Development and Use of Three Ground Water Quality Indicators

摘要

The report is part of the National Network for Environmental Management Studies under the auspices of the Office of Cooperative Environmental Management of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The NNEMS study develops ground water quality indicators for public drinking water supplies, area wide sources of contamination, and area wide sources of pesticide contamination. The indicators which represent these areas of concern are nitrate MCL violations at public water supplies, nitrate concentrations in all types of wells, and soluble pesticide use. The state of Pennsylvania was chosen as a pilot subject due to the quantity of ground water quality data available. The three ground water quality indicators were used to identify counties which have documented or potential ground water quality problems caused by nonpoint sources or nitrate or heavy pesticide use. The three indicators consistently identified several counties in the southeast region of Pennsylvania where the ground water quality has been degraded or where there is a high potential for contamination.