Water Utility

Madison-The Madison Water Utility joins with the Madison Common Council and the National Groundwater Association in proclaiming Tuesday, September 14, 2010, as "Protect Your Groundwater Day."

Ninety-five percent of all available fresh water comes from aquifers underground. Fresh water is an increasingly precious resource around the world. As global leaders work to ensure that humans have safe and sufficient water to drink, to promote agriculture, and for other vital activities, the importance of understanding groundwater grows.

Groundwater is the water that soaks into the soil from rain or other precipitation and moves downward to fill cracks and other openings in beds of rocks and sand. It is, therefore, a renewable resource. In Madison, 100 percent of our drinking water supply comes from groundwater through 23 wells drilled into a deep aquifer that supplies high quality drinking water. To protect this resource, we encourage all residents to prevent contamination by using or disposing of hazardous substances such as pesticides and other chemicals in a responsible manner.

To ensure an abundant supply of groundwater well into the future, we encourage water conservation and sustainable practices to avoid wasting water:

• Use low-flow faucets and shower heads, reduced-flow WaterSense toilets, and water-saving appliances such as dish- and clothes washers.
• Repair leaking faucets, toilets and pumps.
• Use dishwashers and clothes washers only when fully loaded.
• Take short showers instead of baths and avoid letting faucets run unnecessarily.
• Wash your car only when necessary, using a bucket to save water. Alternatively, go to a commercial carwash that uses water efficiently and disposes of runoff properly.
• Do not over-water your lawn or garden. Over-watering can increase leaching of fertilizers to ground water.
• When your lawn or garden needs watering, use slow-watering techniques such as trickle irrigation or soaker hoses. (Such devices reduce runoff and are 20 percent more effective than sprinklers.)