Atlas of Maine

Article Title

Concentration of Arsenic Contamination in Township Water Resources

Authors

Avery Beck, Colby College

Abstract or Description

Arsenic is a toxic heavy metal that has been detected in much of Maine’s well water, and its widespread occurrence in Maine groundwater resources has become a public health issue. This map displays the towns whose domestic wells, by percentage of wells sampled, have had arsenic concentrations in excess of 10 micrograms per liter (µg/L) of well water, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s maximum contaminant level for arsenic in public water.

The towns in which Maine's thirty most-contaminated wells can be found are denoted as well, as are the locations of public-supply wells and groundwater resources (aquifers) throughout the state.

About the Author

Avery Beck (’14) is a Global Studies and Environmental Studies: Policy double major, with an interest in food policy and environmental ethics. She is originally from Chappaqua, New York.

Source Data Note

Source Data: The Maine Office of GIS (MEOGIS), the Maine Geological Survey, ESRI ArcGIS10, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment Program Report "Assessment of Arsenic Concentrations in Domestic Well Water, by Town, in Maine 2005-09".

Projected using Universal Transverse Mercator Zone 19N with NAD 1983 Datum.

Rights

In Copyright

Recommended Citation

Beck, Avery "Concentration of Arsenic Contamination in Township Water Resources," Atlas of Maine: Vol. 2012: No. 1, Article 15.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.colby.edu/atlas_docs/vol2012/iss1/15