Supply Wells (supply + well)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Methyl- tert -hexyl ether and methyl- tert -octyl ether as gasoline oxygenates: Anticipating widespread risks to community water supply wells,

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 11 2007
Jeff Snelling
Abstract The widespread contamination of groundwater resources associated with methyl- tert -butyl ether (MtBE) use has prompted a search for replacement oxygenates in gasoline. Among the alternatives currently under development are higher methyl- tert -alkyl ethers, notably methyl- tert -hexyl ether (MtHxE) and methyl- tert -octyl ether (MtOcE). As was the case with MtBE, the introduction of these ethers into fuel supplies guarantees their migration into groundwater resources. In the present study, a screening-level risk assessment compared predicted well water concentrations of these ethers to concentrations that might cause adverse effects. A physicochemical model which has been successfully applied to the prediction of MtBE concentrations in community water supply wells (CSWs) was used to predict well water concentrations of MtHxE and MtOcE. The results indicate that these ethers are likely to contaminate water supply wells at slightly lower levels than MtBE as a result of migrating from leaking underground fuel tanks to CSWs. Because very little data is available on the physicochemical and environmental properties of MtHxE and MtOcE, estimation methods were employed in conjunction with the model to predict well water concentrations. Model calculations indicated that MtHxE and MtOcE will be present in many CSWs at concentrations approaching the concentrations that have caused widespread public health concern for MtBE. Based on these results and the possibility that MtHxE and MtOcE are potential carcinogens, testing of the toxicological properties of these ethers is recommended before they are used to replace MtBE in gasoline. [source]


Design of a Low-Cost Bamboo Well

GROUND WATER, Issue 2 2009
S.K. Shakya
Bamboo wells are an economical alternative for water supply wells in developing countries. The design of the bamboo well described in this article was developed based on field tests. Following field experiments, the screen in the bamboo well was fabricated with seven 3-m-long bamboo strips, each 2 cm wide and 1 cm thick. The strips were bolted on 1-cm-wide mild steel rings spaced 30 cm along the length of the bamboo strips, with 9-cm-long galvanized iron pipe end pieces. Pipes used in the bamboo well were fabricated by wrapping polythene sheets on the bamboo screens. Excellent performance, low cost, and good service life justify the use of a bamboo well for ground water withdrawal in developing countries. [source]


Application of Direct Push Methods to Investigate Uranium Distribution in an Alluvial Aquifer

GROUND WATER MONITORING & REMEDIATION, Issue 4 2009
Wesley McCall
The U.S. EPA 2000 Radionuclide Rule established a maximum contaminant level (MCL) for uranium of 30 µg/L. Many small community water supplies are struggling to comply with this new regulation. At one such community, direct push (DP) methods were applied to obtain hydraulic profiling tool (HPT) logs and install small diameter wells in a section of alluvial deposits located along the Platte River. This work was conducted to evaluate potential sources of elevated uranium in the Clarks, Nebraska drinking water supply. HPT logs were used to understand the hydrostratigraphy of a portion of the aquifer and guide placement of small diameter wells at selected depth intervals. Low-flow sampling of the wells provided water quality parameters and samples for analysis to study the distribution of uranium and variations in aquifer chemistry. Contrary to expectations, the aquifer chemistry revealed that uranium was being mobilized under anoxic and reducing conditions. Review of the test well and new public water supply well construction details revealed that filter packs extended significantly above the screened intervals of the wells. These filter packs were providing a conduit for the movement of groundwater with elevated concentrations of uranium into the supply wells and the community drinking water supply. The methods applied and lessons learned here may be useful for the assessment of unconsolidated aquifers for uranium, arsenic, and many other drinking water supply contaminants. [source]


Construction of a permeable reactive barrier in a residential neighborhood

REMEDIATION, Issue 4 2002
Peter Richards
In June 2001, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) installed a permeable reactive barrier (PRB) within a roadway in Needham, Massachusetts, to treat a plume of chlorinated solvents migrating toward two public water-supply wells located in the adjacent town of Wellesley, Massachusetts. The solvents originated from an electronics manufacturer located approximately 2,300 feet upgradient of the roadway and 5,200 feet upgradient of the public supply wells. Chlorinated solvents, primarily trichloroethene (TCE), had migrated past the roadway to within 300 feet of the public supply wells. Two contaminant transport models prepared by the DEP's design contractor and the EPA indicated that the plume would reach the well field if no response actions were taken. To mitigate the future impact to the municipal well field, the DEP decided to install a PRB composed of zero-valent granular iron across the path of the plume along Central Avenue in Needham. Though several dozen PRBs have been installed at sites worldwide and the technology is no longer considered innovative, the application of the technology in a roadway that receives 17,000 vehicles per day within a residential neighborhood is unique and presented difficulties not typically associated with PRB installations. The Needham PRB was also one of the first zero-valent iron PRBs installed using the slurry trench method to treat chlorinated compounds. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]