In Kalmar and Kronoberg Counties, there are numerous glassworks areas with high levels of arsenic, lead and cadmium in soil and groundwater. To investigate whether metals are leached into drinking water to such an extent that it may constitute a health risk for local inhabitants, 57 water samples were collected from private wells within a radius of 500 m from eight glassworks sites. The results show that concentrations are well below drinking-water criteria in most samples; only three Pb- and one Asanalysis were above these limits. What these results indicate, is that metals that leach from glass waste and can be detected in groundwater around landfill areas, are effectively immobilized as the groundwater flows towards areas where the pollution level of the surrounding solid phase decreases. There is thus reason to focus further efforts toward understanding these sorption mechanisms, in order to take them into account in future risk assessments.