The Newark City Council voted to adopt an ordinance prohibiting the drilling and use of new private water wells within the city limits, while permitting limited exceptions for temporary construction wells and narrowly defined commercial or industrial, nonpotable uses subject to council approval.

Brandon, a city staff member, said the measure is driven by two concerns: the potential for private wells to draw down groundwater the city depends on and the risk that private wells can introduce contamination into aquifers. "Every private well has a potential to be a contamination issue for the groundwater," Brandon said during the presentation.

Staff described how most private wells are permitted now through the Licking County Health Department and recorded with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, but said the ordinance would prevent new private wells in areas where public water is available. Temporary construction wells and commercial uses such as cooling towers could be permitted under an exception, Brandon said, but any exception would require engineering justification and a two-thirds vote of the council.

Council members debated property-rights concerns but said the city must protect long-term water reliability. One council member noted that a well's "zone of influence" can draw from neighboring properties as well as the drilling site, which can affect municipal well fields. Members asked staff for mapping and a list of known wells; Brandon said he would provide known locations and pointed to the statewide ODNR database for more detail.

The ordinance was adopted on a 4-0 vote. The transcript records the intended codification to the city's ordinances, with a section referenced as 10.48.1.6 for prohibition of water wells; the final codified language and exact ordinance number were not specified in the discussion.