The water from rain and snow, as well as ground water, is diverted through the drain tile (its just a pipe system) into the sump crock and pumped out with the sump pump.

You could experiment with the result of turning off that meter valve.Your sump pump should be expelling ground water that has migrated to the basement or crawl space.

If you're in an area that has ground water, such as from close proximity to a spring or river, then you may be looking to add a sump pump too.#2 Properly ventilate the crawl space and finish it with a vapor barrier.

If water is not available, how difficult is it to have a well and what is the ground water quality at various depths? 

You can also call county and pay some postage and they will send you flood maps and flood zones for your hosue- by mail.Of Course--Florida or any one near ocean is lot differnet then in Georgia or Tennessee-- In low lying areas like Florida with high ground waters and no deep creeks or rivers - flood zones every where - Problem is USGS / Army Corps and USGS have not upgraded flood info in 50 years - and there is lot more developments in last 30-50 years - which increases runoffs and chances of flooding goes up every where.

I personally don't think we're contributing to global warming, but as you say here, there are lots more great reasons why we should stop burning fossil fuels -- everything from contributing money to terrorism to destroying our ground water.

Originally posted by @David Doyle:Brother J ScottIt sounds like hydrogen sulfide in the ground water We're on public water and sewer, so I don't believe that's the issue.  

Is there any possible contamination of the soil or ground water?

Principal risk is vapor intrusion (vapors from groundwater migrating into buildings) or contaminated groundwater if used onsite.

The tenants had been pouring liquid waste in the yard, so they had to put ground water monitors out.