By Craig Anderson

DOVER — Twenty wells can quench the collective thirst of around 38,000 city residents on a daily basis, along with whoever else is in the city.

And they can drink their water with confidence. And shower in it, wash their dishes and clothes.

So says City of Dover Director of Water & Wastewater/Engineering Services Jason Lyon.

“We’ve not had any issues with any contaminant levels since I’ve been here, which is great,” said Mr. Lyon, now in his 15th year with the city.

Mr. Lyon pointed to the Dover’s 2021 Drinking Water Quality Report.

“The city has met all state, federal and local requirements for drinking water,” he said. “And it is safe to consume.

“We take pride in the fact that we, as a whole team, do exactly what we can do, and are required to do to provide safe drinking water to the citizens.”

Once water is secured in six shallow water wells, it is piped to the city’s water treatment plant. The water is treated and then directed to the distribution system.

Water from the 14 deeper wells is purified on site and then funneled to the distribution system.

The distribution system includes piping that sends water to seven elevated water storage tanks sprinkled throughout the city. From there, water is directed to homes and anywhere else it’s needed.

There’s roughly 230 miles of pipe winding underneath Dover, ranging in size, material, and age.

Once a water is treated and moves to a distribution pipe, it can be in a faucet within as quickly as two hours, Mr. Lyon said.

During the summer peak, Mr. Lyon said, the city will process about 6.745 million gallons per day for all uses. From January through December the average is 4.7 million gallons, he said.