Well allows for… Horses? As you look at land and properties in our mountain area for your horses, sometimes you will find that the zoning allows for horses other livestock on the land, but the well only allows for household-use, in other words, indoor use. You will sometimes find household-use permits that will specify they allow for the watering of Irrigation or Livestock. For example, the well permit will read: “Household w/ Irrigation” or “Household w/ Livestock”.
There are several well permit types issued by the Division of Water Resources. Two types of permits are most important to the private homeowner who will be using ground water as a primary water source. They are generally referred to as the domestic well permit and the household-use only permit.
Both permits are for small capacity wells and each permit has restriction on the amount and usage of water that can be pumped. Some wells are restricted to water use within the house only, while others allow limited livestock watering and irrigation of lawns and gardens. You should check with the Division of Water Resources to determine the permit limitations for each type of well and the availability of permits in your area.
While there is considerable variation in residential well permits, the most common type issued today is the household-use only permit. This permit gives a property owner the right to look for water (i.e., drill a well) and use the water inside their single-family home. In most cases this type of permit does not allow the use of water outside your house.
In some cases, the zoning of a property may allow the keeping of livestock, but the well permit may not allow the use of water for domestic animals. In that case, you can keep horses or other livestock on your property, but you can not provide them with water from your well. Most likely, your only option would be to “truck in” water for the animals.
Domestic permits are often older residential permits, or those issued for properties larger than 35 acres. Domestic wells can be used for up to three single-family dwellings and may give you the right to use water outside your house and for your animals. However this does not, in turn, give the owner the right to build three houses.
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