Though the program doesn't identify pollutants in the water, it indicates areas that could be prone to contamination. Strack and his team are predicting the flow of water, enabling officials from the other organizations involved in the study to foresee the extent of water contamination. The project is funded by a special appropriation from the state Legislature and by the Dutch government, which is using it to construct a simulation model of its own. Physical characteristics of an area, like the soil composition and river's water levels, are gathered and plugged into Strack's program along with water head levels, which are determined by measuring the height of water in a pipe stuck into the ground. Those levels indicate the pressure of water flowing underground.
Water flows from high head levels to low head levels.
Strack and his co-workers then construct contour lines in accordance with head levels, creating a map simulating the flow of groundwater. By knowing where the water is flowing, pollution control officials can decide what steps to take when a developer is planning to build. Justin Blum, a hydrogeologist for the Minnesota Department of Health, said Strack's invention helps determine where to develop land and what precautions developers should take. Blum is interested in protecting well heads, the places where water is drawn from the ground. Without proper care, wells become easily susceptible to contamination.