Published
A flowing well you cannot shut off is not a plumbing problem. It is a crime.
The sentence starts with a crime
Most well rules talk about standards. This chapter of Idaho Code opens with a misdemeanor:
“Any person owning or controlling a flowing artesian well, which is not capped, equipped or furnished with such mechanical appliance as will readily control the flow of water from such well, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and such well is hereby declared to be a common nuisance…”
— Idaho Code §42-1601(1), control and regulation of artesian wells, as published by the Idaho Legislature. Retrieved 28 September 2026
Read it twice, because the second half of the same sentence is just as sharp: a well capped with a mechanical appliance of a type the director has not approved is the same misdemeanor and the same declared common nuisance. A valve you bought and bolted on is not compliance. Approval is the compliance.
The escape valve
One proviso softens it, and only by consent: where artesian water is reservoired and controlled so that no waste is committed and no nuisance created, and where the pressure of water in a reservoir automatically causes the wells to cease to flow, the mechanical contrivance may be dispensed with — by obtaining the consent of the director of the Department of Water Resources. The state will trade hardware for physics, but never for silence.
What the owner carries every day
- Maintenance. Any person owning or controlling an artesian well must maintain it to prevent waste or contamination of ground waters through leaky casings, pipes, fittings, valves, pumps, seals — or leakage around the outside of the casings, above or below the land surface.
- Ownership by default. The owner of the land is deemed to own the well, unless a deed, covenant, contract, easement or other documentation acceptable to the director shows the well belongs to someone else.
- No looking away. It is unlawful for the owner, tenant or occupant to cause, permit or suffer the common nuisance to remain or continue — or to let water unnecessarily flow from the well or go to waste.
- One small mercy. It remains lawful to insert a stop and waste cock not exceeding one (1) inch in diameter in the piping, and to take and use water through it at any time for household, stock or domestic purposes.
The application that unlocks everything
“Every person referred to in section 42-1602 shall apply to the director of the department of water resources for the approval of any installed or proposed mechanical device for controlling the flow of water from such artesian well; and in such application shall describe the cap, equipment or mechanical appliance, with which such well is equipped or with which it is proposed to equip any such well, and shall change, alter or install only such equipment as shall be approved by the director of the department of water resources.”
— Idaho Code §42-1603, application for approval of control device. Retrieved 28 September 2026
Three moves, none optional: apply to the director for approval of any installed or proposed control device; describe the cap, equipment or mechanical appliance in the application; and change, alter or install only what the director approves. The state’s well-construction rules repeat the duty in one line of their own — Rule 036, effective 3-18-22, requires the owner of an artesian well that will flow at land surface to apply for approval of a flow control device, and the rules current through the 7-1-25 docket keep it standing. The rest of that owner duty list is laid out here.
Why this is local knowledge, not trivia
Island Park sits on warm, pressurized ground, and a well here can find enough artesian pressure to flow at the surface on its own. When that happens, the construction standards put a state-approved control device on the well — able to stop the flow completely — before the driller leaves. This statute is what happens if nobody does: not a citation for the contractor — a misdemeanor for the person owning or controlling the well, and a well the law itself calls a nuisance.
If there is a flowing well on ground you are buying
- Find it and watch it: a well flowing uncontrolled at the showing is a declared common nuisance the day you own it.
- Ask for the director’s approval paperwork on the control device — unapproved equipment is the same crime as none.
- Inspect the whole assembly for the leaks the statute names: casings, pipes, fittings, valves, pumps, seals — above and below ground.
- Pull the driller’s report from the state’s permanent record — it says what the well was built to handle.
- Then price the fix with a licensed driller under the permit it takes — or start with (208) 656-1467.
Common questions
Is it really a crime to leave a flowing artesian well uncontrolled?
Yes. Any person owning or controlling a flowing artesian well that is not capped, equipped or furnished with a mechanical appliance that will readily control the flow is guilty of a misdemeanor, and the well is declared a common nuisance.
What if the well has a control valve the state never approved?
Same result. A cap, equipment or mechanical appliance of a type that has not been approved by the director of the Department of Water Resources makes the owner guilty of a misdemeanor and the well a common nuisance.
How do I get a control device approved on a flowing well?
Apply to the director, describing the cap, equipment or mechanical appliance installed or proposed - and then change, alter or install only such equipment as the director approves.
Are there exceptions to the control requirement?
One, by consent: where artesian water is reservoired and controlled so no waste or nuisance occurs, and reservoir pressure automatically causes the wells to cease to flow, the director may consent to dispensing with the mechanical contrivance.
Can I just let a flowing well run?
No. It is unlawful to cause, suffer or permit water to unnecessarily flow from an artesian well or to go to waste - and unlawful to let the nuisance remain or continue.
Is any use from a flowing artesian well allowed without approval?
Yes, one narrow one: a stop and waste cock not exceeding one inch in diameter may be inserted in the piping, with water taken through it at any time for household, stock or domestic purposes.
Who counts as the owner of an artesian well?
The owner of the land is deemed to own the well, unless a deed, covenant, contract, easement or other documentation acceptable to the director demonstrates the well is owned by another.
What maintenance does an artesian well owner owe?
The well must be maintained to prevent waste or contamination of ground waters through leaky casings, pipes, fittings, valves, pumps, seals - or leakage around the outside of the casings, whether above or below the land surface.
Why does this matter in Island Park specifically?
Warm, pressurized ground makes flowing conditions a live possibility here. The construction rules require a state-approved control device able to stop the flow completely before the driller leaves - and this statute makes leaving one uncontrolled a criminal matter for the owner.