WHAT’S IN THE PHREATIC AQUIFER AT INDIANA UNIVERSITY-PURDUE UNIVERSITY FORT WAYNE (IPFW)?

In order to establish background data and monitor water quality within the phreatic aquifer at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW), a well field was established at IPFW. We measured water level, pH, temperature, and conductivity for the aquifer along with nitrates and phosphates on the IPFW campus. A creek adjacent to the well field is also monitored. The USEPA maximum suggested acceptable levels are 10.0, 1.0, 250.0, and 5.0 mg/L for nitrate, nitrite, sulfate, and phosphate respectively. The data presented was collected over an 18-month period. The results show that, on average, all parameters tested were within the USEPA acceptable drinking water limits (averages are shown in parentheses). Nitrate, nitrite, sulfate, and phosphate levels range between 0.0-15.5 (1.4), 0.0-0.01 (.004), 0.0-252.0 (67.6), 0.0-7.9 (1.9) mg/L respectively. The pH was between 4.8-10.2 (6.8) and the conductivity values range between 111- 1118 (657.6) ppm. The overall results show that the waters from this aquifer are suitable for drinking. This is an ongoing study and newer results will be presented.