around a drinking water well, based on the principles of ground water movement. It also defines the specific area where management of potential sources of pollution is crucial to protecting or enhancing the quality of groundwater serving the wellfield.
Step 3: Evaluate the community by determining what could potentially threaten the quality of its drinking water. An important part of wellhead protection planning is determining the potential sources of contamination in the delineated wellhead protection area. The Contaminant Source Inventory will tell you what the potential sources of contamination are in the WHPA. It can also be set up to search databases and visit area sites looking for potential problems in the community.
Step 4: know the potential contaminants and take action to choose appropriate management techniques. This can involve locating all the regulated and non-regulated potential contaminant sources in the wellhead protection area. It can also include a combination of ordinances, BMP's zoning rules and public education. It is important to have community involvement to find historic and unregulated potential sources of contamination.
Step 5: Create a contingency plan for possible community emergencies such as floods, well pump failures, and for possible contamination spills. Planning ahead for such disasters can save your town both financially and with concern for the public's health.
Step 6: Create a community plan for new wells where the nitrates are presently too high and where the lifetime of the existing well is above twenty years old. New wells are generally drilled at a location that has the fewest possible potential contaminant sources with the provisional WHPA.
Step 7: Public participation & education. The key to a successful program is educating the public about their source of water supply and its vulnerability to contamination so they are aware of how this could be a vital link to their health.
**NDEQ is the lead agency within the state to implement the state WHP Program.
