| Abstract: | Abstract This report addresses the question of groundwater quality in a context of economic development and heterogeneous land use. Seven wells, each actively producing for the public water supply, and together providing 37 percent of the total aquifer production of four municipios, were tested in three topographic basins. Major land use categories, including agriculture, urbanization, and industry, were identified throughout the basins. Well samples were drawn three times during a six-month period and analyzed for a set of 15 water quality parameters including biological indicators. The most common pollutants detected were heavy metals, nitrate, arsenic, and semivolatile organic compounds. Wells surrounded by agricultural and commercial activities were contaminated by nitrate, mercury, lead, and phthalates. Wells in mixed residential and industrial settings had concentrations of semivolatile organic compounds and lead. The presence of noxious chemicals in the public water supply, even in relatively small amounts, threatens the viability of the groundwater reservoir. Both operational and policy aspects of water quality should be discussed in the context of urban and economic development. |
