Well Water Nerd

Well water in Lowell, Vermont

In Lowell, 7% of 31 private wells tested had arsenic above the Vermont limit (10 ug/L), according to the Vermont Department of Health.

47 private wells tested in state summaries. Data refreshed .

What homeowner tests found

Vermont Tracking private well summaries: private wells tested and reported to the state. Shares are against the level the state applies to each contaminant, named in the last column; several are stricter than EPA.

ContaminantWells testedAbove state levelMedian95th pctHighestState level
Arsenic317%*101410 ug/L
Nitrate470%0.251.152.9610 mg/L
Fluoride360%0.10.1920.224 mg/L
Uranium210%*5720 ug/L

* suppressed by the publisher because too few wells were tested.

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What this means

Among homeowners in Lowell who sent a sample to the state lab, the health-based limits most often exceeded were arsenic (7% of 31 wells). These are ordinary wells tested by their owners, so the shares are the best available picture of a typical well here, with one caveat: people test more often when they suspect a problem.

What to test for in Lowell

  • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)3 leaking underground storage tank sites on record locally.
  • Metals panel2 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
  • Arsenic7% of 31 local wells tested were above the Vermont limit.
  • Coliform bacteriaRecommended for every private well, every year.
  • NitrateRecommended for every private well, especially near farms or septic systems.

Wells in Lowell

163 domestic wells in Lowell are on record with the state since 1989. 98% are drilled into bedrock, and the typical well is 279 feet deep (one in ten goes past 454 feet).

In a typical Lowell well, bedrock starts about 36 feet down, the median yield is 8 gallons per minute, 15% of wells yield under 3 gallons per minute and usually need a storage tank.

Bedrock wells are where arsenic, uranium and radon come from: the water sits in fractures in granite and metamorphic rock and picks up whatever the rock carries. That is why testing for those three matters more here than in a dug or gravel well.

23
1990s
75
2000s
33
2010s
31
2020s

Contamination sources on record in Lowell

Vermont ANR records 3 leaking underground storage tank sites and 2 hazardous waste sites in Lowell, among 7 regulated sites in total. Groundwater does not follow property lines, so a well within a few hundred feet of one of these is worth testing for what that site could release.

3
leaking underground storage tank sitesGasoline and heating oil that leaked from tanks move through groundwater as benzene, MTBE and other volatile organic compounds.
2
hazardous waste sitesSolvents, degreasers and metals from industrial sites can travel far in fractured bedrock.
2
registered underground storage tank sitesRegistered tanks are regulated and inspected; they matter most when they are old or near a shallow well.

Treatment that fits the local profile

Arsenic
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Adsorptive media (iron-based) whole-house; Anion exchange

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Common questions

How deep are wells in Lowell?

The typical domestic well in Lowell is 279 feet deep, based on 163 wells reported to the state since 1989. One in ten is deeper than 454 feet. 98% are drilled into bedrock.

How often should I test a private well in Lowell?

Test for bacteria and nitrate every year. Test once for arsenic, uranium, radon, fluoride, manganese and PFAS, then again every three to five years or after any change in taste, color, or plumbing.

Sources

  • Vermont Tracking private well summaries: summaries for 4 contaminants in Lowell, up to 47 wells each. Town summaries of private well tests reported to the Vermont Department of Health, published through Vermont Environmental Public Health Tracking. Shares are against the limit Vermont applies to each analyte: arsenic 10 ug/L, uranium 20 ug/L (stricter than EPA), fluoride 4 mg/L, nitrate 10 mg/L, gross alpha 15 pCi/L, radon 4,000 pCi/L advisory. Only towns with 20 or more results are published; statistics below the reporting limit show as *. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
  • Vermont ANR well completion reports: 170 well records in Lowell, 163 domestic. Well completion reports filed with the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources since 1966. Only aggregates are shown; owner names and addresses are never stored. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
  • Vermont ANR regulated sites: 7 regulated sites located in Lowell. Hazardous waste sites, landfills and underground storage tanks from the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. Retrieved September 3, 2026.

Non-detects count as samples and are treated as zero when computing medians. Exactly at the limit counts as not above it. A sample belongs to the town containing the well's reported coordinates.