Despite claims of nearly 100% access to potable drinking water in the US, issues of drinking water quality, accessibility, and equity persist in many regions of the country. Drinking water is a common health concern in rural communities, where social, geographic, and economic challenges can inhibit the provision of reliable municipal water. Households without access to municipal water often rely on private wells, which are solely the responsibility of the homeowner to test, treat, and maintain, or roadside springs. These water sources often do not employ water treatment and users can therefore be uniquely susceptible to environmental contaminants. The goal of this research was to examine point-of-use (POU) treatment options that can be used by individuals to improve their drinking water quality and reduce exposure to common contaminants prior to consumption. Two drops (~0.10 mL) of unscented, household bleach in one gallon of spring water is a simple, low-cost treatment option that successfully inactivates total coliform and E. coli and provides an appropriate free chlorine residual (> 0.5 mg/L) over a 1-month time period, without exceeding free chlorine taste thresholds (< 2 mg/L). Efforts to distribute information on this disinfection protocol to spring users in southern West Virginia and southwestern Virginia were well-received; however, only 60% of surveyed spring users report that they plan to implement the protocol. POU faucet filters have been successfully implemented in homes reliant on municipal water to reduce metal contaminant levels in drinking water. Few studies have assessed the effectiveness of these filters in improving water quality in homes reliant on private wells. Faucet-mounted POU filters distributed to homes reliant on private wells in Virginia and southern West Virginia statistically significantly lowered levels of Ba, Cd, Cr, Total Coliform, U, Cu, Pb, Al, Fe, Mn, Zn, and Sr in tap water. However, levels of many contaminants of interest still exceeded at least one Safe Drinking Water Act regulation/recommendation in several filtered samples. Additionally, less than half of study participants reported that they liked using the filters with several citing issues with flowrate. Faucet-mounted POU filters can also be a useful tool in assessing exposure to contaminants at the tap. The acid flow-through method of metals recovery has previously proven to be successful in recovering dissolved Pb from dosed filters. In this study, the acid flow-through extraction method was applied to water spiked with high or low levels of Pb, Fe, or Cu. While faucet-mounted activated carbon filters successfully removed Pb and Cu from dosed influent (>91% removal), filter behavior under influent Fe concentrations of greater than 300 ppb was extremely variable. The acid flow-through method of metals extraction provided some recovery from filters dosed with high and low concentrations of Pb (38.9-70.4%). Recovery of Cu and Fe was variable, likely in part due to Fe and Cu leaching from filter media, suggesting that alternative methods of metals extraction and recovery from POU faucet filters dosed with Fe and Cu, or other common water contaminants (e.g., As, Ba, Cd), must be explored. While POU treatment can be useful in improving drinking water quality in rural households, limitations to adoption persist and must be addressed along with efforts to protect drinking water quality in homes in a more permanent, sustainable way. / Doctor of Philosophy / Drinking water quality is a common health concern in rural communities, where social, geographic, and economic challenges can make municipal water quality unreliable. Households without access to municipal water often use private wells and sometimes roadside springs for drinking water. These water sources are often untreated which can expose users to environmental contaminants such as bacteria or metals. The goal of this research was to study point-of-use (POU) treatment options that can be used by individuals looking to improve their drinking water quality and reduce their exposure to common contaminants, perhaps while waiting for more permanent improvements and upgrades. Household bleach is a simple, low-cost way of lowering levels of bacteria in roadside spring water that is being used as drinking water. Two drops of unscented, household bleach in one gallon of spring water successfully kills total coliform and E. coli bacteria and provides an enough leftover chlorine to continue to disinfect the water for 1-month. This information was given to spring users in southern West Virginia and southwestern Virginia and, while most people who provided feedback found the information useful, only 60% of surveyed spring users report that they plan to implement this protocol. Point-of-use faucet filters have been found to successfully reduce metals contaminant levels in drinking water in homes that use municipal water. However, few studies have tested the effectiveness of POU faucet-mounted filters in lowering contaminant levels in water in homes reliant on private wells. Faucet-mounted POU filters given to homes reliant on private wells in Virginia and southern West Virginia lowered levels of many contaminants of interest in tap water, including lead, copper, iron, and total coliform bacteria. However, in some of the filtered samples, levels of many of these contaminants were higher than at least one Safe Drinking Water Act regulation. Less than half of study participants reported that they liked using the filters with several stating that they had issues with low flowrate. Faucet-mounted POU filters can also be a useful tool in better understanding exposure to contaminants at the tap. The acid flow-through method of metals recovery has previously proven to be successful in recovering lead, and other metals, that are collected inside the filters during water treatment. In this study, an extraction method using acid was tested on filters that treated water with high or low levels of lead, iron, or copper. The filters were successful in removing lead and copper from test water, but filters were not as consistently successful in removing iron from test water. The extraction method using acid provided some recovery from filters dosed with high and low concentrations of lead (38.9-70.4%). However, recovery of copper and iron was more inconsistent, suggesting that a different method of metals recovery may be necessary. While POU treatment can be useful in improving drinking water quality in rural households, there are limits to how useful it is in certain situations, such as when treating water with extreme water quality. In order to make sure rural households have access to safe drinking water, these limits need to be addressed and efforts need to be made to figure out a way to protect and supply drinking water in a more permanent way.

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