Well water in Washington County, Vermont
In Washington County, 1% of 2,760 private wells tested had arsenic above the Vermont limit (10 ug/L), according to the Vermont Department of Health.
2,979 private wells tested in state summaries; 8 individual samples from 4 wells, 1971 to 1980. Data refreshed September 3, 2026.
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. County and state figures combine the town summaries, weighted by wells tested; medians are not combined.
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What this means
Among homeowners in Washington County who sent a sample to the state lab, the health-based limits most often exceeded were arsenic (1% of 2,760 wells), nitrate (<1% of 2,979 wells), and uranium (<1% of 2,262 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.
Radon was above the Vermont advisory level of 4,000 pCi/L in 8% of 738 wells. Radon in water matters because it moves into indoor air during showers and laundry.
What to test for in Washington County
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)427 leaking underground storage tank sites on record locally.
- PFAS4 unlined landfills on record locally.
- Metals panel136 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
- Radon8% of 738 local wells tested were above the Vermont advisory level.
- Gross alpha4% of 1,676 local wells tested were above the Vermont limit.
- Arsenic1% of 2,760 local wells tested were above the Vermont limit.
- Nitrate<1% of 2,979 local wells tested were above the Vermont limit.
- Uranium<1% of 2,262 local wells tested were above the Vermont limit.
- Coliform bacteriaRecommended for every private well, every year.
- FluorideDetected in 100% of local samples.
- ChlorideDetected in 88% of local samples.
Wells in Washington County
5,095 domestic wells in Washington County are on record with the state since 1972. 99% are drilled into bedrock, and the typical well is 280 feet deep (one in ten goes past 500 feet).
In a typical Washington County well, bedrock starts about 18 feet down, the median yield is 10 gallons per minute, 16% 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.
Contamination sources on record in Washington County
Vermont ANR records 427 leaking underground storage tank sites, 4 unlined landfills, 136 hazardous waste sites, and 12 reported spills and releases in Washington County, among 845 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.
- 427
- leaking underground storage tank sitesGasoline and heating oil that leaked from tanks move through groundwater as benzene, MTBE and other volatile organic compounds.
- 4
- unlined landfillsOlder unlined landfills are a leading source of PFAS, VOCs and metals in nearby wells.
- 136
- hazardous waste sitesSolvents, degreasers and metals from industrial sites can travel far in fractured bedrock.
- 12
- reported spills and releasesMost spills are fuel; a few are solvents or chemicals that reach the water table.
- 266
- 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
- Radon
- Aeration (bubble-up or diffused) whole-house; Granular activated carbon whole-house (lower levels only)
- Fluoride
- Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Activated alumina; Distillation
- Chloride
- Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Distillation
- Manganese
- Oxidizing filter (greensand, birm) whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Point-of-use reverse osmosis
- Iron
- Oxidizing filter whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Aeration plus filtration
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Common questions
How deep are wells in Washington County?
The typical domestic well in Washington County is 280 feet deep, based on 5,095 wells reported to the state since 1972. One in ten is deeper than 500 feet. 99% are drilled into bedrock.
How often should I test a private well in Washington County?
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.
Towns in Washington County
- Barre1% nitrate
- Berlin0% arsenic
- Cabot7% uranium
- Calais0% arsenic
- Duxbury2% arsenic
- East Montpelier3% nitrate
- Fayston2% arsenic
- Marshfield4% uranium
- Middlesex2% arsenic
- Montpelier8% nitrate
- Moretown6% arsenic
- Northfield0% arsenic
- Plainfield0% arsenic
- Roxbury4% arsenic
- Waitsfield3% arsenic
- Warren2% arsenic
- Waterbury1% arsenic
- Woodbury3% nitrate
- Worcester2% arsenic
1 towns have fewer than 30 public samples and are included in the Washington County totals above rather than shown separately: Barre.
Sources
- USGS Water Quality Portal: 42 samples in Washington County. Data from the Water Quality Portal, a service of USGS, EPA and USDA; groundwater samples collected by USGS and cooperators. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- Vermont Tracking private well summaries: summaries for 6 contaminants in Washington County, up to 2,979 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: 5,355 well records in Washington County, 5,095 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: 845 regulated sites located in Washington County. 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.