Help for those with dry wells offered at Tuolumne County meetings

Tuolumne County residents whose wells have gone dry can get help at a series of meetings this month.

The meetings in six towns around the county will offer sign-ups for temporary water tanks and other help in dealing with the 4-year-old drought.

About 190 wells have stopped producing or do not provide enough water to meet health and sanitation standards, Deputy County Administrator Tracie Riggs said by email Monday. More than 300 homes are affected, because one well can supply up to four homes, she said.

The county has installed tanks serving about 120 homes, funded through a drought-relief bill signed by Gov. Jerry Brown last year. The water is purchased from the Tuolumne Utilities District, which serves most county residents and draws from the Stanislaus River and its own wells. The county is working on a similar effort in the Groveland Community Services District, supplied by the Tuolumne River.

The county also is trying to connect owners of failed wells to the TUD system permanently, if practical. About 40 homes have hooked up so far or are in the process.

“We have also been the recipients of two 53-foot trailer loads of bottled water from Nestlé,” Riggs said. “This has been an incredible donation to our community!”

Tuolumne County is the source of much of the river water for farms and cities in the Northern San Joaquin Valley, but just a small portion is left over for its residents. Wells are the source for many rural homes, but little groundwater goes to agriculture, unlike neighboring Stanislaus County.

The meetings for well owners will be from 6 to 8 p.m. on these dates:

Aug. 11: Soulsbyville School old gym, 20300 Soulsbyville Road

Aug. 13: Groveland Community Hall, 18720 Highway 120

Aug. 14: Jamestown School gym, 18299 Fifth Ave.

Aug. 17: Columbia School cafeteria, 22540 Parrotts Ferry Road

Aug. 18: Tuolumne Memorial Hall, 18375 Fir Ave.

Aug. 20: Board of Supervisors chambers, 2 S. Green St., Sonora

For more information, call 209-533-5511.

This story was originally published August 3, 2015 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Help for those with dry wells offered at Tuolumne County meetings."