The Great Bend Prairie aquifer provides water to approximately 130,000 people through public water systems and an additional 33,000 people from private wells. The Clean Water Act is used to regulate public water systems, but the use of water from private water wells remains unregulated. In 2016, a research study showed that the nitrate levels were higher for 20 of 21 wells tested in the Great Bend Prairie aquifer during the 1970s and 1980s.
Barton Community College joins Kansas State University and Dodge City Community College in groundwater research
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