The COVID-19 pandemic, and resultant “Stay-at-Home” orders, may have impacted adults’ positive health behaviors (sleep, physical activity) and negative health behaviors (alcohol consumption, drug use, and tobacco use). The purpose of this study was to investigate how these health behaviors changed (increased/improved or decreased/worsened) at the early stages of the pandemic, what participant characteristics were associated with health behavior changes, and why these behavioral changes may have occurred. A convenience sample of 1809 adults residing in the United States completed a 15-min self-report questionnaire in April and May 2020. Multinomial logistic regressions and descriptive statistics were used to evaluate how, for whom, and why these health behaviors changed. Participants were primarily female (67.4%), aged 35–49 years (39.8%), college graduates (83.3%), non-tobacco users (74.7%), and had previously used marijuana (48.6%). Overall, participants primarily reported a decrease in physical activity, while sleep and all of the negative health behaviors remained the same. Changes in negative health behaviors were related (p < 0.05) to sex, age, parental status, educational status, job status, BMI, and depression scores. Changes in positive health behaviors were related (p < 0.05) to sex, parental status, job status, and depression scores. Having more time available during the pandemic was the most commonly cited reason for changing health behaviors (negative and positive). Public health efforts should address the potential for long-term health consequences due to behavior change during COVID-19.

Private wells are susceptible to contamination from flooding and are exempt from the federal requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act. Consequently, well users must manage (e.g., disinfect) and maintain (e.g., regularly test) their own wells to ensure safe drinking water. However, well user practices and perceptions of well water quality in the years following a natural disaster are poorly characterized. An online follow-up survey was administered in October 2020 to private well users who had previously experienced Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The survey was successfully sent to 436 participants, and 69 surveys were returned (15.8% return rate). The survey results indicate that well users who had previously experienced wellhead submersion or a positive bacteria test were more likely to implement well stewardship practices (testing and disinfection) and to report the feeling that their well water was safe. While the majority of well users believed that their water was safe (77.6%), there was a significant decrease in well water being used for drinking, cooking, and for their pets after Hurricane Harvey. Generally, these well users tend to maintain their wells at higher rates than those reported in other communities, but there continues to be a critical need to provide outreach regarding well maintenance practices, especially before natural disaster events occur.

Water scarcity is driving increasing interest in potable water reuse, particularly in arid regions. However, inadequately treated reclaimed water may pose health risks from waterborne pathogens, including gastrointestinal infections. This study applied quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) to estimate infection risks associated with Escherichia coli (E. coli), Cryptosporidium, rotavirus, and adenovirus using pilot-scale data from El Paso Water’s Pure Water Center advanced purification facility. Pathogen concentrations in source and treated water were fitted to probability distributions and incorporated into a probabilistic Monte Carlo QMRA framework to estimate exposure doses, daily and cumulative infection risks, and treatment performance (expressed as log reduction values (LRVs)) and were compared to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) drinking water risk thresholds. E. coli demonstrated the greatest treatment effectiveness, with a median daily treated water infection risk of 1.45 × 10⁻⁶ and a median LRV of 3.32. Cryptosporidium demonstrated limited reduction in infection risk (median LRV = 0.976), while rotavirus demonstrated minimal reduction following treatment. Although adenovirus infection risk decreased after treatment, the residual risk remained high. Viral risk estimates were strongly influenced by non-detects and limited observations. These findings highlight the importance of robust monitoring and probabilistic QMRA approaches for evaluating uncertainty and treatment performance in advanced potable reuse systems.