ELKHART -- You live just outside a plume of contaminated groundwater coming from a Superfund site. You're offered a chance to hook up to city water for free, but you know eventually you'll have to pay the bills.

What do you do?

a) Accept the offer. You're not taking any chances with the contamination plume moving toward you in the future. There are other benefits, too.

b) Let them put the water lines to your home, but not turn on the water. You don't want to give up your private well.

c) Nothing. You're not concerned about contamination.

Those are real decisions being made right now just west of the city limits in the HIMCO Superfund site.

So far, 23 homeowners on Westwood, Northwood and Plainfield drives have signed compacts with the city to hook up to city water because of contamination coming from the HIMCO Superfund site on C.R. 10 and John Weaver Parkway.

The 40-acre site is contaminated with trichloroethene, dichloroethane, dichloroethene, arsenic, iron, manganese, benzene and other volatile organic compounds and metals from a decades-old former dump. Bayer and HIMCO are managing the cleanup under EPA oversight, and 29 other companies have settled their involvement as partially responsible parties, including Truth Publishing Co.

There are 39 homes east of the site affected and about seven on the south side that are being urged to connect to city water, according to Ross del Rosario, EPA project manager for the site. Twenty of those homes are in a "buffer" zone -- they aren't in the contamination zone, but the EPA wants to be conservative and have them hook up.

Of the homeowners who have not agreed to hook up, del Rosario said one of the biggest issues is that they don't want to cap their existing well, a state and local requirement when connecting to city water. Cost and compensation are other issues. Some homeowners recently installed new wells.

John Hulewicz, Elkhart County's environmental health supervisor, said individuals do have a choice whether to hook up, but he said he doesn't see the argument against it. "Personally, I would rather hook up to city water and know that I'm protected from past contamination issues and any future contamination issues," he said. "In Elkhart County it's not like we're at a loss for problems when it comes to groundwater contamination issues."

John and Janina Haines live on Northwood Drive in a vein of contamination and they've decided to connect. They need a new well anyway, John said, but he also sees other benefits. "We're going to get fire hydrants, which should make our insurance a little less," he said.

Janina lived on Southwood Drive nearby before moving to her current home. The water there always tasted fine, she said, but she had a deep well. Neighbors nearby had rusty water.

Next-door neighbor James Alford, whose wife has lived in their home for 25 years, also is hooking up to city water. He points out that it will eliminate the need to replace pumps, and when the electricity goes out, they'll still have water.

Both families have water delivered to them for cooking and drinking. While Bayer is paying for hookup to city water, Alford said the company also is providing $1,000 toward the cost of city water. He figures the money may last longer than two years.

John Haines said there are a lot of people in the neighborhood against hooking up to city water. Alford said those folks want to keep their wells to water their lawns.

"I think people need to weigh out the good and the bad and do what's best for them," John said. "That's what I did."

The Corpe family, who lives on Westwood Drive north of the contamination zone, is planning to allow the city water lines to be brought to their home, but won't cap their well.

"They were dumping stuff back there a long time before we moved here," said Marge Corpe. "Myself, I don't like city water, so it's not going to benefit me."

Corpe said she just spent $2,000 on her well a year and a half ago and doesn't like the taste of city water. "It tastes funny. They put too many chemicals in it," she said.

She insists her water is not contaminated -- Corpe said she knows better because she's lived there 40 years. "We never had any problems with the water until they started messing with it," she said.

Son Dan said he's fished in the pond on the HIMCO site. "Those fish are a healthy as can be," he said.

Illuminada P. Burns has lived in her Westwood Drive home for 39 years, since she came to the United States from the Philippines. She said the water is fine. Although she and her husband are not on the city's list of homeowners who have signed compact agreements, Burns said they will have the water turned on, but they don't want to have to pay for it.

She's particularly concerned about her meticulous garden, which she waters a lot. The soil is sandy and dry. "I want to water my garden all the time," she said. "My water bill will be sky high."

WHO'S INVOLVED

HIMCO Waste-Away Service Inc. and Bayer Healthcare LLC are what the EPA calls "performing settling defendants," which means they are managing the cleanup under EPA's oversight, according to an agency spokesperson.

There is another list of companies involved as partially responsible parties who are now considered "cash-out settlors," which means all paid, agreed to pay or settled out of future involvement a contribution to the cleanup effort, the spokesman said.

These companies include:

* AACOA

* Accra Pac

* American Gage & Machine (LaBour Pump) and Katy Industries Inc.

* American Premier Underwriters Inc. (Penn Central), Consolidated Rail Corp. and Conrail Inc.

* Beazer East Inc. (Koppers Co. Inc., Parr Inc.)

* Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire Inc. (Firestone Foam Products, Foamex Products Inc.)

* Champion Home Builders Co. (Titan Homes)

* Coleman Cable Inc. (Riblet Products Corp./Riblet Frame)

* Crosbie Foundry Co. Inc.

* Dura Automotive Systems (Excel Industries)

* E.K. Blessing Co. Inc.

* CTS Corp.

* Elixer Industries (Broadway-Elkhart Corp., Alum-A-Form Co.)

* Elkhart Brass Manufacturing Co. Inc.

* Elkhart General Hospital

* Gaska Tape Inc.

* Henkels & McCoy Inc.

* Hartson-Kennedy Cabinet Top. Co. Inc.

* Indiana Michigan Power Co.

* KampCo Steel Products Inc.

* Lithotone Inc.

* Steinway Musical Instruments Inc. (C.G. Conn, Selmer, Vincent Bach Corp., W.T. Armstrong)

* Philips Electronics North America Corp. (Selmer, Vincent Bach, Magnavox, North American Philips Development Co., Conn-Selmer)

* Tri-Mas Corp. (Reese Products Inc.)

* Truth Publishing Co.

* Universal Forest Products Eastern Division Inc.

* Walerko Tool & Engineering Corp.

* Wells Cargo Inc.

* Wyeth (American Home Products Corp., Whitehall Laboratories)

Source: EPA; Consent decree filed in United States of America and State of Indiana vs. Bayer Healthcare LLC, et. al, U.S. District Court Northern Indiana 2:07-cv-304-TS