Chain-based rope pump - GIF

[Frank S]

Pretty murky water for being a closed well. Wonder if it is potable water.

Actually, due to the closeness of the video shot we don't know for a fact that it is even being drawn from a well. The loop pump system could be over a captured pool diverted from a stream the platform could be elevated high enough to allow for the pumped water to flow through the trough. If it is in fact being drawn from a well judging by the simplicity of the technology it is highly likely the well has no casing with a gravel filter around it at the bottom and may be drawing the sand up with the water which may otherwise be completely potable if the sand is allowed to settle out in whatever containment vessel, they may have further down the line.
Our well on the farm where I grew up was a hand drilled not hand dug, it was put in in 1900 only 48 feet deep with a windmill. It had some of the cleanest clearest water in the county and had never done dry, it was not cased just the lift-pipe with the bottom hole pump and sucker rod, the guy who bought it after my grandfather sold it decided to install a submergible pump the water immediately turned brown, but the aquafer was strong enough not to go dry for 25 more years They drilled a new well to 160 feet just a few yards from the old well and never had as good of water as the old well had before being over pumped. So the well in the video might have a lot clearer water if it were pumped a lot slower