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WATER QUALITY DECLINE

Arsenic Contamination Grows as Aquifer is Depleted

Arsenic occurs naturally in the groundwater our region. In many areas, the concentration of arsenic exceeds drinking water standards. As water levels fall, arsenic levels tend to increase.

Arsenic is associated with a number of adverse health effects and is known to cause several types of cancers. In fact, regulatory agencies say that arsenic poses a risk of cancer at any level greater than zero; in other words, the lower the level of arsenic in water that is consumed, the lower the risk of cancer. After years of investigation, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reduced the drinking water standard to 10 parts per billion, which is much more stringent than the prior standard. 

Arsenic levels vary considerably in our area so it is difficult to predict where it will be a problem. Some areas in Paulden and southern Chino Valley now have very high arsenic levels in groundwater. Some wells in the Dewey-Humboldt area exceed the arsenic standard, and soil arsenic is very high near the Iron King Superfund site. There are almost certainly other areas with arsenic problems.

We recommend that every domestic well be tested for arsenic using testing methods approved by the State of Arizona. Arsenic removal systems for domestic use are available at reasonable cost.

Municipal water providers are required to test for arsenic, assuring that they deliver drinking water that meets the EPA standards. Currently, Prescott mixes water from wells with arsenic levels below the standard with water from wells that exceed the standard to ensure that the water that is provided to citizens is less than the 10 parts per billion standard.

DAILY DROPLET

  • "Ranchers need clean water for their stock, farmers need it for their crops, every employer needs it to stay in business, and every living thing needs it for life... The law needs to be clear to protect water quality and the rights of landowners."
    Mark Udall

  • "Water is the driver of Nature."
    Leonardo da Vinci

  • "When the well is dry, we know the worth of water."
    Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanac, 1746

  • "...and since flow of information is to spirit what water is to life, we'd best think about how to keep the pipes free and unclogged."
    Raphie Frank

  • "In an age when man has forgotten his origins and is blind even to his most essential needs for survival, water along with other resources has become the victim of his indifference."
    Rachel Carson

  • "We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one."
    Jacques Yves Cousteau

  • "Water is life's matter and matrix, mother and medium. There is no life without water."
    Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, 1937 Nobel Prize for Medicine

  • "Water is everywhere and in all living things; we cannot be separated from water. No water, no life. Period..."
    Robert Fulghum

  • "It's the water. Everything is driven by the water."
    Mike Thompson

  • "Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting over."
    Mark Twain