The goal of the IDEM Groundwater Section is to protect, understand, and increase awareness about the importance of Indiana's groundwater and surface water resources for current and future generations.
Protecting Our Water is Important
It is important to protect both our surface water and groundwater from contamination. Water contamination can have negative impacts on both the quality of our health and environment. Water contamination is complex, difficult, and expensive to clean up. Clean up can take years to decades to clean the contamination to a level that is safe to consume. Water contamination also adds to the cost and difficulty of water treatment. The best thing to do is to prevent contamination from entering our water in the first place.
One way Indiana helps to make community public water suppliers, sometimes referred to as city water, aware of potential sources of contamination is by helping them to develop Wellhead Protection Plans. Another tool provided to public water supplies is Source Water Assessment Plans identifying where their drinking water comes and the susceptibility of the public water system. If you are interested in taking additional steps to protect your community’s groundwater, work with your local government and water provider to pass a local wellhead protection or drinking water ordinance to address your communities concerns.
Water Quality Monitoring
Another way Indiana is working to provide awareness and understanding of our state’s groundwater quality is through IDEM’s Groundwater Monitoring Network (GWMN). The primary goals of the GWMN are to better understand groundwater across the state of Indiana and to identify areas that may be impaired by natural or human influences on the environment.
In February 2021, IDEM began Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) monitoring at all Community Water Systems (CWS) throughout the state of Indiana (a CWS regularly serves drinking water to at least 25 year-around residents or has at least 15 service connections for residents). The purpose of the sampling program is to evaluate the statewide occurrence of PFAS compounds in CWS across the state and determine the efficacy of conventional drinking water treatment for PFAS. Additional information can be found on the PFAS Sampling Program page.
Water Quality Concerns
Indiana also helps address concerns people may have for possible contamination of their drinking water or answer questions people have regarding their drinking water quality.
Groundwater Section Focus Areas
- Groundwater Monitoring Network (GWMN)
- Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
- Private Well Users and City Water Customers
- Source Water Assessment Plans
- Wellhead Protection