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What can the Real Estate Transaction database tell us about domestic well nitrate contamination across Oregon?

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  • Overview
The state of Oregon is one of three states in the US, along with New Jersey and Rhode Island, that requires private well testing at the point of a real estate transaction (RET). Since 1987, Oregon Health Authority has been collecting these data. In 2012-2014, OSU PhD student Brenda Hoppe published several papers summarizing these data and analyzing the spatial patterns. In 2020, EPA scientist Jana Compton and OSU MS student Natalie Wenzlick gained access to these data to update the analysis of spatial and temporal trends in these data. This presentation represents an early initial analysis of the data, to share with the Lower Umatilla Basin GWMA, established by the state of Oregon due to high nitrate levels in groundwater wells. Combining these data with real estate sales information will help to understand potential underreporting, and the database and analysis will be useful to the state of Oregon in understanding risk of providing water near or over the state's action level of 7 mg nitrate-N per liter.  

Impact/Purpose

EPA's Jana Compton was invited to give a presentation for the Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater (LUB) Management Area meeting next week.  OSU Masters of Public Health student Natalie Wenzlick along with ORISE fellow from EPA Region 10 Joel Achenbach were involved in this examination of Oregon's Real Estate Transaction (RET) dataset.  Together we examined the spatial and temporal patterns in nitrate concentrations from 1987-2020, and will share the results with LUB GWMA members.

Citation

Compton, J. What can the Real Estate Transaction database tell us about domestic well nitrate contamination across Oregon? Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater Management Area meeting, online, OR, October 26, 2021.
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Last updated on October 26, 2021
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