Water Sample City Lake Mountain Rural Well

Acidity pH 4 7 6.8 7 8.2

Metals (mg/L) 0.0006 mg/L 0.6 mg/L (iron) 0.006 mg/L (iron) 0.0027 mg/L (copper) 1.44 g/L (iron)

Coliform bacteria 13/100 mL 33/100mL 0/100 mL 0/100 mL 0/100 mL

Pesticides/herbicides (mg/L) 0.00001mg/L carbofuran 0.0008 mg/L carbofuran 0.0001 mg/L Carbofuran 0.08 mg/L carbofuran 0.0004 mg/L carbofuran

Water sample Nitrates (mg/L) City 0.8mg/L Lake 0.6mg/L Mountain Rural Well 12.4mg/L 0.7mg/L 0.06 mg/L

Type of contamination Acidity pH Coliform bacteria Nitrate Pesticides/ Herbicides Metals (iron)

Treatment Add sodium hydroxide Chloride added at the beginning and the end Add carbon and clorine at the end Add carbon and clorine at the end Chlorine added in the beginning, then zinc orthophorphate

1: What contaminants were found in the surface water samples? What contaminants were found in the groundwater samples? - Metals, pesticides, coli-form bacteria, and acidity pH. 2: Why might groundwater and surface water have different contaminants? - Surface water has more contaminates because the rain directly falls down into it, while it takes a longer time for it to get into groundwater.

3: Generally, farmers do not farm and industries do not build factories on the sides of mountains in remote wilderness areas. These areas are usually not highly populated by people. What might explain the high nitrate level in the mountain water in this activity? - The areas are usually not highly populated by people will create the process of the nitrate traps the nitrate which accumulates over time. It means there could be a build-up of bacteria which causes nitrates from the nitrogen cycle. 4: What is pH level, what are its characteristics and how does it contribute to pollution? What chemicals are used in treating low pH levels? - pH level is the measure of acidity in water. Sodium Hydroxide is used to treat low pH levels. 5: Water in an old building, tested recently, showed high copper and iron content, and low pH levels. A water reading taken 20 years before showed low pH levels, but only minimal traces of copper and iron. If none of the new buildings on the same street showed signs of metallic contaminants, but all reported lower than normal pH readings, how might these readings be explained? - Old buildings have old popes which get rusty and release copper and iron contaminants into water. The water all didn't have enough chlorine, which gave them a low pH, which allowed the copper and iron to accumulate in the water.