Water Quality

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 64/292 recognizes the human right to access clean drinking water and sanitation--acknowledging that both are foundational to the realization of all human rights. And yet, in nearly every one of the 50 United States of America, communities of color suffer from exposure to unsafe drinking water.

CEEJH contributes to the fight for equitable water quality by conducting research on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOS) and private drinking water wells in rural Maryland, failing stormwater infrastructure and runoff issues in Baltimore and DC, and the impact of standing water on vector-borne diseases in the Mid-Atlantic. Additionally, CEEJH technical assistance and support to several water activists throughout the DMV region. Click the following links to learn more about our partners: Clean Water Action, Socially Responsible Agricultural Project, Anacostia Riverkeeper, Patuxent Riverkeeper.

Click on the images below to read more about our research in this area.

Featured

Drinking Water Contamination and Child Development in Delaware

. The EPA estimates that Delaware has, by far, the nation’s highest percentage (53%) of state area with groundwater nitrate concentrations greater than the EPA recommended safe limit of 5mg/ml. Due to these elevated nitrate counts, there is cause for concern that nitrate well water contamination is more pervasive than what is currently documented.

Project RECREATE

Project RECREATE focused on understanding exposure and health risks for low contact recreational users of the Anacostia River.

Project CAESARR: Toxic Exposures in the Anacostia River

The Community-Based Assessment of Exposure to Substances in the Anacostia River Region (CAESARR) sought to understand exposure and health risks for urban fishers in the Anacostia River Watershed region.

CRED: Community Resistance to Environmental Disasters

The overarching goal of the proposed project is to assist communities in developing comprehensive strategies for building resilience to contaminant releases associated with natural hazards.