This article originally provided by The Charleston Daily Mail

June 23, 2005

Report details contamination in some Mingo wells

Study says some well water has enough lead to harm children

Michelle Saxton
The Associated Press

Water in some Williamson-area wells contains enough lead that children exposed to it could experience changes in blood enzyme activity and muscle function, and a decreased ability to learn, according to a health consultation released by the state Department of Health and Human Resources.

The water could also pose a public health hazard to people on sodium-restricted diets because of levels of that chemical that were found, the Wednesday report said. It recommended that people on such diets talk to their doctors about whether to continue using the water.

The findings were based on exposure and ingestion through bathing, showering and cooking with water used in the Lick Creek, Merrimac, Rawl and Sprigg areas. About 660 people live in those areas, the report said.

Drinking water levels were not considered because many residents in those areas are not believed to drink the water, said epidemiologist Barbara Smith, who is participating in a cooperative program with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

"It tastes bad, smells bad, looks bad in almost all of the drilled wells," Smith said of the water.

Residents have also said the water is so corrosive it eats metal in their water systems, Smith said, adding that some have had to replace hot water heaters within two years.

In 2004, Wheeling Jesuit University officials took water samples from 15 private wells, one spring, one hot water tank and one nearby municipal water source for the study. Some samples were taken after heavy rain, when residents say the water quality worsens to "blackwater," Smith said.

The report found a "low to very low risk of developing cancer from exposure to arsenic in the water."

But the estimated exposure doses for lead and sodium, measured as milligrams of the chemical per kilogram of a person's weight per day, were of some concern.

"The review found that some of the well water contained lead in amounts that may affect brain and blood functions in children," the report said.

The highest estimated exposure dose for lead was 0.0003 for children and less than 0.0001 for adults, while sodium was about 2.31 for children and 0.33 for adults.

After heavy rain, the highest estimated exposure doses for lead increased significantly to 0.0014 for children and 0.0002 for adults, while the sodium rates rose slightly to about 2.36 for children and 0.34 for adults, the report showed.

But, "We can't tell where the chemicals are coming from," Smith said.

The chemical composition of the groundwater, any groundwater changes from rain or any possible effects of a nearby coal mine on water quality could not be determined from the study and other available data, the report said.

It was not clear if the chemicals occurred naturally in the groundwater, or if some of the lead came from pipes in water systems or some sodium came from home treatment systems, Smith said.

However, the DHHR concluded that the Williamson-area sites pose a public health hazard because of chronic exposure of the public, especially children, to lead and sodium in onsite private well water used for cooking and other household uses, the report said.

But residents could get some relief. Smith said money from the Abandoned Mine Lands Program and Small Cities Block Grant Fund will go toward extending Williamson's water service sometime in the future.

"These people really have struggled," Smith said. "I'm so happy public water is going to be available."

In 2003, the DHHR released another report on water from those four areas, also in cooperation with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, that found concerning levels of manganese.

That report recommended that area residents with liver or gastrointestinal disease ask their doctor if they should avoid drinking the water, and that parents avoid feeding infants formula mixed with the water.