Boreholes – sources of water drawn from deep beneath the ground, have become increasingly popular over the past decade and more in domestic gardens. The idea of being able to irrigate your garden without worrying about hosepipe bans has been an attractive alternative for those with pockets as deep as the requisite hole in the ground.
Essentially, anyone can have a borehole in their garden. As long as there is sufficient space on your property to construct the borehole, you can put one in just about anywhere. (In some areas e.g. National Parks, planning permission may be required, but in general terms, there are no restrictions.
There are restrictions on the AMOUNT of water that may be drawn from the borehole, although again, in general terms, the only limiting factor is a daily maximum of 4,000 gallons or 20 cubic metres of volume of water. For amounts greater than this, an Abstraction Licence will be required.
The depth of the borehole will depend on the water table, with the average depth for drilling being sixty (60) metres. The cost of such a borehole will vary between £10,000 and £15,000 depending on the geographical nature of the site (rock layers etc), quality of equipment and the cost of electrical works, running cables to the borehole ‘wellhead’.
It is advisable in any event to contact The Environmental Agency to check reference the quality of water being extracted locally, as ground water may contain dissolved minerals or contaminants. Generally, water quality is high due to being filtered through sands, although for drinking water, some form of chlorination system may be required.
Regular checks should be made regarding the potability of the water.
Boreholes rarely dry up, except in times of severe drought, and will last between fifty to eighty years – again, depending on the quality of the equipment used in the first place.
Check out Borehole Sites and Operations Regulations 1995 for more information.