Do you have an old well on your property? It’s possible that you do and you don’t know it!

Depending on condition, wells can be a direct conduit for contaminants to enter drinking water. Sealing or decommissioning wells is a simple way you can prevent contamination of the drinking water supply and protect the health of everyone who drinks water in that area. Unused wells that aren’t properly sealed can provide an opportunity for pollutants such as fertilizer, animal waste, or agricultural chemicals to travel into the aquifer and endanger everyone who consumes water from nearby sources. These wells pose a double danger—children and animals can easily become trapped in them, leading to serious injury or death.

Not sure if you have an old well on your property? Here are some indicators that you might: 

• A low spot in your yard
• A windmill tower
• Concrete pads where the legs of a windmill tower once stood
• Depressions where an old well pit or the walls of a hand-dug well may have collapsed
• An old stock tank in an over-grown area
• A small area that is fenced off, especially if there are also pipes sticking out of the ground
• Flat stones, a concrete slab, old boards, metal sheets, or other items that could be covering an old well shaft
• A pitless adapter
• A well pit inside a shed/pump house or crawl space

What should you do if you find an old well on your property or suspect one? Call the NRD. There are cost-share funds available to properly decommission wells.