Arsenic and Fluoride Levels Analysis in the State of Maine
Mark Tomaschek
March 15, 2019
The State of Maine Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory provided the data of these chemicals in water samples across the state between the years 1999 and 2013:
- Arsenic
- Fluoride
The Original Data Used For This Report :
fluoride <- read.csv(url("http://jamessuleiman.com/teaching/datasets/fluoride.csv"),stringsAsFactors = FALSE)
arsenic <- read.csv(url("http://jamessuleiman.com/teaching/datasets/arsenic.csv"),stringsAsFactors = FALSE)Dataframe joining Arsenic and Fluoride by location
load(file = "Both_location.RData")
head(Both_location)## location
## 1 Manchester
## 2 Gorham
## 3 Columbia
## 4 Monmouth
## 5 Eliot
## 6 Columbia FallsTables Of The Top 5 Locations in Maine with Arsenic and Fluoride Levels Above Maximum Guidelines
library(knitr)
load(file = "top_5_arsenic.Rdata")
kable(top_5_arsenic, digits = 2, caption = "Arsenic")| location | percent_wells_above_guideline |
|---|---|
| Manchester | 58.9 |
| Gorham | 50.1 |
| Columbia | 50.0 |
| Monmouth | 49.5 |
| Eliot | 49.3 |
library(knitr)
load(file = "top_5_fluoride.Rdata")
kable(top_5_fluoride, caption = "Fluoride")| location | percent_wells_above_guideline |
|---|---|
| Otis | 30.0 |
| Dedham | 22.5 |
| Denmark | 19.6 |
| Surry | 18.3 |
| Prospect | 17.5 |
Chart Of The 5 Locations That Have The Highest Readings of Arsenic in ug/l
Maine’s Maximum Exposure Guideline for Arsenic is 10 (ug/l) 
Summary
It was intersting to examine the fluoride and arsenic levels of over 900 locations in the state of Maine. I found some issues finding effective correlations between the arsenic and fluoride data. But When determining what data to use I thought it would be most useful to prepare data showing the top 5 locations with the highest percentage of wells that tested above the maximum exposure guidelines. Excessive exposure to both arsenic and fluoride has been linked to a number of health issues. Maine’s Maximum Exposure Guidleine for arsenic is 10 micrograms per liter (ug/l). The chart I made shows the 5 locations with the highest readings of arsenic and it was quite compelling to see places like Danforth and Northport in the thousands! I hope people in those areas are not drinking their tap water.