Arsenic and Mercury in Residential Well Water from Readington and Raritan Townships, Hunterdon County, New Jersey: Research Project Summary

Date

2002-07

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Volume Title

Publisher

Trenton, N.J. : New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Science, Research and Technology

Abstract

In October 2000, well water testing for arsenic and mercury was offered to residents living in Readington and Raritan Townships in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. The goal was to generate data on levels of these contaminants in groundwater used for drinking water in the area. Previous testing showed that this part of the state may have potentially elevated levels of arsenic in well water due to leaching from certain arsenic-rich geologic formations. Two hundred thirty-eight wells were sampled. Three quarters of the well water samples contained arsenic levels below 5 μg/L (micrograms per liter). A quarter of the samples were above 5 μg/L, with 3% of wells containing arsenic levels above 10 μg/L. The highest arsenic level observed in this study was 35 μg/L. Few water samples had detectable levels of mercury, and of those where mercury was detected, the levels were trace.

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Keywords

New Jersey, New Jersey - Hunterdon County

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