(WSBT) The EPA is considering turning a square mile in Elkhart into a Superfund site.

It comes after tests turned up growing levels of chemicals in well water on the southwest side of the city.

City Hall has been following the local situation with contaminated well water. It was originally discovered back in the 1980s.

Well water in some homes was found to contain varying levels of chemicals used as degreasing agents and industrial cleaners.

Recent state tests have shown the levels in some homes have gone up.

"We suspect that a plume is moving and it’s old contamination,” explained Elkhart Mayor David Miller. “They came back and did updated tests and found there's elevated level, and we suspect that it’s simply a migration and not new contamination."

The study found 34 homes and businesses with contaminated well water.

"Ten of those wells have been identified as being level one contamination, which is a little bit more serious contamination, and 24 of them is level two,” said Wayne Kramer of the mayor’s office. “It affects approximately 126 people in the area in terms of drinking water.”

Several years ago after the problem was initially discovered, IDEM worked with the city of Elkhart to hook up affected homes into city water.

"Apparently there was a contamination issue and the city worked with IDEM at that time to get those individuals hooked onto city water,” said Michael Machlan of the Public Works Department.

Sabrina Fisher lives near one of the homes that recently tested high for well water contamination.

“It worries me. There's a lot of people in this neighborhood, it’s a big neighborhood,” Fisher told WSBT News. “I hope something gets done soon — that's our drinking water."

The Elkhart site is one of 12 across the country the EPA wants to declare a Superfund site.

That means federal dollars could be used to clean up the contamination.