How can I sell my artesian well water so that I don't to give it up?

February 26, 2014 4:36 PM

I own a Lake Superior property that has an artesian well. I'd like to sell the incredibly pure water from it. How could I do this in a way that wouldn't create environmental damage? I need to generate some profit from my property in order to afford to own it. I have fallen on hard times and can't even afford the taxes anymore. The water flows from the aquifer into a cistern continuously. In the warmer months, I have a pump that brings the water into a 100 yr old farmhouse on the property.
posted by Kazimirovna to Law & Government (6 answers total)

Which side are you on? Ontario or Minnesota? This will have a pretty big impact on answers here. In Ontario at least there certain laws about well water, which would include limits on how much you can sell without a permit, and ensuring your well meets necessary environmental standards etc.
posted by modernnomad at 4:41 PM on February 26, 2014

First you'll need to check with whichever government body is responsible for regulating water quality in your state or province. It's possible-to-likely that it's only legal for you to take X gallons of water from the well per year and, for example, wells that are permitted to be used for residential consumption are not allowed to be used for, say, irrigating agriculture.

As they say, whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting.
posted by stet at 4:45 PM on February 26, 2014 [3 favorites]

According to this you need a water use permit from the state department of natural resources if you are withdrawing more than 10,000 gallons of water per day or 1 million gallons per year. Purely residential wells are exempt from this.

I assume that if you're selling the water for drinking to someone either they or you would have to certify that the water met safe drinking water standards.
posted by atrazine at 2:31 AM on February 27, 2014 [1 favorite]

Assuming you're on the U.S. side, I would start with the county health department.
posted by yclipse at 4:16 AM on February 27, 2014

You're definitely going to have to contact your county health department about this. They will most likely need to test the well before they can approve it for public consumption and/or sales. As the owner, you can drink from it without needing approval, but, in order to sell it to the public, you will need testing to be done.

Are there many craft brewers in your area? Pure (and certified clean) artesian well water might be something they'd be interested in using.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:36 AM on February 27, 2014 [1 favorite]

Craft brewers presumably secure steady water supplies before they set up a brewery.

I was thinking more of the home/semi-pro guys.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:33 AM on February 27, 2014