South Carolina Code of Regulations › Chapter 61 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL › Subchapter 61-71 - Well Standards › Section 61-71.B - DEFINITIONS

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 6, June 28, 2024
For the purpose of this regulation, the following terms are
				defined:
1. Annular Space--the space
			 between the drill string or casing and the wall of the borehole.
2. Bored Well--a large diameter individual
			 residential well or irrigation well, commonly equal to or greater than 24 inches in
			 diameter, that is typically installed at a shallow depth and with casing constructed
			 of rock, concrete, or ceramic material.
3. Borehole--a bored, drilled or driven shaft, or
			 a dug hole, whose depth is greater than the largest surface dimension.
4. Borehole Completion--the date the total depth
			 of the borehole has been reached.
5.
			 Boring--a borehole for the purpose of sampling sub-surface materials such as
			 environmental soil sampling borings, geotechnical borings, or exploration borings,
			 but does not include boreholes completed as wells.
6. Casing--a pipe or tubing of appropriate
			 material, of varying diameter and weight, lowered into a borehole during or after
			 drilling in order to support the sides of the hole and thus prevent the sides of the
			 hole from caving, to prevent loss of drilling mud into permeable strata, or to
			 prevent fluids from entering or leaving the borehole.
7. Certified Well Driller--a driller duly and
			 currently registered in South Carolina by the Department of Labor, Licensing, and
			 Regulation.
8. Confining Layer--a
			 geologic formation, group of formations, or part of a formation that is capable of
			 significantly limiting fluid movement between hydrogeologic units.
9. Consolidated Formation or
			 Material--crystalline, metamorphic, limestone, or otherwise competent
			 rock.
10. Conventionally Installed
			 Monitoring Well--a monitoring well where an annular space is created during the well
			 construction process.
11.
			 Development--the removal of formation cuttings, fine-grained sediments, drilling
			 fluids, or additives from the borehole.
12. Direct Push Monitoring Well--a type of
			 monitoring well constructed by pushing casing or other sampling device into the
			 subsurface to obtain water samples for groundwater quality analysis, or to measure
			 groundwater levels, where little or no annular space is created.
13. Environmental Soil Sampling Boring--a borehole
			 used to obtain a soil sample for contamination investigations.
14. Exploration Boring--any borehole for the
			 purpose of sub-surface mineral investigation and exploration.
15. Forced Injection of Grout--the emplacing of
			 grout through a tremie pipe by pumping as opposed to pouring by gravity.
16. Filter Pack--an artificial filter material
			 that is placed in the annular space around the well screen.
17. Geotechnical Boring--a typically shallow
			 borehole for determining physical properties of the soil and subsurface, including
			 foundation or general geotechnical borings and other such shallow borings incidental
			 to construction activities.
18.
			 Geothermal System Well--a type of well that is used to provide heat exchange for
			 heating and cooling systems where the piping is below ground; includes, but is not
			 limited to, closed loop and open loop systems.
19. Individual Residential Well--a well intended
			 to produce potable water for human consumption at a single residence or a
			 family.
20. Irrigation Well--a well
			 intended to produce water for uses other than human consumption, to include, but not
			 be limited to, lawn and landscape watering and agricultural uses.
21. Monitoring well--any well constructed
			 specifically to obtain a sample of groundwater for analysis, or any well used to
			 measure groundwater levels. These wells include, but are not limited to, wells
			 constructed using conventional drilling techniques and direct push methods.
22. Permanent Monitoring Well--any
			 monitoring well that is intended for multiple sampling events over time.
23. Sanitary Cover--a removable seal to prevent
			 the entrance of contaminants or foreign matter into the well.
24. Sanitary Seal--a removable seal at the top of
			 the casing, between the casing and pipe, wire, tool, or device, capable of
			 supporting such tools or devices, having no opening that would enable the entrance
			 of contaminants or foreign matter into the well.
25. Screen--a filtering device that serves as the
			 intake portion of a well that allows water to enter the well while preventing
			 sediment from entering the well.
26.
			 Surface Water--all water, which is open to the atmosphere and is subject to surface
			 runoff that includes lakes, streams, ponds, ditches, and reservoirs.
27. Temporary Monitoring Well--a monitoring well
			 where a one-time groundwater sample or groundwater level measurement is
			 obtained.
28. Thermoplastic--materials
			 composed of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or
			 styrene-rubber (SR) plastics.
29.
			 Tremie--the use of a small diameter pipe inserted into the borehole through which
			 the filter pack or grout is placed at the desired depth to either complete
			 construction of the well or to abandon the boring.
30. Unconsolidated Formation or Material--layers
			 or sequences of sands, silts, or clays.
31. Vent--a device to keep foreign matter out of
			 the well and that allows the well to be vented to the atmosphere.
32. Well--any borehole completed for the purpose
			 of extracting or injecting fluid. This shall include, but not be limited to, wells
			 used for irrigation, individual residential drinking water, environmental
			 restoration, geothermal well systems, or environmental sampling. Wells fall into one
			 of the following types:
a. Type I--open hole in
			 bedrock aquifers;
b. Type II--screened
			 with natural filter in unconsolidated aquifers;
c. Type III--screened with artificial filter in
			 unconsolidated aquifers;
d. Type
			 IV--open hole in consolidated limestone aquifers;
e. Type V--bored or dug well having a large
			 diameter.