INTERA Presents 4.5 Years of Wellntel Network Data at AGWT Great Lakes Groundwater Conference

INTERA shows how existing water-supply wells can power a basin-scale groundwater network

On September 10, 2026, INTERA geologist and data scientist Garrett Marietta presented 4.5 years of results from a Wellntel-instrumented monitoring network at the American Ground Water Trust’s first Great Lakes Groundwater Conference. His talk, "Instrumenting Wells Already Drilled," ardently made the case that the Great Lakes Basin doesn't need more wells. It needs to start utilizing the ones it already has. 

The networks he highlighted are built on existing homeowner and business wells in Central Indiana, mostly in Hamilton and Morgan counties. 

Quote highlighted: “The practical gap is not the absence of wells. It is the small number converted into a sustained, comparable time series.” - Garrett Marietta, Geologist, INTERA

Key findings:

• 367,196 water levels, including 208,602 pumping-related readings from 89 stations in Hamilton and Morgan counties, every station on a 4-hour cycle since February 2022.
• 374 times more readings per year than the entire public groundwater record for Indiana's Lake Michigan shoreline. The network passed that record's annual total in its first 24 hours.
• Every pump cycle is a free aquifer test. Pump events are logged with the water level, so drawdown and recovery are labeled, not guessed.
• Density beats spacing rules. During the August 2026 White River record crest, wells at about the same distance from the river rose as little as 0.18ft and as much as 12.79 feet. Distance from the river explained only 2% of the variation; rather it is hydraulic connection, not proximity, that controls amplitude or magnitude.

Marietta described the network as "not a research pilot" and "not a special deployment." It runs on homeowner wellheads with one field crew and one data pipeline, shared across several client programs.

What could be next: the Great Lakes Basin

Marietta proposed extending the water-supply monitoring network design basin-wide. The eight U.S. Great Lakes states hold at least 4.25 million well records, compared with 677 active USGS continuous groundwater sites. Those records make finding candidate wells of the greatest value a GIS exercise, not a field campaign.

He named Indiana's Lake and Porter Counties as a natural next step. Together they have 21,341 documented well records along a heavily industrialized shoreline. A monitoring network created there could show how far inland Lake Michigan's water level reaches, and through which aquifers.

His plan has four phases, starting with a basin-wide screening of state well databases. He called for a basin consortium to be created that can complete that screening and then co-design three to five demonstration areas.

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From Wellntel

“Wellntel began with the idea that communities could use the wells they already have to truly understand their groundwater. Like Garrett, we believe local and regional understanding is critical as communities work together to manage shared resources and make decisions that support economic growth, healthy communities, and a sustainable environment for everyone.” - Marian Singer, Co-Founder & CEO, Wellntel

You can read Garrett Marietta’s presentation here.

Can a production well really double as a monitoring well? Read our full explainer: Can Existing Production Wells Be Used as Groundwater Monitoring Wells?

To talk about instrumenting wells in your area, contact us at hello@wellntel.com.

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