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Arsenic, nitrate, iron, and hardness in ground water, Fairbanks area, Alaska

Paula R. Johnson·D.E. Wilcox·W.D. Morgan·Josephine Merto·Ruth McFadden
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Abstract

Well water with concentrations of arsenic and nitrate exceeding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards occurs sporadically throughout the hills north of Fairbanks, Alaska. The arsenic contamination has not been correlated with placer or other mining activity. The high levels of nitrate do not generally appear related to septic waste contamination. Few wells in the Fairbanks area yield water with low concentrations of iron or low hardness. Iron concentrations are consistently greater than 3 mg/L on the flood plain. In the uplands, concentrations of both iron and hardness are lowest near the ridgetops and increase downslope. The report includes a map of the area showing the location of sampled wells and a table of chemical analysis. (Woodard-USGS)

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Paula R. Johnson, D.E. Wilcox, W.D. Morgan, Josephine Merto, Ruth McFadden. 1979. Arsenic, nitrate, iron, and hardness in ground water, Fairbanks area, Alaska. https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr781034

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