Using Inundation Extents to Predict Microbial Contamination in Private Wells after Flooding Events.

ABSTRACT: Disaster recovery poses unique challenges for residents reliant on private wells. Flooding events are drivers of microbial contamination in well water, but the relationship observed between flooding and contamination varies substantially. Here, we investigate the performance of different flood boundaries─the FEMA 100 year flood hazard boundary, height above nearest drainage-derived inundation extents, and satellite-derived extents from the Dartmouth Flood Observatory─in their ability to identify well water contamination following Hurricane Florence. Using these flood boundaries, we estimated about 2600 wells to 108,400 private wells may have been inundated─over 2 orders of magnitude difference based on boundary used. Using state-generated routine and post-Florence testing data, we observed

SUBMITTER: Drewry KR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10976889 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature