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Writing in the August edition of Environmental Science and Technology Letters, Jason Nolan and Karrie A. Weber of the University of Nebraska report unsafe levels of uranium in groundwater from California's San Joaquin Valley and from the Ogallala Aquifer underlying Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, Wyoming and South Dakota.
In Natural Uranium Contamination in Major U.S. Aquifers Linked to Nitrate they note a correlation between concentrations of uranium and nitrate ions in the groundwater samples they tested. They theorize that the nitrate, a major component of fertilizer, can oxidize uranium from U(IV) to U(VI), making it water-soluble. They found that in the San Joaquin Valley, uranium reached as much as 180 times the maximum contaminant level (MCL) set by the Environmental Protection Agency, and nitrate was as much as 34 times the MCL. Samples from the Ogallala Aquifer had as much as 89 times the MCL of uranium and 189 times the MCL of nitrate.
Water from these aquifers is used for drinking and for irrigation. Soluble uranium is bioaccumulated by certain food crops; uranium in the human body can result in cancer and kidney damage.
The Associated Press also reported on the story.
(Score: 2) by jasassin on Wednesday December 09 2015, @01:48PM
Is there a consumer product that can filter the water or is it permafucked?
jasassin@gmail.com GPG Key ID: 0xE6462C68A9A3DB5A
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 09 2015, @01:58PM
> Is there a consumer product that can filter the water or is it permafucked?
Depends on your definition of "consumer."
From the AP article:
The school, which draws on its own wells for its drinking fountains, sinks and cafeteria, is one of about 10 water systems in the farm region that have installed uranium removal facilities in recent years. Prices range from $65,000 for the smallest system to the millions of dollars.
...
The uranium gleaned from the school's well water and other Central California water systems is handled like the nuclear material it is — taken away by workers in masks, gloves and other protective garments.
(Score: 2) by fliptop on Wednesday December 09 2015, @02:01PM
No. The weird thing about all this is the fertilizer manufacturing process itself causes accumulation of trace amounts of Uranium in the gypsum waste that's produced. It's why central Florida is dotted with gypsum stacks, instead of it being used to create something else, like sheet rock.
If there were an easy method to remove Uranium from water I'm sure the fertilizer industry would've figured out how to do it a long time ago.
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