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Nitrate Concentrations Of Ground Water Northern Madison County, Arkansas, Andrew Y. Austin, Kenneth F. Steele

Technical Reports

The presence of an extensive network of solution channels in the fractured carbonate bedrock and a thin permeable regolith in northwest Arkansas makes aquifers in this region susceptible to contamination. Because of these conditions, there is concern about nitrate contamination of the ground water from land applied animal wastes, commercial fertilizers, rural septic systems and municipal sewage systems. In response to these concerns a survey was conducted of the nitrate concentration in rural water wells in the carbonate aquifers of a 420 mi2 area of northern Madison county during "wet" and "dry" seasons in 1990. Information from well owners, drilling …