A Call for Action: Improving Individual Well Management in Slovakia

Abstract

Background: While public water supplies are regulated by Directive (EU) 2020/2184, inconsistencies in member state legislation for individual wells pose health risks. The study investigates the management of Slovak wells, providing insights to inform and potentially strengthen national water policies. Methods: The survey-based study collected data via online and in-person questionnaires during March 2024. It collected retrospective information on well characteristics, usage, stewardship practices, and water quality concerns. Results: We received 251 responses from 52 Slovak districts. The well water for drinking was used by 122 (48.6%) households, with notable regional variations. Only 41.0% of the respondents conducted a proper technical inspection of their wells within the past year. There has been an increase in the use of wells since the millennium. Individuals who drank well water were significantly more likely to conduct water quality tests (p < 0.05). The recommended frequency of technical inspections and annual testing was not reached in either well owners who drink well water or those with wells who drink water from other sources. Conclusions: The amendment of legislation specifically targeting individual wells, along with educational campaigns, appears crucial for well stewardship in Slovakia. The study provides data for further research and public health interventions.

1. Introduction

Although most of the population in the European Union is connected to public water supply, there are countries where individual wells are quite common. Experts estimate that one in ten Europeans receive water from a small water supply, including individual wells [1]. So, the member states expand and build the public water supply to provide their citizens with safe drinking water. However, some countries have noticed an interest in the use of individual wells due to increased expenditures on drinking water intake [2]. This could be a new public health problem that needs some action.

Although Directive (EU) 2020/2184 requires rigorous monitoring of public drinking water supplies, it allows member states discretion regarding small water sources, such as individual wells [3]. Slovak legislation, specifically Ministry of Health Resolution No. 91/2023 Coll., assigns responsibility for individual well water quality and monitoring solely to their owners [4]. Only new individual wells are required to provide a water quality analysis, based on the Building Act and its related decrees [4,5]. This regulatory framework has led to insufficient information on the quality of water from individual wells in Slovakia, and available estimates on their prevalence are outdated by decades [6].

Well water can be contaminated by many sources, either anthropogenic or natural. Using such contaminated well water for drinking or watering crops can represent a health risk for households [7,8,9,10]. Microbial pathogens pose the greatest risk to the safety of drinking water. The most common symptoms are vomiting and diarrhea. Although these conditions are in general non-life-threatening. A slight increase in mortality rates has been observed in sensitive subpopulations [11]. In addition to microbial contamination, groundwater can also be polluted by a wide array of chemical contaminants. These groups of contaminants can originate from geological bedrock or from anthropogenic activities [7,10]. In both cases, the depth of the well plays a crucial role in terms of potential contamination. While chemical contamination usually does not lead to clinically apparent intoxications, long-term exposure can have significant health-related consequences. It can lead to neurological disorders, delays in child development, endocrine and reproductive disorders, gastrointestinal illnesses, cancer, etc., [1,8].

Water testing is a critical step in a sequence of stewardship activities needed to mitigate the hazards of the home well. Proper well management can help well owners minimize potential health risks and take early preventive action [12]. Unfortunately, the regulatory mechanisms related to the management of individual wells in Slovakia, as well as in many European countries, are insufficient [1,2,3,4,6]. It results in irregular water quality monitoring, poor treatment, and improper well maintenance of wells [13,14,15].

Well stewardship is both a local and national health challenge. Identifying the population at risk and understanding its perception of risks and knowledge can help public health professionals address public education more effectively and outreach promotion activities on the needs of well owners. This will also help to lead to a complex discussion in drinking water policy relating to individual water supplies [16,17].

However, a number of studies on individual water stewardship have been conducted abroad, but there are limited data from Slovakia until now. Previous pilot studies showed that individual wells are still frequent, even in areas with public water supply [9,18,19]. They have become a new phenomenon representing a potentially serious public health problem that requires attention. To deal with the problem effectively, appropriate targeted education in this field is essential.

The aim of this study is to investigate the management of individual wells and the factors that affect them in Slovakia.

2. Materials and Methods

This study is the first nationwide cross-sectional descriptive survey to map public health issues related to individual wells in Slovakia.

The data for this study were collected via an online questionnaire in March 2024. This period was deliberately chosen to coincide with World Water Day (22 March). Specifically, on this day, Slovak regional public health authorities offer free well water testing (levels of nitrites and nitrates) and expert consultation for well owners. Furthermore, various media actively support public education regarding the risks associated with water, particularly water from individual wells. This temporal alignment allowed for the contextualization of data collection within a nationwide initiative focused on the quality of drinking water from individual sources.

2.1. Questionnaire

Considering no study on individual well management has been conducted in Slovakia, we had to develop our own questionnaire. First, we conducted a comprehensive literature review of foreign scientific studies on well stewardship. Subsequently, we developed a self-administered questionnaire. The primary objective was to obtain data on the individual well and factors that influence its management of water quality. The draft of the questionnaire was used as background material for a discussion with experts from the Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic (National Reference Centre for Drinking Water), allowing revisions to questions based on their extensive field experience. The questionnaire was pre-tested by public health experts at the Department of Public Health, and any unclear or problematic questions were revised.

The final questionnaire consisted of 23 questions and was distributed via the Microsoft Forms platform. Most of the questions employed a closed-ended format; only three questions were open-ended (age of the well owner, specific location of the individual well, and initial year of well exploitation).

We structured the questions into several areas: general information about the well owner and his/her household (gender, age, educational level), information on the individual well (type, location, potential sources of contamination, usage), stewardship of the individual well, problems with water quality, motivations, and barriers for individual well stewardship. The aim of each thematic area was to provide the most comprehensive data for planning a targeted future preventive intervention.

2.2. Data Collection

The link to our online questionnaire was included in a popular science article for the general public, which was distributed as part of the World Water Day (WWD) 2024 campaign. The questionnaire was distributed by news websites, social media, and web pages (University’s official web page, the National Public Health Authority, and 16 regional public health authorities’ websites). The questionnaire was available online from 19 to 31 March 2024. Public health inspectors from two regional public health authorities (Čadca and Spišská Nová Ves districts) filled out the questionnaire with well owners in person during its promotion activities as part of WWD 2024 (22 March). Both public health authorities have their territorial jurisdiction districts, which are typical for their small public water supply percentage.

The Regional Public Health Authority in Čadca has territorial responsibility for the Čadca and Kysucké Nové Mesto districts. In this area, 81.5% of the population is connected to the public water supply system [20]. A significant factor is that the water supply network in 14 municipalities was constructed in 2015. Furthermore, the area is characterized by typical dispersed rural settlements known as “kopanice”, which are situated mostly in higher elevations of valleys or mountains, not close to a community.

The Regional Public Health Authority in Spišská Nová Ves has territorial responsibility for the Spišská Nová Ves and Gelnica districts. Here, 83.9% of the population is supplied by public water supplies [21]. Furthermore, in both districts, the majority of the population originates from marginalized communities, significantly affecting equitable access to drinking water.

2.3. Data Analysis

Statistical analysis was performed using Epi Info™ version 7.2 software. Categorical variables are presented as counts and percentages. The results are graphically expressed by pie and bar charts. The selected characteristics of individual wells (type of well, water treatment system, technical inspection, water quality testing) among well owners who did not drink their well water and those who did drink their well water were compared using the chi-square test. A p value of less than 0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance.

3. Results

3.1. Characteristics of the Participants

In total, we received 251 responses from 52 districts in Slovakia. Most of them came from Spišská Nová Ves District (19.9%), and 14.3% came from Čadca District (Supplementary Materials). The gender distribution of the respondents in our sample was nearly identical. The average age of the respondents was 50 years. The 30–49 age group had the highest representation in the sample (34.7%), while the age group under 30 had the lowest representation (11.2%). Individual wells were primarily used by households consisting of four members. The questionnaire was completed by 44.2% of the respondents who had a university degree (

Table 1. Selected characteristics of well owners.

Characteristics	Categories	No. 1	Percentage (%)
District	Spišská Nová Ves	50	19.9%
	Čadca	36	14.3%
	Žilina	24	9.6%
	Martin	18	7.2%
	Gelnica	12	4.8%
	Bardejov	12	4.8%
	Other 46 districts (<10 respondents)	99	39.4%
Gender	Men	124	49.4%
	Women	127	50.6%
Age	To 29 years	28	11.2%
	30−49 years	87	34.7%
	50−64 years	79	31.5%
	65 years and more	57	22.7%
Education	Primary	2	0.8%
	Secondary	44	17.5%
	Upper secondary with a school leaving certificate	94	37.5%
	University education	111	44.2%

Note: ¹ No—number of respondents.

).

3.2. Properties of Individual Wells in Surveyed Households

There was no significant difference in the proportion of dug and drilled wells. The median initial year of individual well exploitation was 2000. In our sample, 93 (37.1%) of individual wells were built before 1990. There were 18.3% of individual wells that were used between 2020 and 2023. The results showed an increase in the popularity of individual wells since 2000 (

Table 2. Selected characteristics of individual wells.

Characteristics	Categories	No. 1	Percentage (%)
Well exploitation	Before 1990	93	37.1%
	1991–1999	17	6.8%
	2000–2009	34	13.5%
	2010–2019	51	20.3%
	2020–2023	46	18.3%
	No data	10	4.0%
Type of well	Dug	125	49.8%
	Drilled	126	50.2%
Source of pollution	Sump, septic tank, pipes, sewage connections	37	14.7%
	Barn, urine pits, manure pits	20	8.0%
	Road, road ditch	48	19.1%
	Stream, river, surface flow	51	20.3%
	No source of pollution	132	52.6%
Usage	Drinking	122	48.6%
	Personal hygiene	154	61.4%
	Watering	210	83.7%
	Technical use (filling up the poll/hot tube, laundry washing, etc.)	135	53.8%
Frequency of technical inspection	Several times a year	103	41.0%
	Yearly	61	24.3%
	Every few years	43	17.1%
	I do not remember.	19	7.6%
	Never	18	7.2%
	After incident/extreme weather event only	7	2.8%

Note: ¹ No—number of respondents.

). More than fifty-two percent of the individual wells were situated away from any known source of pollution. Most households used well water to irrigate their gardens. Well water was relatively less frequently used for drinking.

According to a survey, only 41.0% (103) of the owners conducted a proper technical inspection (visual check-up and control of each well and its equipment) of their wells in the past year (Table 2).

3.3. Drinking of Well Water

As many as 122 (48.6%) households used well water for drinking. In general, the group consisted of 419 people drinking well water, including 25 children under the age of 3 and 87 individuals over the age of 65. Individual wells were the most common in the Čadca (25.4%) and Spišská Nová Ves (18.0%) districts.

The proportion of households that started to exploit individual wells increased remarkably after 2019 (from 31.4% to 47.8%) (Figure 1). There were no differences in the type of well based on its utilization for drinking (p < 0.05) (

Table 3. Individual well characteristics: drinking vs. nondrinking well water owners.

Variable		Drinking			p Value
		No 1 (%)	Yes (%)	Total (%)
		129 (51.4%)	122 (48.6%)	251 (100.0%)
Type of well	dug	57 (44.2%)	68 (55.7%)	125 (49.8%)	NS 2
	drilled	72 (55.8%)	54 (44.3%)	126 (50.2%)
Well water treatment system		21 (16.3%)	45 (36.9%)	66 (26.3%)	p < 0.05
Regular technical inspection (2–4 times per year)		48 (37.2%)	55 (45.1%)	103 (41.0%)	NS
Those who ever tested their well water quality		59 (45.7%)	84 (68.9%)	143 (57.0%)	p < 0.05
Well water testing according to recommendations (at least once a year)		22 (17.1%)	27 (22.1%)	49 (19.5%)	NS

Notes: ¹ No—number of respondents. ² NS—not significant

).

The water treatment system was more frequent in households drinking well water (p < 0.001). Forty-five owners who drink well water (36.9%) reported having water treatment equipment (Table 3). The most common type of treatment (10 owners) was a water softener.

The households that used well water for drinking conducted water quality analysis more often (p < 0.001). There were no differences in the frequency of water quality tests (recommended frequency) within the groups (Figure 2 and Table 3).

Almost 69% of owners who drank well water had had their water quality tested in the past. More than one in five (22.1%) well water drinking owners performed water quality tests at the recommended frequency (at least once a year) (Table 3). The most comprehensive type of analysis requested by well owners was a general water quality analysis (according to the Resolution of the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic No. 91/2023 Coll, the general analysis consists of 82 quality parameters). It was carried out in 41.7% (35 households) (Figure 3).

Problems with well water quality were reported by 25.4% (31) of water drinkers. Problems occurred in 58.1% of cases (18) after incidents or extreme events. The most common were changes of physical parameters (change of color, odor, and taste) (Figure 4).

4. Discussion

This study provides the first questionnaire-based survey of well owner attitudes and practices in Slovakia. The analysis demonstrates a higher adoption of individual wells, particularly after 2019. However, current well stewardship practices, including visual inspections and monitoring, are inadequate.

Although the study aimed at the entire country of Slovakia, our sample exhibited higher survey completion rates in certain regions. It can be influenced by several factors. First, the propagation of the survey by the media and regional public health offices. Second, the availability of public water supply infrastructure in Slovakia can also play an important role. Although more than 90% of municipalities are connected to the public water supply, there are disparities, particularly in rural hilly regions, where access to the water supply is limited or absent [9,18,19,22]. This clearly corresponds to our findings, because both districts with the highest proportion of individual wells are situated in hilly terrain. Furthermore, the “kopanice” settlement structure also contributes to this situation in the Čadca District. Almost 20% of individual wells in the Spišská Nová Ves District may also be significantly influenced by its substantial Roma population (socioeconomically weaker minority population) and the scarcity of funds to develop or extend the public water supply infrastructure [23].

Historically, dug wells were the predominant type of well in many European countries [1]. This type of well is very common for Slovakia because it can obtain water from less permeable materials, which makes them favorable for hard rock aquifers [24]. Moreover, the dug wells are shallow, so the investment costs are very low, and individuals can dig them themselves [25]. In our sample, dug wells were more common in households that use water for drinking. This can be attributed to the fact that in certain areas, wells have served as the primary source of potable water for extended periods. Furthermore, an increase in drinking water from the public water supply in recent years has prompted residents to look for cost-saving alternatives [26]. Therefore, the repurposing of traditional dug wells was a practical solution. Higher costs for drinking water can also be an effect of increasing popularity of drilled wells. On the other hand, drilled wells have a lower risk of contamination because of their depth [27]. Such an explanation also supports a difference in the initial year of utilization between the whole sample and the group of owners drinking their well water (2000 vs. 1985).

Households drinking well water may face more significant health risks than non-consumers [8,28]. For example, the study from Slovakia explicitly indicates a high incidence of waterborne diseases in selected villages of Spišská Nová Ves and Gelnica Districts [23].

Therefore, visual inspection of the water supply should become a priority for the owners. Remarkably, the results showed that the recommended frequency of well inspection was conducted only in 45.1%. Numerous foreign studies demonstrated a similar situation [1,12,13,17]. Perception of risk has been identified as a significant challenge in ensuring adequate maintenance of the well [16,29]. Most consumers assess the quality of food or water based on sensory evaluation or the occurrence of health problems. If the water looks clear, has no noticeable odor, and causes no apparent health problems when consumed, people generally consider its quality to be satisfactory. If the water meets the sensory quality parameters and its consumption does not cause apparent health problems, the water is usually considered satisfactory [12,14,17,30,31].

Our results also indicated that water treatment devices are not routinely installed in wells, even in those used for drinking. It corresponds with our previous study from Slovakia [32]. Furthermore, these results highlight a significant difference in practice compared to the robust regulatory framework for public water supplies. Although the EU Drinking Water Directive (2020/2184/EC) sets quality standards for drinking water and emphasizes a risk-based approach for public systems, it does not explicitly mandate the installation of treatment devices for individual wells. Instead, the directive delegates the oversight and management of such small supplies to the member states [3].

Similarly, Hynds et al. found that up to 64% of homeowners in six selected areas of Ireland had no water treatment device [12]. Low adoption rates of water treatment are linked to a lack of knowledge on potential health risks and contamination prevention [22]. It is obvious that there is a significant knowledge gap among well owners regarding the health risks posed by inadequate well maintenance. Consequently, implementing targeted educational campaigns to promote pro-health behaviors and increase engagement in well stewardship [33]. Additionally, offering free testing campaigns could encourage higher compliance from well owners.

Fifty-seven percent of owners ever tested their water quality, while among well water drinkers, testing was more common. This result can reflect the fact that the participating respondents were dominantly taking part in WWD activities and were interested in the issue. Both groups of owners were proactive in exploring information to mitigate health risks associated with poor well water quality. Unlike our finding, the study conducted in the Kysuce Region showed that only 17% of well owners tested their water quality [32].

However, the respondents in our study did not adhere to the recommended interval for water quality testing. It is consistent with previous studies, which indicated that owners rarely tested well water quality [9,13,34]. The rates of water testing varied between regions and owners [17]. The cost of well testing and the inconvenience of well testing were identified as the most common barriers to routine well testing [9,12,29].

Furthermore, the absence of knowledge of the alteration of seasonal contamination can underscore the importance of regular well water tests. To ensure public health protection and support proper management of the well, targeted education is necessary [12,18,34].

By educating well owners about the dynamic nature of groundwater quality, public health officials can effectively address this knowledge gap and promote more proactive testing behaviors [16]. Furthermore, several studies confirmed that the offer of free water testing can positively motivate well owners [33,34]. Last but not least, it is crucial to ensure the robust protection of water resources and focus on improving groundwater quality. Developing policies aimed at sustainable development can serve as a valuable tool to achieve this.

There are some limitations to our study related to the data collection method. First, we collected data through an online survey as part of the WWD campaign. Although the campaign is nationwide and supported by all regional public health authorities in Slovakia, we observed a significant overrepresentation of respondents from certain districts. This could be attributed to two main factors: the insufficient promotion of the survey by some regional authorities or the lack of information provided to well owners about the survey during phone calls or in-person meetings. Our results are further supported by the available data on public water supply connections in Slovakia. Given these findings, the development of comprehensive and accessible guidelines for individual well water management is a clear priority. This would not only improve water quality for users but also provide valuable tools for local authorities to develop and implement effective mitigation strategies.

The second limitation of online data collection could be internet access and poor computer literacy among well owners. This view is supported by the prevalence of wells in rural (often remote) areas of Slovakia, where marginalized groups are often located [23]. In addition, there is a low awareness of the WWD campaign among Slovak well owners [32].

Despite these limitations, we consider the collected data as a useful starting point for planning a strategy for further surveys or specific preventive activities targeting well owners in Slovakia. Furthermore, this is the first nationwide survey of its kind to focus on the issue.

5. Conclusions

The study represents the first nationwide investigation of well stewardship practices in Slovakia. The findings highlight a significant dependence on individual wells for drinking water, especially in regions with limited access to public water supply.

Despite increasing reliance on individual wells, especially for drinking, improvements in well management are not adequately matched. The low frequency of technical inspections and water quality tests among well owners is a reason for concern. As a suitable tool for improvement, we recommend a legislative amendment focusing on the mandatory creation of an individual water source management plan and its compliance monitored by local self-governments. This policy change is crucial for identifying and minimizing potential health risks. Furthermore, the lack of adherence to recommended guidelines underscores the need for targeted education and awareness campaigns to promote responsible well management.

The findings of this study have significant implications for public health policy and practice not only in Slovakia but also in other European countries dealing with the same problem. Therefore, the creation of further legislation specifically targeting individual wells is crucial for the alignment with EU directives. By addressing the identified challenges and promoting responsible well management, policymakers and public health officials can help ensure the safety and quality of the water from individual wells, safeguarding public health and well-being.