Photo: Dylanvt · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Essex, VT: what to set up and who to call
Tap water in most of Essex comes from Essex Town Water System, which has a clean five-year EPA record (about 20% of systems its size had a health-based violation) and a latest lead result below detection. For trash and recycling, Essex has Essex Drop-off Center; OpenStreetMap lists it open Tue–Sat 8 am–3:30 pm.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Essex, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Essex.
Power comes from Green Mountain Power
Green Mountain Power (Green Mountain Power Corp), an investor-owned utility, serves 95.6% of Essex residents. Its homes paid an average of 23.3¢ per kWh in 2025, about $140 a month (its average across Vermont).
Start or move service: greenmountainpower.com · (888) 836-4672
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Essex Town Water System
Essex Town Water System supplies Essex: about 84% of residents live in its service area. About 13% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Champlain Water District as seller) and serves 9,734 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 80% of the 5,012 systems serving 3,301–10,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. VT0005065.
8 home internet providers serve Essex
99% of 6,406 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 71% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable, Fiber | 98% | 2,000/250 |
| Fidium Fiber | Fiber | 60% | 2,000/2,000 |
| Burlington Telecom | Fiber | 40% | 1,000/1,000 |
| Consolidated Communications | DSL | 19% | 10/1 |
| VTel Wireless | Fixed wireless | 93% | 25/3 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 32% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Essex Drop-off Center is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday
Where to take trash and recycling in Essex, and where the rules are.
Essex Drop-off Center
- Tue8 am–3:30 pm
- Wed8 am–3:30 pm
- Thu8 am–3:30 pm
- Fri8 am–3:30 pm
- Sat8 am–3:30 pm
Hours from OpenStreetMap, last updated Jul 2023. They can change with the season, so check cswd.net before you go.
Drop-off hours: OpenStreetMap. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Essex is in two districts that split the grades: Essex-Westford Supervisory School District and Essex-Westford Educational Community Unified School District.
ASchool gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Nov 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Essex is in ZIP code 05452
ZIP codes where Essex residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Essex | ZIP’s residents in Essex |
|---|---|---|---|
| 05452 | Essex Junction, VT | 100% | 100% |
A few homes fall in 05465, 05446. 05451 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Essex
When is the Essex Drop-off Center open?
Tue–Sat 8 am–3:30 pm, according to OpenStreetMap (as of Oct 9, 2026). Check cswd.net before you go: the town sets the hours and who may use it.
Who supplies Essex’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Essex Town Water System (EPA ID VT0005065). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 80% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Essex?
Green Mountain Power (Green Mountain Power Corp), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 23.3¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Essex?
Xfinity, Fidium Fiber, Burlington Telecom, Consolidated Communications, VTel Wireless, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Essex?
05452. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Essex in?
Essex-Westford Supervisory School District and Essex-Westford Educational Community Unified School District.
How do I register to vote in Essex?
In Vermont you can register online up to and including Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received by Election Day). Elections here are run by the Essex Town Clerk. Check your registration at mvp.vermont.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.