Greetings. I'm a newspaper reporter embarking on a rather ambitious project about toxic-waste sites in wellhead protection areas. Having mapped out groundwater contamination sites in wellhead protection areas -- of which there are many in my industrial eastern state -- I'm wondering where I go from here.
I don't want to scare people needlessly, but I do want to thoroughly look into the question of whether these sites represent a danger to public health. As to how to do that, I figured hydrogeologists would be the ones to ask.
I thought I would focus the reporting by taking a few examples of wellfields with toxic sites in their closest tier and research them in some depth. But what questions should I pursue? Among the questions that seem key to me so far are:
-How well are the plumes from these sites delineated?
-How long has it been since they were delineated?
-Do the well owners test for the specific contaminants known to be at the site?
-Is there a pump and treat system at the contaminated site?
-Are there treatment systems on the wells, and if so, do they take care of all the contaminants known to be at the site?
Do these seem like logical questions? And what sorts of documents among the thick state files will reveal the answers? What else should I be looking into? And moreover, do you all believe this is an issue worth looking into, or is all the testing adequate and the water fine, and any article on the subject likely to scare people unnecessarily?
Any thoughts you all can offer on these questions or others I haven't thought to ask would be much appreciated.
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