Groundwater in the Great Lakes Basin

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• In Perris, North Carolina, October 2000, a 73-year-old woman fell down a 20-foot well when a rotting wood cover disintegrated beneath her feet (Wellwise, 2007). • In Alabama, in 2004, a 22-month-old toddler was rescued 13 hours after having falling into a 14-foot abandoned well hidden by grass (“TODDLER RESCUED,” News, 2004). • In 2006, the Indian boy known as Prince was trapped 18 metres down a well in India for over 50 hours (Usborne, 2006). • In Ontario, August 2006, a 41-year-old man fell into a 25-foot abandoned well when rotting boards covering the opening gave way (Wellwise, 2007). • In Bangalore, Karnataka, on April 26, 2007, a nineyear-old boy was found dead in a 60-foot deep bore-well after having been trapped for two days (Nerve News of India, 2007). • A tragic occurrence transpired on June 27, 2007, when a 37-year-old police constable who was chasing a felon fell into an open 80-foot well to his death (“Policeman falls,” 2007). • In South Carolina, July 20, 2007, 15-year-old Jeffrey Johnson fell 80 feet into an abandoned well. Fortunately he was rescued with only minor injuries (“Teen survives,” 2007). • In Cayuga, Ontario, on February 18, 2008, an eightyear-old girl fell over 59 feet into freezing water when the cover over a well crumbled. Luckily the girl was rescued (Globe and Mail, 2008). • The bodies of two young boys were found in an abandoned well in southern Italy, ending an 18-month search. The bodies were found when another 13-year-old child fell down the well. The 13-year-old was rescued but suffered fractures to both legs (Pisa, 2008). • Canadian army captain Jonathan Snyder died in June 2008 when he fell approximately 6 stories down an abandoned well while on night patrol in Afghanistan (Schmidt, 2008). Depending on the size of the opening anything from a small squirrel to a large cow may fall into a well (Richard, 2007). For example, in Boston in 2007 a pony fell into an abandoned well and was most fortunate as rescuers were able to secure her to a tow truck and pull her out (Killingworth, 2007). Many of the wild animals that fall into wells perish as no one reports their disappearance. Yet, even with all of the attention these stories brought, abandoned wells continue to be left improperly closed, allowing for horrific accidents to continue. Millions of abandoned wells of all types remain unplugged in the Great Lakes Basin (Figures 4 and 5). CONTAMINATION DANGERS Improperly decommissioned and abandoned wells provide direct routes by which contaminants can quickly reach groundwater. They allow contaminants to bypass natural filtration (Jeter, 2005). Wells with broken or missing caps or that have casings cut off nearly flush with, or below, the ground surface (a common practice) often allow contaminated runoff Figure 5. Abandoned water well in corn field; note adjacent livestock watering trough Photo by: D.W. Alley, 2007 Figure 4. Abandoned well Photo by: D.W. Alley, 2007 97
Figure 6: Leaking oil well Source: Texas Land and Mineral Owners Association, 2005 to enter the well. Also, the caving material around old or abandoned wells is frequently more permeable, providing low-resistance pathways. Cracks and holes along corroded well casings provide yet another channel through which contaminants can enter groundwater (Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), 2006). These conduits allow water to bypass natural filtration and degradation processes that typically occur as surface water percolates through the soil. This allows for various contaminants including fertilizers, pesticides, animal wastes, solvents, fuel, sewage, pathogens, viruses and sediments to pollute groundwater (Wisconsin DNR, 2006; King, 1994). Once in groundwater, these pollutants move with natural groundwater flow leading to health problems as nearby wells are contaminated (Miller, 2008). dangerous fiery eruptions and well explosions which can cause significant property and personal damage. Unknown abandoned wells can result in devastating consequences. For example, in Wisconsin an abandoned well was located in the basement of a house that caught on fire. Debris from the fire was able to enter local groundwater supplies, contaminating drinking water in the area (Wisconsin DNR, 2006). A similar incident occurred in South Glengarry, Ontario, where an uncapped well was located flush to the basement floor of Abandoned oil and gas wells introduce the potential of aquifer cross contamination with hydrocarbons as well as brine, which occurred in Romney Township, Ontario. Oil and deep-water wells provide pathways along which brines can migrate upward, contaminating fresh-groundwater aquifers and surface waters (Texas Environmental Profiles, 2004). This commonly occurs in oil wells as both hydrocarbons and brines are usually encountered in sedimentary rocks. 98 Contaminants from runoff can enter wells and also pollute groundwater, which eventually discharges to tributaries and the Great Lakes themselves. Abandoned oil and gas wells may still contain petroleum products even after the well is deemed no longer economically viable. If present, oil and gas hydrocarbons accumulate in the well, emerging at the surface (Figure 6) (Mayorga, 2005), which can result in contaminated surface water. Because the materials in abandoned oil and gas wells are frequently flammable, pressure buildup in the well may result in spectacular and extremely Figure 7. Brine well and storage tanks with secondary containment, Kent Co., Ontario Photo By: D.W. Alley, 2007
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AReportoftheGreatLakesScienceAdviso
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Citation: Great Lakes Science Advis
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Commissioners’ Preface The Great
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2 required to monitor basin groundw
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4 Systems have a 30-year lifespan d
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6 Groundwater quality is routinely
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8 Transmittal Letter Groundwater/An
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10 Acknowledgements, Activities and
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APPENDICES Appendices A through L p
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INTRODUCTION Groundwater, a major n
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16 DESCRIPTION OF NATURAL SYSTEMS M
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that are not substantially affected
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Estimates of the Level and Extent o
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APPENDIX B Threats to Groundwater Q
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24 PATHOGENS Bacteria, viruses and
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Viruses Viral pathogens continue to
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SPECIFIC EPISODES Walkerton In 2000
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30 season. The sampling sites inclu
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32 Curriero, F.C., Patz, J.A., Rose
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Infection of a suitable host specie
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APPENDIX C Threats to Groundwater Q
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Road salt has significant toxic eff
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converted to nitrite in the human s
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Atrazine Atrazine is an extensively
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Wisconsin DNR keeps track of about
Page 54 and 55: Table 1. Chemical Contaminants in G
Page 56 and 57: isks for 23 diseases in six contigu
Page 58 and 59: Figure 1. Number* of waterborne-dis
Page 60 and 61: Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Wa
Page 62 and 63: APPENDIX D Threats to Groundwater Q
Page 64 and 65: Figure 1. Source: General Descripti
Page 66 and 67: (Gorman and Halvorsen, 2006). Any s
Page 68 and 69: Table 3. Washtenaw County, Michigan
Page 70 and 71: that the OWTS would last until it w
Page 72 and 73: REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY Aglie,
Page 74: Septic Tanks - Septic Tank Articles
Page 77 and 78: INTRODUCTION Leaking underground st
Page 79 and 80: sites that were previously closed,
Page 81 and 82: Table 1. USTs in Great Lakes States
Page 83 and 84: Estimation of Costs for Remediation
Page 85 and 86: Table 6. Operational Compliance of
Page 87 and 88: 80 Indiana Government. (2007, Febru
Page 89 and 90: 82 GLOSSARY AST - above ground stor
Page 91 and 92: INTRODUCTION 84 Hazardous wastes ar
Page 93 and 94: The town of Kincardine, Ontario, ha
Page 95 and 96: 88 • The monitoring and surveilla
Page 97 and 98: However, the U.S. EPA has been relu
Page 99 and 100: 92 Johnson, B.L. & DeRosa, C.T. (19
Page 101 and 102: PAHs - Polycyclic aromatic hydrocar
Page 103: INTRODUCTION An abandoned well is d
Page 107 and 108: CONTAMINANT SOURCES 100 During any
Page 109 and 110: Nearly 16 million operational water
Page 111 and 112: • Development of a targeted progr
Page 113 and 114: 106 Michigan Department of Environm
Page 115 and 116: APPENDIX H Threats to Groundwater Q
Page 117 and 118: far reaching. Road salt can inhibit
Page 119 and 120: 112 Desalinization Potential water
Page 121 and 122: Gray, J. (2004, January). Brine Spr
Page 123 and 124: INTRODUCTION 116 In 2003 there were
Page 125 and 126: 118 feed has increased to upwards o
Page 127 and 128: References and Bibliography 120 Arn
Page 129 and 130: APPENDIX J Threats to Groundwater Q
Page 131 and 132: for recreational purposes and destr
Page 133 and 134: 126 errors (human or mechanical), p
Page 135 and 136: Apparent Losses Old meters are like
Page 137 and 138: Figure 6. Examples of Windsor, Onta
Page 139 and 140: REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 132 Ada
Page 141 and 142: 134 Levy, S. (2004, November 16). T
Page 143 and 144: APPENDIX K The Châteauguay Transbo
Page 145 and 146: 138 the clay sediments of the St. L
Page 147 and 148: REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY Bureau
Page 149 and 150: INTRODUCTION 142 Groundwater law ac
Page 151 and 152: 144 • Water withdrawn be returned
Page 153 and 154: 146 found to be failing. Now, with
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Part 373: Third Stage Treatment Lag
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150 Chapter 1501:15 Soil and Water
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152 Title 29 - Water Resources Mana
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APPENDIX M List of Acronyms ADHD -
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Groundwater in the Great Lakes Basin

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