Exploring Demographic Disparities in Private Well Water Testing in North Carolina.

ABSTRACT: The natural, built, and social environments shape drinking water quality supplied by private wells. However, the combined effects of these factors are not well understood. Using North Carolina as a case study, we (i) estimate the demographic characteristics of the private well population; (ii) evaluate representation in well testing records; and (iii) demonstrate how spatial scale influences knowledge of well-using household demographics and representation in testing. We leverage a statewide database of 117,960 well testing records collected over 20 years and a national model predicting well locations. An estimated 25% well-using households identify as Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) and 15% have incomes below the poverty threshold. While there is robust well sampling (an a

SUBMITTER: Hayes W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11755715 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature