a property.
Inspect old or damaged wells. Wells older than 30 years or that have a cracked cap or other damage should be inspected by a county health department sanitarian or a qualified well driller to ensure that the casing is not cracked or corroded.
Install antibackflow devices. Put them on all faucets with hose connections or maintain an air space between hose or faucet outlets and the water level in the container you are filling. These prevent the flow of contaminated water from laundry tubs, swimming pools, etc., back through the plumbing into your well.
Protect the well casing. Avoid tying pets to the casing. Large animals could crack the casing. Be careful never to hit the casing with a lawn mower or vehicle or strike it with any force.
Prevent surface and underground contamination. Fuel suppliers can help inspect your fuel oil tank for leaks, especially if it is underground. Do not use gasoline, automotive products, solvents, pesticides, or excessive amounts of fertilizers near your well. Animal waste deposited close to the well could result in contamination. Maintain your septic system. Improperly functioning septic systems are a major cause of well contamination. Ensure that any unused or abandoned wells on your property have been properly sealed to prevent direct contamination of groundwater by surface contaminants.
Disinfect. Any time work is done on the well or pump contaminants are introduced into the water supply. You can disinfect your well with a chlorine solution any time work is done on the well or pump. Directions for shock chlorinating your well are available from your county health department.

Public Water in Private Pipes

As Anne Arundel County’s Health Officer, Frances Phillips, puts it, “Residents on public water have no reason to be concerned about its safety. It is subject to rigorous national testing several times a year.” Once the water enters the plumbing of a private residence, though, there is the possibility of lead contamination from old pipes. Lead is dangerous for children and pregnant women. Homeowners can have their water tested by a competent laboratory if they are unsure about their plumbing. Additionally, draw cold water from the tap to drink or cook with. If lead is present hot water will contain higher levels of lead than cold will.

Water Safety—a Community Responsibility

Whether it’s the water we drink from our wells or public systems or the water we swim and play in, how we live directly affects the safety of our water. If you own a home educate yourself about the sources of your water and how to care for them. Especially here on the Chesapeake, our water is not just a way of life but a source of life.