It’s up to Governor Jim Douglas now whether to sign into law a bill that would designate Vermont’s underground aquifers a public trust like its lakes and rivers and require a state permit for large withdrawals of groundwater.
The Vermont House has passed legislation that would require a permit for withdrawals of more than 40 gallons of minute, or over 57,000 gallons per day. Backers of the legislation said the average Vermont family uses about 400 gallons a day.
The public trust provision basically says groundwater is not owned by one person but by and for all Vermonters, and that the state must manage it as a public resource.