MEASUREMENT OF NITRATES AND SILICA IN LOCAL WELLS OF CARROLL COUNTY, GEORGIA

Private drinking water wells of Carroll County, Georgia were tested for the abundance of nitrates and silica. Nitrate standards are set by local and state governments for maximum allowance of 10 ppm. Nitrate contamination in drinking water comes from agricultural waste, human waste and fertilizers. High amounts of nitrates in drinking water leads to a condition in infants known as “blue baby syndrome.” Medically it is called Methemoglobinemia, which is when nitrate contaminated water is fed to infants, expecting mothers or used in formula feeding. Babies develop a blue color that is the result of lack of oxygen in the blood. Three wells on UWG campus had measured nitrates within the 10 ppm. Wells were tested using a screening method, Hach NitraVer. These three wells tested are low in nitrates because of reducing condition in groundwater due to the oxidation of organic matter in sediment. Since the soil is chemically reduced, it strips away the O₂ and the NO₃^- is converted to gas and then stripped away.

Silica does not have a set standard set by the local and/or state government. Silica, the most abundant mineral in the Earth’s crust, can pass through the body with no detection. Silica does not have any nutritional value or toxicity. Silica was measured in 45 domestic wells in Carroll County and five shallow research wells at the University of West Georgia. The wells sampled for silica in the Carroll County region ranged from 1 to 30 mg/L.