Castle Valley committee to research nonpotable cistern-delivery service for residents with poor hillside water

At its first meeting the Castle Valley Water Advisory Committee flagged a potential town service to provide nonpotable water for residents who rely on cisterns or who have wells with poor taste, high salts or sediment.

John Grewe said the town has tried drilling and tentative arrangements with the fire district but so far lacks a reliable, high-yield source. He described an earlier town well near the cemetery that did not produce usable volumes and noted the committee will need a well (or another reliable source), a delivery method and a system of access points or vehicle fill connections.

Community members reported long-standing reliance on hauling potable water from Matrimony Spring and that seasonal closures and theft of fill equipment have made hauling more difficult for some residents. Bridal Anderson said she has hauled water for more than 30 years and that recent changes are making the practice harder.

Committee members agreed to investigate precedents in other small towns and to ask staff to gather survey results and operating costs for existing community-fill systems. John Grewe said he would visit towns (named examples discussed in the meeting) and gather expense and usage data to bring back to the committee.

The committee cautioned that providing nonpotable water raises legal and operational questions (e.g., whether the state would allow a town-run nonpotable service, whether existing water rights cover such a use) and that any service design must separate potable and nonpotable flows and clearly inform users of water quality and liability.

The committee added the topic to near-term follow-up and requested cost and legal research at a future meeting.