For decades, Gary residents filled jugs and bottles at the artesian well on Chase Street, a place many affectionately called the source of “magic water.” But now, the spout is dry. The water is shut off, and for the first time, a warning sign stands nearby, greeting those who come to drink.
Officials said new testing found the highest arsenic levels ever recorded at the site, prompting the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission to shut off the popular free-flowing water source and install cautionary signs warning residents of potential health risks. Dan Repay, the commission’s executive director, said the shutoff is temporary. While the new sign doesn’t specifically mention arsenic, it warns that the water is untreated and that “there are inherent risks with drinking untreated water.”
The new testing shows that arsenic in the well’s water has risen to levels that health and environmental scientists say could pose concerns if consumed regularly, according to the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Both agencies note that prolonged exposure to arsenic, a naturally occurring metalloid found in groundwater, can increase the risk of cancers, heart disease, and other serious health effects. Arsenic is odorless, colorless, and tasteless, making it impossible to detect without laboratory testing.
New test results from the commission, the regional agency that oversees the well, show arsenic levels even higher than last year’s federal findings, reaching 15 micrograms per liter, according to Repay. That is above the EPA’s safety limit of 10 micrograms per liter and higher than the 12 micrograms recorded in 2023 by federal scientists who previously tested the water source. The well sits near the 3600 block of Chase Street in Gary’s Spring Park.
In response to the new test results, Repay said the commission took the precaution of shutting off the well to install cautionary signage. After that, he said, residents are left to choose if they want to continue drinking from the well.
“We let them know,” he said. “Now it will be a decision for the people to make.”
The new testing follows months of public concern after Capital B Gary reported in September that a U.S. Geological Survey investigation had found arsenic levels above federal safety limits at the same site. The findings sparked community questions about water safety and prompted the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission to conduct its own review.
USGS tested the well for more than 70 elements, minerals, and chemicals, including aluminum, barium, iron, and manganese. The results revealed elevated levels of arsenic, Iron and manganese that exceeded federal safety limits.
Since August, the Little Calumet River Basin website has been updated to include language that there are “inherent risks” with drinking untreated groundwater from the Spring Park. It also added a link to a drinking water quality database, which allows users to search for water systems like the Chase Street well for violations of different contaminants.
“The water from Spring Park is untreated groundwater from an aquifer located below the area. Water quality may vary from day to day due to a variety of natural and other factors. While the water is tested monthly for coliform and yearly for nitrates, there are inherent risks with drinking untreated water,” the website states.
Repay said he does not believe there will be future testing of the well, or efforts to filter it for arsenic, because of upkeep.
“I will not support a filter, because I’m going to be the one doing it,” Repay said at a September LCRBC meeting.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management routinely tests the well for total coliform bacteria monthly, and nitrate annually, a spokesperson previously told Capital B Gary. However, it does not monitor for arsenic, because it is a “transient public water system that does not regularly serve people.”
The Little Calumet River Basin will continue to be in compliance with IDEM standards, which only require monthly testing for coliform and yearly testing for nitrates “unless IDEM changes its standards,” Repay said.
This is a developing story and will be updated.