Human Health

Sections of Narragansett Bay and its eastern arm, the Sakonnet River, are considered impaired for shellfishing, aquatic habitat and recreational use by the State of Rhode Island. Aquatic habitat and water quality in the western portions of Narragansett Bay are relatively well understood, but there is comparably limited information available in the Sakonnet River. To address concerns about the lack...

Periodic high groundwater levels are a major cause of septic system-failures, wet basements, and other problems for suburban and rural residents in Massachusetts. To address this issue, a method (commonly referred to as the Frimpter method) was developed in early 1980’s to estimate probable high groundwater levels across the state. The USGS New England Water Science Center, in cooperation with the...

The USGS, the University of New Hampshire, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, and the Maine Geological Survey are collaborating on a study of a novel shallow well design that might be able to provide safe drinking water to domestic well users in arsenic-prone parts of the Nation.

The USGS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are examining the potential effects of droughts on the arsenic hazard in private well water across the Nation.

Study estimates about 2.1 million people using wells high in arsenic: USGS research directly supports federal agencies concerned with public health—specifically, understanding natural hazards in private domestic drinking water and the risk they pose to human health.