A well head is the physical structure at the top of the well that connects to the water supply network.

The Council has 104 wells with below-ground well heads and 36 wells with above-ground well heads. All new well heads are being built above ground to improve the resilience and safety of the wells and the security of the water supply.

In order for groundwater to be provided without the need for treatment such as chlorination, three criteria must be met:

  1. The bore water must not be directly affected by surface or climatic influences (i.e. the water is at least a year old, by which time any pathogens will have died).
  2. The well head must provide satisfactory protection to prevent contamination of the water supply.
  3. E. coli must be absent in the bore water.

We've upgraded our well heads so they meet the interpretation of the standard required to meet criteria 2 above. Once the well heads feeding a pump station have been made secure and fully signed off as such, temporary chlorination can stop at that pump station.

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Below- and above-ground well heads