The Eastern Shore of Virginia is dependent on ground water as its only source of fresh water. The EPA has listed it as a Sole Source Aquifer, this means that all of our drinking water comes from rain and snow that falls on the Eastern Shore.
Generally, our ground water is plentiful and of good quality but it is not limitless. Without appropriate management, this important resource could easily be permanently damaged.
Since ground water is such a critical resource, Federal, State, and local governments, as well as private citizens on the Eastern Shore, are working to protect and preserve the ground water for today’s users and future generations. As part of its mandate to manage ground water resources, the Eastern Shore of Virginia Ground Water Committee has developed these web pages to provide information on one of the Shore’s most important natural resources. These pages will be updated as we continue to learn more about our ground water and how we can best protect and conserve it.
Current groundwater conditions for 9 sites in Accomack County and 2 sites in Northampton County are available on the USGS web page.