CLOSING THE GAP IN PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF NATURALLY OCCURRING GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION IN WAKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

Wake County contains 40,000 private wells serving 150,000 residents (approximately 14% of the population) and it is currently estimated that 1 in 10 wells are contaminated above federal drinking water standards by radioactive elements in the bedrock. In half the county, this may be as high as 20 to 50% of household drinking water wells. While most residents are very concerned about manmade contaminants, few were aware that nature could make water unsuitable for consumption.

Between 2016 and 2019 this groundwater program instituted several changes including website development, testing recommendations on new permits, and media updates, yet by 2019 Wake County estimated that only 2% of wells had been tested for radionuclides. Action was needed to alert at-risk residents and encourage testing. Due to an increasing understanding of health risks, WCES determined that the county had an obligation to directly notify well users about the possibility of contamination. With input from many County departments, state public health and environmental agencies, the real estate industry, neighboring county health departments, and local media, the county launched a campaign in June 2019 following eight months of interagency discovery and planning. The campaign included a press conference, mailings to approximately 15,000 households, community meetings, and outreach to private professionals supporting private well users.

The requirement to inform the public of a silent health risk can be intimidating to staff and produce ineffective panic in residents. The holistic, innovative, and professional approach taken by Wake County mobilized residents to act at numbers significantly higher than seen previously. In the first three months, 1,200 wells were voluntarily tested. Dozens of lower-income households received reduced-cost testing through Wake County. 150 professionals attended workshops to learn how to remediate contamination. The equivalent of $60,000 of free press was logged in the first month and hundreds of well users are now receiving an emailed newsletter. The county developed an effective award-winning campaign with no long-term increase in staffing or budget, but with a sustainable message and framework for continued outreach that can be repeated by other jurisdictions.