PATHWAYS OF ARSENIC INGESTION IN MAINE: DATA TO ACTION

Arsenic is a known toxin posing health risks when ingested by humans. While high doses can be fatal, even chronic low-dose exposures can cause elevated risk for various health complications such as cancers including skin, bladder, lung, and kidney, as well as cardiovascular, pulmonary, and neurological effects (USEPA, 2001; Baris et al., 2016). Arsenic is known to be a common groundwater contaminant throughout New England sourced from the underlying Paleozoic metasedimentary bedrock. Specifically in Maine, where more than half of the population relies on private well water that is not monitored under the Clean Water Act, arsenic values above the maximum contaminant limit have been reported throughout the state; arsenic has been detected in blood samples taken from young children (Rice et al., 2010; Flanagan, et al., 2015). This current study is a supplement to the ongoing “All About Arsenic” collaborative project aimed at increasing sampling and awareness of private well water quality while also increasing middle-high school student engagement in data literacy curricula. Initiated by the MDI Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) and Dartmouth College, the broader project has been most recently funded through a NIH Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA). We will present on the supplemental project focusing on the many pathways of arsenic ingestion, mainly through drinking water. We suspect that the cause of elevated As in shallow wells located in areas where arsenical pesticides were historically used is due to residual concentrations harbored in the soil, while the deeper wells are likely related to bedrock leaching. To assess the likely pathways we have begun to collect historical spatial information about the location of farms, use of pesticides, and surficial and bedrock geology, to pair with well water chemistry collected through the All About Arsenic program from 2016-2020 as well as data within the ME CDC database. We have begun a citizen science civic engagement effort around the topic; working with collaborators such as environmental and public health organizations, school teachers, and researchers, we created a toolkit for members of the public to bring “data to action”. In this way, we provide potential next steps for citizens that may improve their health and the health of their wider community.