If you’ve read “A Civil Action” or seen the movie, you know Woburn, Massachusetts. The city’s drinking water contamination case became one of the most famous environmental lawsuits in American history — and it started with families noticing their children getting sick.
Woburn sits about 10 miles north of Boston in Middlesex County. Today it’s home to roughly 41,000 people. But its contamination story, which traces back decades, continues to shape how the city thinks about water quality.
Wells G and H: Where It Started
In the 1960s and 1970s, the city opened two municipal wells — Well G and Well H — in the eastern part of town near the Aberjona River. Residents immediately complained about the water’s taste and color. Something was clearly wrong, but the wells stayed in service.
In 1979, barrels of industrial waste were discovered near the wells. Testing revealed the water was contaminated with trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), and other volatile organic compounds. The wells were shut down that same year.
TCE is a degreasing solvent widely used in manufacturing. It’s a known human carcinogen. PCE, used in dry cleaning and metal degreasing, carries similar risks. Both chemicals had leached into the groundwater that fed Wells G and H.
The Superfund Connection
The contamination was traced to two primary sources:
- Industri-Plex — A 245-acre industrial site on the northeast side of town. Multiple companies had operated there over decades, including tanneries and chemical manufacturers. The site contained animal hides, heavy metals (arsenic, chromium, lead), and organic solvents in soils and groundwater. It was listed as a Superfund site in 1983.
- W.R. Grace and Beatrice Foods properties — Grace operated a chemical plant adjacent to the wells, and Beatrice owned a tannery property nearby. Both were identified as contamination sources through hydrogeological studies.
The EPA also identified the Wells G&H Superfund Site separately, encompassing the contaminated aquifer itself and the surrounding industrial properties that contributed to it. Cleanup work has included soil excavation, groundwater extraction and treatment, and long-term monitoring.
The Lawsuit and Its Impact
In 1982, eight Woburn families filed suit against W.R. Grace and Beatrice Foods, alleging the companies’ chemical contamination had caused leukemia and other illnesses — particularly in children. The case, Anderson v. Cryovac, was tried in 1986.
The jury found Grace liable but cleared Beatrice. Grace eventually settled for $8 million. The case was later chronicled in Jonathan Harr’s 1995 book “A Civil Action” and a 1998 film starring John Travolta.
Beyond the settlement, the case fundamentally changed environmental litigation. It demonstrated the difficulty of proving causation between contamination and disease, and it highlighted how corporate responsibility for groundwater pollution could be legally established.
Current Water Quality
Woburn no longer uses Wells G and H. The city now purchases its water from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), which draws from the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs in central Massachusetts. This is among the highest-quality surface water sources in the Northeast.
The MWRA system consistently meets or exceeds all federal and state drinking water standards. However, local factors still matter:
- Lead and copper — Like many older New England cities, Woburn has aging distribution infrastructure. Homes built before 1986 may have lead service lines, lead solder, or brass fixtures that can leach lead into drinking water. The city monitors lead levels under the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule.
- Disinfection byproducts — The MWRA uses ozone and chloramine (rather than free chlorine) for disinfection, which produces fewer trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids than traditional chlorination. Levels remain well below EPA maximums.
- PFAS — Massachusetts has set some of the strictest PFAS standards in the country. The state’s MCL for the sum of six PFAS compounds is 20 ppt. The MWRA has been testing and reporting PFAS levels, which have remained low in the Quabbin/Wachusett source water.
The Ground Beneath Woburn
While the tap water is now clean, the ground isn’t. The Industri-Plex and Wells G&H Superfund sites remain under active management:
- Groundwater extraction and treatment systems continue to operate, pumping and treating contaminated water to prevent plume migration.
- Institutional controls restrict land use on contaminated parcels.
- Long-term monitoring of groundwater, surface water, and sediments in the Aberjona River watershed continues.
- The EPA completed its most recent five-year review of the Wells G&H site, finding the remedy protective but requiring continued operation and maintenance.
For residents who garden, play in yards, or interact with local surface water near these sites, awareness of the contamination history is important.
What Residents Can Do
- Check your home’s plumbing age. If built before 1986, test for lead at the tap. Run cold water for 30 seconds to two minutes before drinking if you haven’t used the tap in several hours.
- Review the MWRA’s annual water quality report for system-wide data, and the city’s own report for local distribution system results.
- If you’re near a Superfund site, be aware of institutional controls and any restrictions on well installation or soil disturbance.
- Consider a point-of-use filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for lead reduction if your home has older plumbing. For additional peace of mind on PFAS and VOCs, reverse osmosis systems offer the broadest protection.
- Private well owners in the Woburn area should test for VOCs (especially TCE and PCE), heavy metals, and PFAS. The Middlesex County Conservation District or Mass DEP can provide guidance.
The Bottom Line
Woburn’s tap water today is clean. The switch to MWRA water and the shutdown of Wells G and H removed the direct contamination pathway. But the Superfund sites aren’t going anywhere — they’re managed, not eliminated. And the city’s aging infrastructure means lead at the tap remains a concern for older homes.
Woburn earned its place in environmental history the hard way. The lesson it taught — that industrial contamination can quietly poison a community’s water for years before anyone notices — remains relevant across the country.
If you’re concerned about your water quality, a certified water treatment professional can test your water and advise on solutions tailored to your specific situation.
Sources: EPA Superfund Site Profiles (Wells G&H, Industri-Plex), MWRA Annual Water Quality Reports, Massachusetts DEP PFAS regulations, court records from Anderson v. Cryovac.