A water-quality reconnaissance of surface water and shallow ground water at the perimeter of the former Rolling Knoll landfill near Green Village, New Jersey, and an electromagnetic survey of the parts of the landfill within the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge were conducted during 1989. Results of the water-quality reconnaissance indicate that cadmium, lead, silver, and zinc were present in surface water and ground water adjacent to the Rolling Knoll landfill, although the concentrations of these constituents did not exceed New Jersey drinking-water regulations for these constituents. Concentrations of dissolved iron varied from 64 to 57,000 micrograms per liter; of the surface-water and groundwater samples collected, two-thirds exceeded New Jersey secondary drinking-water regulations. Several organic compounds were detected and were tentatively identified as pharmaceuticals or related compounds. Organic compounds were detected in surface water on the southern and western sides of the landfill, and polycyclic aromatic compounds, insecticides, and polychlorinated biphenyls were detected in samples of stream-bottom materials in Loantaka Brook. Trace elements (other than lead) generally were present in concentrations greater than background levels only in samples of surface water and ground water collected east and south of the landfill. Lead was detected in samples of surface water and ground water collected east and south of the landfill and in samples from two surface-water sample sites in the western and southwestern parts of the study area, near Loantaka Brook. Results of the electromagnetic survey were consistent with the lithologic descriptions of cores collected from hand-augered holes around the perimeter of the landfill. On the basis of the results of the waterquality analyses and the distribution of sands and clays inferred from the results of the electromagnetic survey, sites were identified at which installation of observation wells would allow for monitoring of the possible effects of the landfill on water quality in the area.
Previously collected and new water-quality data from shallow wells (screened interval less than 30 meters below the land surface) in predominantly agricultural areas of the New Jersey Coastal Plain were used to determine the relation of nitrate concentrations in shallow ground water to various hydrogeologic and land-use factors in the study area. Information on land use, well construction, hydrogeology, and water quality were used to predict the conditions under which concentrations of nitrate as nitrogen in water from domestic wells in predominantly agricultural areas are most likely to be equal to or larger than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 10 milligrams per liter. Results of the analyses of water-quality samples collected during 1980-89 from 230 shallow wells in the outcrop areas of the Kirkwood-Cohansey and Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifer systems were used to evaluate the regional effects of land use on shallow-groundwater quality. Results of statistical analysis indicate that concentrations of nitrate in shallow ground water are significantly different (p = 0.001) in agricultural areas than in undeveloped areas in both aquifer systems. Concentrations of nitrate nitrogen exceeded the MCL in water from more than 33 percent of the 60 shallow wells in agricultural areas. Concentrations of nitrate in water from shallow wells in agricultural areas increased as the percentage of agricultural land within an 800-meter-radius buffer zone of the wellhead increased (r = 0.81). Concentrations of nitrate in water from domestic wells in agricultural areas were similar (p = 0.23) to those concentrations in water from irrigation wells. These results indicate that most of the nitrate in water from domestic wells in agricultural areas results from agricultural practices rather than other sources, such as septic systems. Water-quality samples collected from 12 shallow domestic wells in agricultural areas screened in the outcrop areas of the Kirkwood-Cohansey and Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifer systems were used to evaluate the local effects of hydrogeologic conditions and land-use activities on shallow-groundwater quality. Concentrations of water-quality constituents in these wells were similar among four sampling events over a 1-year span. The concentration of nitrate in water from 6 of the 12 wells exceeded the MCL. Concentrations of nitrate greater than the MCL are associated with: values of specific conductance greater than 200 microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius, a screened interval whose top is less than 20 meters below land surface, concentrations of dissolved oxygen greater than 6 milligrams per liter, presence of pesticides in the ground water, a distance of less than 250 meters between the wellhead and the surfacewater divide, and presence of livestock near the wellhead. Ratios of stable isotopes of nitrogen in the water samples indicate that the source of nitrate in the ground water was predominantly chemical fertilizers rather than livestock wastes or effl...
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