Transdisciplinary Approach to Private Well Research

Abstract More than 60 million people in the United States and Canada rely on private drinking water systems (mostly private wells), which fall outside of national regulations for water quality and management. This decentralized infrastructure creates unique challenges. First, fragmented policy oversight leads to inconsistent data availability. Second, population heterogeneity in well users requires accounting for the social determinants of health and behavioral differences. Additionally, the individualized nature of well management creates persistent gaps between knowledge generation and the protective action. A broad goal of private well research is to (1) understand, predict, and prevent potential health problems related to well water consumption and (2) enable individual and collective action to reduce exposures to contaminants in well water. Here, we propose a conceptual model to advance private well research through a transdisciplinary approach that links water sources to health and prioritizes engagement among researchers, communities, and decision makers. We also identify challenges and opportunities aimed at improving data systems, refining hazard and risk assessments, linking interdisciplinary research and practical knowledge, and sustaining long-term partnerships. While our geographic focus is on North America, the principles and strategies outlined are globally relevant to addressing health risks associated with unregulated private drinking water sources.

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Publication Details

Journal
Environmental Science & Technology
Published
2026-08-20
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6c03757
Primary Topic
Fecal contamination and water quality
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Transdisciplinary Approach to Private Well Research

Drew Capone, Melissa A. Lombard, Xindi C. Hu, Matthew Dietrich et al.
Environmental Science & Technology
Fecal contamination and water quality
article

Transdisciplinary Approach to Private Well Research

Drew Capone, Melissa A. Lombard, Xindi C. Hu, Matthew Dietrich, Samantha C. Ying, Heather Murphy, Riley Mulhern, Jacqueline MacDonald Gibson, Elizabeth W. Boyer, Ann Ojeda, Siddhartha Roy, Rachel Coyte, Leigh G. Terry, Lauren A. Eaves, Rebecca C. Fry, Bridget R. Scanlon, Helen Moylan, Saugata Datta, Anna Gitter, Jeffrey Wickliffe, Natasha Dimova, Nicole Tripp, Jason R. Barrett
article en

Abstract

Abstract More than 60 million people in the United States and Canada rely on private drinking water systems (mostly private wells), which fall outside of national regulations for water quality and management. This decentralized infrastructure creates unique challenges. First, fragmented policy oversight leads to inconsistent data availability. Second, population heterogeneity in well users requires accounting for the social determinants of health and behavioral differences. Additionally, the individualized nature of well management creates persistent gaps between knowledge generation and the protective action. A broad goal of private well research is to (1) understand, predict, and prevent potential health problems related to well water consumption and (2) enable individual and collective action to reduce exposures to contaminants in well water. Here, we propose a conceptual model to advance private well research through a transdisciplinary approach that links water sources to health and prioritizes engagement among researchers, communities, and decision makers. We also identify challenges and opportunities aimed at improving data systems, refining hazard and risk assessments, linking interdisciplinary research and practical knowledge, and sustaining long-term partnerships. While our geographic focus is on North America, the principles and strategies outlined are globally relevant to addressing health risks associated with unregulated private drinking water sources.

Environmental Science & Technology
University of California, Riverside (US), Pennsylvania State University (US), North Carolina State University (US), University of Alabama (US), University of Colorado Boulder (US), George Washington University (US), New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (US), Mineralogical Society of America (US), University of Alabama at Birmingham (US), Rutgers Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (NL), Waters (United Kingdom) (GB), Department of Health (ZA), The University of Texas Health Science Center (US), Institute of Mineralogy (RU), The University of Texas at San Antonio (US), Indiana University (US), University of Guelph (CA), Auburn University (US), The University of Texas at Austin (US), Mississippi State University (US)
National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health
Openalex Percentile: Top 19%
Fecal contamination and water quality
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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