Protecting Drinking Water

Currently everyone residing, working, or going to school in Chichester relies on on-site wells for their drinking water. Chichester does not have a municipal water supply nor does the Town have protected lands which could adequately serve as a future municipal water supply source. This property-by-property reliance on clean safe drinking water further stresses the importance of everyone (residents and businesses) protecting the groundwater (our drinking water) through careful practices on the land surface. What we do on the land directly impacts the quality and quantity of water we draw from our wells. This is a community effort, because after all, groundwater does not respect property lines.

Prudent use of fertilizers and pesticides and careful use, disposal and storage of regulated substances such as gasoline and oil can go a long way to keeping our groundwater safe. For more ideas on protecting our drinking water, please click here.

Business owners are encouraged to review the best management practice (BMP) rules to make sure they are properly storing and handling, regulated substances so they donít end up in the drinking water. For an introduction to these rules see BMP Fact Sheet.

Finally, the commission urges everyone to test their water quality periodically to monitor any changes and to make sure it is safe to drink. In addition to man-made contaminants, there are also naturally occurring ones such as fluoride, arsenic, and radon which at high levels could render the water unsafe to drink (or in the case of radon make the air in the home dangerous to breathe). For a list of recommended contaminants to test for and a host of other facts sheets about water quality, treatment, well types etc, please click here. For information on radon see the Radon Fact Sheet.