DUDEK - Avoiding Common Groundwater Contaminants

Infrastructure Development

Avoiding Common California Groundwater Contaminants

Rural Water Agencies Face Link between Wastewater and Groundwater Recharge
Challenged by groundwater contaminants, California water agencies are faced with identifying and avoiding or removing nitrates, household cleaning and hygiene byproducts, arsenic, and chromium from the water they supply.

Rural water and wastewater districts are especially susceptible to nitrate, where many residents utilize septic tanks for wastewater. These septic systems can leach nitrate into the groundwater, which is then recharged into the water supply.

At Joshua Basin Water District in San Bernardino County, a new drinking water well needed to be drilled due to an aging water system and a growing population that placed high demands on the existing water supply. To locate an optimum well site away from high mineral content areas, the district used a USDA grant to fund groundwater basin investigations into water quality, avoiding nitrate and naturally-occurring arsenic, surface-level environmental factors, and potential land acquisition.

Joe Guzetta, Joshua Basin Water District’s general manager, explained, “It is important to thoroughly evaluate an area’s groundwater conditions as well as factor in future needs when determining new water production and sourcing strategies.”

When faced with a possible wastewater groundwater contaminant, municipalities in less developed areas can take the following steps, suggests Peter Quinlan, R.G., Dudek’s principal in charge of hydrogeology/hazardous waste.

Analyze their water supply to ensure it meets state and federal water quality standards.
Examine their current wastewater treatment infrastructure capabilities for its ability to identify and address unregulated chemicals.
Based on these findings, develop and implement plans for treating these chemicals. While it is less expensive to treat groundwater directly, chemicals can be filtered out before they get into the groundwater.

“Some municipalities may require developers to link their new projects to package or central treatment plants,” said Quinlan. “Others may implement clean-up programs, utilizing various funding sources. Whichever the route; it will require an integrated approach.

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