Section ENV.06.07 — Wellhead Protection -- General

(a) Wellhead protection provides communities with a way to safeguard water supplies by controlling land use around wells so as to prevent contaminants from entering groundwater.

(b) Wellhead protection programs have the goal of identifying and mitigating potential sources of groundwater contamination. They target protecting groundwater from three main sources of contaminants: the direct introduction of contaminants into the well from improper well casing, road runoff, spills and accidents; microbial contamination such as bacteria and viruses; and chemical contaminants.

(c) Lands around a well, which receive protection from possible sources of contamination, are called wellhead protection areas (WHPAs). WHPAs can be all or a portion of land that supplies water to a well and that contaminants are reasonably likely to move through to reach a well over a period of time.

(1) WHPAs are determined using geologic and hydrologic criteria, such as the physical characteristics of the aquifer and the effect that pumping has on groundwater movement.

(2) The delineation of WHPAs allow resources to be focused on protecting the locations where groundwater is most likely to be polluted.