With rainfall scarce, Stonington has turned to trucks to refill its public water supply

MAINE PUBLIC • October 27, 2022

The Stonington Water Co. must provide the drinking water for a small lobster fishing community that’s quiet for most of the year, but bustling in summer. For years, it could rely on rain and snow to do just that. But for the last two years, there wasn’t enough rain or snow to meet the late-summer demand. “Except for last night, it’s only rained I think three times here all summer,” said Matthew Betts, the water superintendent. The town had to look elsewhere. It has bought more than a million gallons of water over the last two summers. It has cost nearly $117,000 to buy the water from Silver Lake in Bucksport and truck it 40 miles south to Stonington. A few other communities have run out of water in the past. York has piped it in from nearby towns. Castine now treats local pond water for drinking after previously having to truck it in.