North Dakota Administrative Code › Title 33.1 - Department of Environmental Quality › Article 33.1-18 - Water Well Contractors › Chapter 33.1-18-01 - Water Well Construction and Water Well Pump Installation › Section 33.1-18-01-02 - Definitions

Current through Supplement No. 393, July, 2024
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions
				  shall apply:
1. "Abandoned well" means
				a well whose use has been permanently discontinued.
2. "Annular space" means the opening between
				a well hole excavation and the well casing or curb, or between a casing pipe
				and a liner pipe.
3.
				"Appurtenances" means valves, meters, taps, gauges, or other devices required
				for adequate control or measurement of the well output.
4. "Aquifer" means a water-bearing formation
				that transmits water in sufficient quantities to supply a well.
5. "Casing" shall mean the pipe installed in
				the drill hole to give unobstructed access to the water-bearing
				formation.
6. "Constructing" a well
				includes boring, digging, drilling, or excavation in installing casings, well
				screens, and other appurtenances.
7. "Contamination" means alteration of the
				physical, chemical, or biological quality of the water so that it is harmful or
				potentially injurious to the health of the users or for the intended use of the
				water.
8. "Department" means the
				department of environmental quality.
9. "Disinfection" means the killing of
				infectious agents outside the body by chemical or physical means.
10. "Drawdown" means the extent of lowering
				the water surface in a well and of the water table adjacent to the well,
				resulting from the discharge of water from the well by pumping or natural
				flow.
11. "Drilling" means making
				any opening in the earth's surface by drilling, boring, or otherwise, and
				includes inserting any object into any part of the earth's surface for the
				purpose of obtaining an underground water supply except drainage tiles or
				similar devices designed primarily to improve land by removing excess
				water.
12. "Established ground
				surface" means the permanent elevation of the surface of the ground at the site
				of the well.
13. "Filter pack"
				means a clean sand or sand and gravel material of selected grain size and
				gradation which is installed in the annular space between a well hole
				excavation and the outside of the well screen for the purpose of preventing
				formation material from entering the screen.
14. "Geothermal system driller" means any
				person who is certified to conduct the business of drilling, boring, or
				excavating for the purpose of constructing or substantially modifying a
				geothermal energy extraction facility.
15. "Ground water source" means all water
				obtained from dug, drilled, bored, or driven well, infiltration lines, and
				springs.
16. "Grout" or "grouting
				material" means any stable impervious bonding material which is capable of
				providing a watertight seal between the casing and the formation throughout the
				depth required to protect against objectionable matter and which is reasonably
				free of shrinkage.
17. "Liner pipe"
				means a pipe installed inside a completed and cased well for the purpose of
				sealing off undesirable water or for repairing ruptured or punctured casing or
				screens.
18. "Pitless adapter"
				means a commercially manufactured device designed for attachment to a well
				casing and is so constructed as to prevent the entrance of contaminants into
				the well or potable water supply, conduct water from the well below the
				frostline to prevent freezing, and provide full access to the water system
				components within the well.
19.
				"Pitless unit" means a factory-assembled device with cap which extends the
				upper end of a well casing to above grade and is so constructed as to prevent
				the entrance of contaminants into the well or potable water supply, conduct
				water from the well below the frostline to prevent freezing, and provide full
				access to the well and the water system components within the well.
20. "Potable water" means water free from
				impurities in amounts sufficient to cause disease or harmful physiological
				effects, with the bacteriological and chemical quality conforming to applicable
				standards.
21. "Pressure tank" or
				"hydropneumatic tank" means a closed water storage container constructed to
				operate under a designed pressure rating to modulate the water system pressure
				within a selected range.
22.
				"Private water supply" means one that is not for public use.
23. "Public water supply" means a water
				supply connected to at least fifteen service connections or regularly serves an
				average of twenty-five persons daily, sixty days out of the year.
24. "Pumps" and "pumping equipment" means any
				equipment or materials utilized or intended for use in withdrawing or obtaining
				ground water for any use, including, without limitation, seals and tanks,
				together with fittings and controls.
25. "Repair" means any action which results
				in a breaking or opening of the well seal or replacement of a pump.
26. "Shall" means mandatory compliance with
				all aspects of the rules and regulations for water well construction and water
				well pump installation.
27.
				"Should" means provisions which are not mandatory but which are recommended or
				desirable procedures or methods. Deviation from the rules and regulations for
				water well construction and water well pump installation is subject to
				individual consideration.
28.
				"Static water level" means the elevation of the surface of the water in a well
				when no water is being discharged therefrom.
29. "Water well contractor" means any person
				who is certified to conduct the business of well drilling under the provisions
				of North Dakota Century Code chapter 43-35.
30. "Water well pump and pitless unit
				installer" means any person who is certified to conduct the business of
				installing water well pumps and pitless units under the provisions of North
				Dakota Century Code chapter 43-35.
31. "Well development" means the general
				process to achieve sand-free water at the highest possible well
				capacity.
32. "Well seal" means an
				approved arrangement or device used to cap a well or to establish and maintain
				a junction between the casing or curbing of a well and the piping or equipment
				installed therein, the purpose or function of which is to prevent pollutants
				from entering the well at the upper terminal.
33. "Well vent" means an outlet at the upper
				terminal of the well casing to allow equalization of air pressure in the well
				and escape of toxic or inflammable gases.
34. "Wells" means any artificial opening or
				artificially altered natural opening however made by which ground water is
				sought or through which ground water flows under natural pressure or is
				artificially withdrawn; provided, that this definition does not include a
				natural spring, stock ponds, or holes drilled for the purpose of exploration
				for production of oil, gas, gravel, or other minerals.
General Authority:
NDCC 43-35-19, 43-35-19.1;
					 S.L.2017, ch.199, § 1
Law Implemented:
NDCC 43-35-19, 43-35-19.1;
					 S.L.2017, ch.199, §§ 45,
					 46