Bernstein, J. (2020, September 23).. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://news.ucr.edu/articles/2020/08/20/water-contaminant-could-have-neurotoxic-effects-children

Manganese, a naturally occurring metal is found in water sources across the globe, although its regulation is unenforceable because of its status as a secondary contaminant. Manganese is easily removable from irrigation systems in major cities, but over 2 million americans rely on private, uncleaned/tested wells for their drinking water. Meaning that their water quality is a hit or miss until probed. Because of private wells being traditionally more shallow that public because of decreased use, their susceptibility to Manganese is far higher. Which is why UC riverside scientists have received a grant of $230,000 to conduct further research for future solutions to this problem. The team used a synchrotron, a very bright light source to examine the chemistry of model aquifers. They had found low level Manganese, but high level arsenic concentrations in ground water. The conditions to cause these two compounds are very similar, which explains their occurrence. Overall, if arsenic is found the water is unsafe. If Manganese is found, there is a low level threat. ALTHOUGH, it is known for causing neurological disease similar to adult level parkinsons. Which explains their interest in researching methods to treat this contamination. 

This article was insightful and quite easy to read. It introduced me to a new understanding of water quality, as there are levels of contaminants that offer different threats. Although there don’t seem to be a feasible solutions to this dilemma, the 10 years allotted for research + funding seems to be a promising development for a good result. This article is related to environmental science because scientists are constantly testing water sources for contaminants and sources of impurity. But because private wells are generally untested, this would serve as a new area of development in environmental science. Further proving the texts correlation with the area of investigation.