More than half of the nation's drinking water comes from a ground water source. Drinking water taken from wells and springs is directly affected by contamination from above. Groundwater contaminants are frequently invisible, tasteless, and odorless, and may take years to travel from the source of contamination to a water supply well. If the groundwater is contaminated by septic tank discharges, pesticides, underground storage tanks, and/or chemical dump sites or spills, for example, the drinking water systems that rely on that groundwater will likely be similarly contaminated.

The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) established a federal program designed to protect groundwater sources that directly impact public drinking water systems. This program is commonly referred to as the Wellhead Protection Program (WHPP). The WHPP seeks to protect wellhead areas (the land surface around drinking water wells where activities might affect the quality of the groundwater below) from all potential sources of contamination. This protection extends to all of the surface and subsurface areas contaminants are likely to move through to reach the drinking water supply.

Do the Wellhead Protection Requirements Apply to Your Community?

Yes, if your community's drinking water supply is derived from a groundwater source, the WHPP provisions are likely to apply to you.

Actions Your Community Should Be Taking

If your community relies on groundwater to fill its drinking water needs, you should check with your state water program administrator to determine if your state has an approved WHPP in place. Each state was required to adopt and submit to EPA a plan to administer a WHPP by 1989. The WHPP legislation specified that each state program include the following elements:

• the designation of the duties of state and local agencies and public water systems with respect to the development and implementation of WHPPs
• the delineation of wellhead protection areas for each drinking water well, defining areas around each well where contaminants are likely to enter
• an inventory of potential groundwater and drinking water contaminants from existing and potential sources of contamination;
• a plan for management of the designated wellhead protection areas through education, monitoring, zoning restrictions, and other methods
• contingency plans, detailing what the community will do should a drinking water source be unexpectedly contaminated or disrupted, and
• a requirement that all efforts will be taken to ensure that the locations of new wells are planned carefully, to be certain that the risk of contamination is low.

Frequently, the responsibility for implementing the plan for protecting the local water supply will fall to the local community. A community planning team should be established to represent all of the interests of the community, including water suppliers, elected officials, local businesses and developers, environmental groups, farmers, and interested citizens. The objectives of the team will be largely dependent on the conditions of the wellhead area, such as potential sources of contamination, current and future land uses, and available resources.

Bear in mind that your state may have promulgated wellhead protection regulations that are even more stringent than the federal provisions. You should be sure to contact your state administrator to determine what special state requirements, if any, apply.

Additional Information

The wellhead protection requirements are published in 42 United States Code section 1428

Contact the National Technical Information Service at 1/800/553-6847 for guidance documents pertaining to wellhead protection.

For further information on the federal requirements, contact the EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1/800/426-4791.

(See Resource Section for drinking water contacts)