Abstract |
The Beachwood/Berkeley Well site, encompasses Beachwood Borough and Berkeley Township in central-east Ocean City, NJ. The total population of the two municipalities is approximately 23,000. In response to a public complaint of possible aluminum contamination of drinking water, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) sampled four potable wells and discovered the presence of lead in exceedance of the Federal Interim Primary Drinking Water Standard. Subsequent sampling confirmed the presence of lead at approximately 4 times the standard. It was concluded that elevated concentrations of lead in drinking water were not caused by man-made or industrial sources. Rather, the sources of lead include: a minor contribution from native area ground water, lead packers used in well construction, and dissolution of lead from lead-bearing materials of home plumbing systems, particularly lead/tin solder. The State of New Jersey is proceeding independently of Federal Superfund financing to address the presence of and the problems posed by lead in drinking water. |