Water Modeling
Prior to the end of 1985, some of the water systems at Camp Lejeune were contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). To determine which base housing areas received contaminated water, a water-modeling approach is necessary. The approach includes modeling of the groundwater flow of contaminants and the distribution of these contaminants in the water system. Based on this information, exposures can be determined for each housing area for every month from the start of contamination to 1985.
FAQs
Water Modeling
Commonly asked questions and answers about Water Modeling at Camp Lejeune.
Resources
Calibrating Distribution System Models with Fire-Flow Tests
Field methods used to model the current water distribution system at Camp Lejeune.
Example of Water Modeling Study: Tom Rivers Study
This summary of findings was developed to provide an overview of the historical reconstruction analysis conducted
by ATSDR and NJDHSS.
A full description of the analysis is available
in a comprehensive report.
Water Contamination Summary
Summary of the water modeling contamination situation at Camp Lejeune including water treatment plants serving base housing areas, sources of contamination, concentrations of chemicals detected, and water modeling results.
Tarawa Terrace Reports
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry is the lead agency determining if exposures to PCE and TCE in drinking water are associated with adverse health outcomes among the children of Marines stationed at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
A new analysis shows that former Marines and their families who lived in Tarawa Terrace family housing units during the period November 1957 through February 1987 received contaminated drinking water containing the dry-cleaning solvent, tetrachloroethylene (PCE). Levels of PCE in the drinking water during this period exceeded the amount currently allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Exposure to PCE-contaminated drinking water occurred because PCE leaked into groundwater that supplied the Tarawa Terrace drinking water system from a dry-cleaner located outside the Camp Lejeune military base. In 1987, the military base shut down the Tarawa Terrace water treatment plant because of PCE contamination of the drinking water.
ATSDR Response to Department of Navy Letter on Assessment of Tarawa Terrace Water Modeling
[PDF, 5241KB]
On June 19, 2008, the Department of Navy (DON) provided ATSDR with technical comments on
the Tarawa Terrace water-modeling analyses. On March 10, 2009, ATSDR responded to the DON
comments. The DON letter and the ATSDR response are contained in the following PDF file.
Chapter A
Executive Summary This report concludes in its analyses of the Tarawa Terrace drinking water system at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina that former Marines and their families who lived in Tarawa Terrace family housing units during the period November 1957 through February 1987 received drinking water contaminated with the dry-cleaning solvent tetrachloroethylene (PCE) at levels above the current maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 5 ppb. [PDF, 2190KB]Master Plate
This is a map of the location of wells and boreholes, groundwater-flow model boundary, and present-day (2004) water distribution systems serving Tarawa Terrace, Holcomb Boulevard, and Hadnot Point and vicinity, U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. [PDF, 1951KB]Summary of Findings
This is the full 116-page report of ATSDR's analyses of the Tarawa Terrace Drinking Water System at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. ATSDR concludes in its analyses that former Marines and their families who lived in the Camp Lejeune Tarawa Terrace family housing units during the period November 1957 through February 1987 received drinking water contaminated with the dry-cleaning solvent tetrachloroethylene (PCE) at levels above the current maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 5 ppb. [PDF, 6288KB]**NOTE**: ATSDR has been made aware that on some personal computer systems, the model input data files provided on DVD #3 cannot be copied. These files are provided below and can be downloaded. These files are identical to the files provided on DVD #3 that accompanies the Chapter A report.
** Download Model Input Data Files [ZIP, 8802KB]**
Chapter B
This report, Chapter B in the Tarawa Terrace
series, provides detailed analyses and interpretations
of well and geohydrologic data used to develop
the geohydrologic framework of the Castle Hayne
aquifer system at Tarawa Terrace and vicinity.
You may download the report as 1 file or in 4 sections:
Chapter B - Entire Report [PDF, 19448KB]
Or
Chapter B - Section 1 [PDF, 5331KB]
Chapter B - Section 2 [PDF, 5223KB]
Chapter B - Section 3 [PDF, 5285KB]
Chapter B - Section 4 [PDF, 4755KB]
Chapter
C
This report, Chapter C, describes
the development and calibration of a digital
model applied to the simulation of groundwater
flow within the Tarawa Terrace aquifer and Upper
Castle Hayne aquifer system at and in the vicinity
of the Tarawa Terrace housing areas. [PDF, 5347KB]
Chapter
D
The Chapter D report provides abridged
information describing the most salient properties
and biodegradation of 27 chlorinated volatile
organic compounds detected during groundwater
studies in the United States. This information
is condensed from an extensive list of reports,
papers, and literature published by the U.S.
Government, various State governments, and peer-reviewed
journals. The list includes literature reviews,
compilations, and summaries describing volatile
organic compounds in ground water. [PDF, 2274KB]
Chapter
E
This report, Chapter E, describes
the occurrence and distribution of tetrachloroethylene
and related contaminants within the Upper Castle
Hayne Aquifer System at and in the vicinity
of the Tarawa Terrace housing area. There also
is a brief description of the occurrence and
distribution of benzene, toluene, ethylene,
and xylene (BTEX) and related compounds. [PDF,
2821KB]
Chapter
F
This report, Chapter F, describes
the development and calibration of a digital
model applied to the simulation of the fate
and transport of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) within
the Tarawa Terrace aquifer and the Castle Hayne
aquifer system at and in the vicinity of the
Tarawa Terrace housing area, U.S. Marine Corps
Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. [PDF, 5166KB]
Chapter
G
This report, Chapter G, describes
the three-dimensional simulation of the fate,
degradation, and advective dispersive transport
of PCE and associated degradation by-products—TCE,
trans-1,2-dichloroethylene (1,2-tDCE),
and vinyl chloride (VC)—within the Tarawa Terrace
aquifer and Castle Hayne aquifer system at Tarawa
Terrace and vicinity. [PDF, 11486KB]
Chapter
H
This report, Chapter H, describes
the effect of groundwater pumping variation
on arrival times of tetrachloroethylene (PCE)
at water-supply wells and the Tarawa Terrace
water treatment plant, U.S. Marine Corps Base
Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. [PDF, 7990KB]
Chapter
I
This report, Chapter I, provides detailed information
and interpretations of parameter sensitivity,
variability, and uncertainty associated with
model simulations of groundwater flow, contaminant
fate and transport, and distribution of drinking
water at Tarawa Terrace and vicinity. It relies
on information, data, and simulation results
from calibrated models presented in previously
published ATSDR reports on Tarawa Terrace -
Chapters A, B, C, E, and F. [PDF, 9616KB]
**NOTE**: A CD-ROM, included with the
report, contains calibrated model input files
for use with the public domain model codes MODFLOW,
MT3DMS, EPANET 2, and PEST.
** Download
Model Input Data Files [ZIP, 17.4 MB]**
Graph and Table of Simulated and Measured Concentrations of PCE
This graph and table shows the levels of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) that may have been in your drinking water at Tarawa Terrace during your tour of duty at Camp Lejeune.
Report of the Camp Lejeune Water-Modeling
Expert Panel
During March 28–29, 2005, an Expert Peer Review
Panel evaluated ATSDR’s water-modeling activities
in support of the current study of childhood
birth defects and cancer at U.S. Marine Corps
Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Star-News Forum Panel Meeting on
Camp Lejeune
These slides were presented at an information-sharing
forum about the Camp Lejeune water contamination
at Kenan Auditorium on the campus of the University
of North Carolina Wilmington on August 31, 2007.
Use of Water Modeling Methods [PDF, 3217KB]
Childhood adverse health outcomes and drinking water exposures to chlorinated solvents at the U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina [PDF, 1032KB]
Contact Us:
- Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
4770 Buford Hwy NE
Atlanta, GA 30341 -
(800) 232-4636
TTY: (888) 232-6348
24 Hours/Every Day - atsdrcamplej@cdc.gov