DANVILLE, Vt. (WCAX) – As drought conditions worsen around our region, some municipalities have been asking residents to conserve water. For private well owners, it’s more complicated.
Danville resident Janet Givens’ home is a beautiful oasis tucked away in the hills. But this summer, she has been running into water problems.
“It’s one of those things we kind of take for granted,” Givens said.
For the most part, her well worked just fine. Until it didn’t. She started noticing her water pressure going down, then problems with her washing machine and dishwasher. “Then it all began to fall into place, and we wound up, you know, ‘Where do you shower? What do you drink?’” she said.
It’s the first time her 45-year-old dug well ever went dry. They’ve now replaced it with a 480-foot drilled well. Givens called Dean Delabruere with Derby-based Gosselin Water Wells to dig the replacement.
“Just in the last few weeks we’ve had over 20 dried up spring calls, and it’s been going on for about a month, month and-a-half that it really started,” Delabruere said. “For the last four or five years, later in the summer, some dug wells — and even like I said — the shallow drilled wells have been slowing down.”
He says it’s common to replace dug wells with drilled wells since they go much deeper and pull from different aquifers. Delabruere says other well-drilling companies are also busy. “Sometimes we have to make a long trip to get to someone who’s in dire need, but we’re doing the best we can,” he said.
Vermont officials say they want to hear from residents with well problems.
