Our research program provides Southern Illinois well owners awareness of their water quality through confidential well water analyses that includes testing for: -the presence and concentrations of 11 different metals at the ppb level by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES), -nitrate contamination, typically originating from agricultural (fertilizer) runoff or fecal contamination using potentiometric analysis, and -the presence of microbial contamination (coliform and E.coli bacteria) using Defined Substrate Technology (DST) nutrient indicators. To this date, more than 150 different water samples from five Southern Illinois counties have been tested with the majority coming from well water sources. Through ICP-AES and Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectroscopy (ICP-MS) analysis it was discovered that 19% of the samples exceeded at least one of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards for metal concentrations in drinking water. Nitrate levels were determined using Vernier nitrate ion selective electrodes with a standard additions approach. It was found that 20% of the wells had nitrate levels exceeding the EPA standard. The microbial testing for the presence of coliform bacteria used the Colisure system by IDEXX which incorporates an artificial colorless substrate (ONPG) that is catalyzed to a colored product by the bacteria’s β-galactosidase enzyme. The presence of E.coli was detected through the catalysis of the colorless substrate MUG to a fluorescent product by the E.coli’s β-glucuronidase enzyme. Of the wells analyzed 62% tested positive for the presence of coliform and 15% tested positive for the presence of E.coli. The test results are correlated to factors such as the type, age, condition, depth, and location of the wells.

Southern Illinois well water quality analysis project

2019 Spring National Meeting

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