The Warrant Article 30 will be discussed at the Middleton Town Meeting this year, and to prepare you with all the information you need to make an informed decision, a member of the MST worked to create an infographic describing the changes that the article would make:

A PDF file of this document can be found here: Middleton Water measures info.

The infographic describes how an equitable approach to water management and conservation is important, as well water users right now have extra privileges than municipal water users, and that is not fair. During a drought, well water users should be held accountable for their use just as much as municipal water users!

On the argument of well water users investing money getting the right to use “their water?” On average, a well user spends $5000 to install their well and around $500 per year of annual maintenance (though for my family, who owns a well, we haven’t had to perform any maintenance for the past few years). The average cost of municipal water per year in the United States in 2019 was $875.16 for a family of 4 using 100 gallons of water per person, per day (source). So, how long does it take for a well’s cost to equal the cost of municipal water? It was determined to be around 13 years, including a $500 maintenance expense for each year. The point of this calculation is to show that well users are simply making an investment that equals the cost of water for 13 years.

You may now be asking what scientists have to say about well water conservation. Members of the Middleton Stream Team met with hydrogeologist Ernest C. Ashley, whose letter summarizing the importance of well water conservation can be found here: Hydrogeologist Letter About Middleton.