Countywide : Contamination of 11 Wells Ends Their Use

Eleven out of 225 water wells were found to contain organic chemicals that made the water unacceptable for drinking, according to an Orange County study released last week.

Conducted by county environmental health officials, the study showed that the 11 wells were contaminated with “harmful organic chemicals at levels greater than the state action levels,” which are set by the California Deparment of Health and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and indicate when corrective steps should be taken.

“People are not using water from those wells any longer,” said county Public Health Officer L. Rex Ehling.

“They have been closed or the water is used for other purposes than drinking,” Ehling said.

According to Ehling, county officials previously knew about problems with six of the 11 contaminated wells but that the latest study revealed new information about the other five, which are located in Anaheim. Two of those wells served residences, whose occupants have been advised to stop using the water for household purposes. The three remaining wells were being used for irrigation but their owners have been given the same warning.

Information released by county officials did not disclose the location of the remaining contaminated wells and authorities could not be reached for comment late Friday.

In a related matter, the state Regional Water Quality Control Board released a report Friday that showed 203 of 1,216 wells tested in Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties contained organic contaminants. Fifty-three of the contaminated wells exceeded the drinking water action level, including the 11 in Orange County examined by county officials.

The report stated that 156 of the 203 wells in the region contain contaminants associated with industrial solvents.