Kentucky Administrative Regulations › Title 401 - ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT CABINET - DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 6 - Water Wells › Section 401 KAR 6:350 - Monitoring well construction practices and standards

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 1, July 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
				KRS
				223.400 - 223.460, 223.991, 224.1-400,
				224.1-405, 224.43-010 -224.43-815, 224.46-012 - 224.46-870, 224.60-100 -
				224.60-160
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
				KRS
				224.10-100,
				224.70-100,
				and 224.70- 110 authorize the cabinet to establish administrative regulations
				to protect water quality.
				KRS 223.435 requires
				the secretary of the cabinet to promulgate administrative regulations
				establishing standards of practice for water well construction. This
				administrative regulation establishes requirements for the construction of
				monitoring wells, including temporary monitoring wells, and provides minimum
				standards for location, construction, modification, and abandonment.
Section 1. General Requirements.
(1) Each monitoring well shall be
			 constructed, modified, or abandoned by a monitoring well driller or monitoring
			 well driller assistant certified in accordance with
			 KRS
			 223.425 and
			 401
			 KAR 6:320.
(2) A monitoring well driller's assistant
			 shall work under the "direct supervision", as defined by 401 KAR 6:001(14), of
			 a certified monitoring water well driller.
(3) Well specifications shall:
(a) Be provided by the certified well driller
			 to the well driller's assistant, as required under "direct supervision", as
			 defined by 401 KAR 6:001(14), for the work to be conducted including:
1. Construction;
2. Alteration;
3. Maintenance;
4. Repair;
5. Reworking;
6. Development;
7. Abandonment; or
8. Plugging; and
(b) Shall be recorded on the Uniform Kentucky
			 Well Construction Record, which shall be:
1.
			 Retained by the well driller's assistant; and
2. Available for inspection upon request by
			 the cabinet.
(c) Changes
			 made to well specifications during any work being conducted on a well shall be:
1. Approved in advance by a certified well
			 driller;
2. Recorded on an amended
			 Uniform Kentucky Well Construction Record;
3. Retained by the well driller's assistant;
			 and
4. Available for inspection
			 upon request by the cabinet.
(4) Permanent and temporary monitoring wells
			 shall be constructed, modified, and abandoned in a manner that prevents the
			 introduction or migration of contamination to a waterbearing zone or aquifer
			 through the casing, drill hole, or annular materials.
(5) Reporting requirement. Within sixty (60)
			 days after completion, modification, or abandonment of a monitoring well or
			 temporary monitoring well, the certified monitoring well driller shall:
(a) Record all information about the depth
			 and the materials used in the monitoring well construction, modification, or
			 abandonment; and
(b) Submit a
			 complete Uniform Kentucky Well Construction Record form to the cabinet and
			 monitoring well owner.
(6) Each well constructed or modified shall
			 be tagged with a well identification number tag provided by the cabinet.
(a) An existing well identification number
			 shall be included on the Uniform Kentucky Well Maintenance and Plugging Record
			 for any well being modified or abandoned.
(b) If a well identification number does not
			 exist at the time of modification or abandonment, the well shall be tagged and
			 the well identification number assigned shall be recorded on the Uniform
			 Kentucky Well Maintenance and Plugging Record.
(7) Variance. If conditions exist or are
			 believed to exist that preclude compliance with the requirements established in
			 this administrative regulation, the certified monitoring well driller may
			 request a variance from the cabinet prior to well construction or well
			 abandonment.
(a) The variance request shall be
			 submitted in writing on the Kentucky Monitoring Well Variance Request form and
			 shall include:
1. A thorough description of
			 the:
a. Land use at the site and at adjacent
			 and surrounding properties; and
b.
			 Expected geologic conditions at the site, including:
(i) Soil thickness;
(ii) Type of bedrock;
(iii) Depth to groundwater;
(iv) Perched water; and
(v) Confining zones;
2. Distance between the proposed
			 monitoring well location and:
a. Other
			 existing water-supply wells or monitoring wells on adjacent properties;
			 and
b. Potential pollution sources,
			 both on site and on adjacent properties, including:
(i) Septic systems;
(ii) Sewers; and
(iii) Petroleum and chemical storage tanks,
			 or other potential pollution sources;
3. A summary of the provisions, including the
			 section numbers of this administrative regulation, for which the variance is
			 requested;
4. A justification for
			 the variance;
5. Proposed
			 construction, modification, or abandonment procedures to be used in lieu of
			 compliance with this administrative regulation; and
6. An explanation of how the alternate well
			 construction procedures will ensure the protection of the quality of the
			 groundwater and the protection of public health and safety.
(b) Written variance procedure.
1. The certified monitoring well driller
			 shall:
a. Request a variance by submitting to
			 the cabinet a complete Kentucky Monitoring Well Variance Request form signed by
			 the certified monitoring well driller and, if possible, by the monitoring well
			 owner; and
b. Obtain cabinet
			 approval before well construction begins.
2. The cabinet shall:
a. Notify the applicant in writing within ten
			 (10) days of its decision to either grant or deny the variance; and
b. Not issue a variance if the proposed
			 monitoring well construction will not ensure the protection of groundwater
			 quality and public health and safety.
(c) Verbal variance for an emergency.
1. A certified monitoring well driller may
			 request a verbal variance for an emergency if the delay incurred due to the
			 written variance procedure established in paragraph (b) of this subsection may
			 result in:
a. Failure to address an existing
			 or impending environmental emergency in accordance with
			 KRS
			 224.1-400; or
b. A risk to public health or
			 safety.
2. The cabinet
			 shall not issue a variance if the proposed monitoring well construction will
			 not ensure the protection of groundwater quality and public health and
			 safety.
3. Within fifteen (15) days
			 of the date the cabinet approves the verbal variance for an emergency, the
			 certified monitoring well driller shall submit to the cabinet a complete
			 Kentucky Monitoring Well Variance Request form signed by the certified
			 monitoring well driller and monitoring well owner.
(d) The variance approval shall list the
			 conditions of the variance, including the:
1.
			 Approved alternate well construction procedures;
2. Well sampling requirements; and
3. Requirement to notify surrounding property
			 and well owners of the variance, if applicable.
(e) The certified monitoring well driller
			 shall submit to the cabinet and the monitoring well owner a copy of the
			 Kentucky Monitoring Well Variance Request form signed by the certified
			 monitoring well driller and the monitoring well owner within sixty (60) days
			 after the well is completed.