Toward the west, it rises near the surface, covered only by the surficial deposits, and in the northern part it rises to just below the Yorktown. Water cannot move as easily in the Getaceous as it does in the Castle Hayne, but the Getaceous aquifer is very thick, allowing deep and productive wells. Water from the Cretaceous is generally soft and slightly alkaline, requiring no treatment for most uses. In a few areas, however, natural fluoride concentrations exceed the national drinking-water standard. Table 1 indicates typical well depths and yields in the four aquifers described above.
Yields obtained from private wells usually fall near the lower values.
Larger well diameters and special construction methods may be required to obtain the higher yields. Looking Forward Not long ago, it was assumed that ground water was beyond the influence of human activity. Dumping and burial of wastes were widespread. Many of those wastes have moved down through the soil, appearing in the ground water years or decades later. Such contamination is practically impossible to clean up.