Wisconsin Administrative Code › Department of Natural Resources › NR 800 - Environmental Protection - Water Supply › Chapter NR 812 - Well Construction And Pump Installation › Subchapter I - General › Section NR 812.07 - Definitions

Current through June 24, 2024
The following terms are defined as follows:
(1) "Adequate water supply" means a water
				  supply which has a well yield and the pump capacity to provide the quantity and
				  quality, where obtainable, according to s. NR 812.06, of water necessary for
				  human or sanitary use, or for the preparation of food products and other
				  purposes for which the water is intended to be used.
(1h) "Agricultural crop field" means land
				  where there is evidence that agricultural crops were or are being
				  grown.
(1p) "Air-gap" means the
				  unobstructed vertical distance through the free atmosphere between the lowest
				  opening from any pipe or faucet supplying water to a tank or plumbing fixture
				  and the flood level rim or spill level of the receptacle.
(1r) "Alcove" means a pit that shares a wall
				  with a basement and is accessible from the basement.
Note:
In prior versions of ch. NR 812, an
					 alcove was also sometimes referred to as a "subsurface pumproom."
(1t) "Animal barn" means a
				  covered, paved or unpaved area in which animals are kept. This includes an area
				  where an individual animal is kept, but does not include a single pet house or
				  single pet kennel housing 5 or fewer adult pets on a residential lot.
(2) "Animal barn pen" means a covered,
				  enclosed concrete area where animals are kept.
(3) "Animal yard" means an uncovered, paved
				  or unpaved area in which animals are kept. This includes an area where an
				  individual animal is kept, but does not include a single pet kennel enclosing 5
				  or fewer adult pets on a residential lot. An animal yard includes any fenced
				  area where animals are kept or have access including pastures, feed lots, pens,
				  calf hutches, lanes, and riding corrals.
(4) "Animal shelter" means a covered, paved
				  or unpaved area in which animals are kept. This includes an area where an
				  individual animal is kept, but does not include a single pet house or single
				  pet kennel housing 5 or fewer adult pets on a residential lot.
(5) "Annular space" means the space between 2
				  concentric cylinders or circular objects, such as the space between an upper
				  enlarged drillhole and a well casing pipe.
(6) "API" means the American Petroleum
				  Institute.
Note:
The API address is 1220 L Street NW,
					 Washington DC 20005-4070.
(7) "Approval" means the prior approval of
				  the department.
(8) "Approved"
				  means approved by the department.
(9) "ASSE" means American society of sanitary
				  engineering.
(10) "ASTM" or "ASTM
				  International" means the international technical standards organization
				  originally known as the American Society for Testing and Materials.
Note:
The ASTM International headquarters
					 address is 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania
					 19148-2959.
(11) "Aquifer"
				  means a geological layer of either unconsolidated material, usually sand or
				  gravel or both, or bedrock lying below the ground surface, that is all or
				  partially saturated with water and permeable enough to allow water to be
				  extracted as from a well.
(12)
				  "Artesian pressure" means water pressure in an aquifer sufficient enough to
				  cause the groundwater level in a well to rise above the level at which it was
				  encountered in the well whether or not the water flows at the ground
				  surface.
(14) "AWWA" means American
				  water works association.
(15) "AWS"
				  means American welding society.
(16) "Bail-down method" means a method for
				  setting a screen whereby the screen is fitted with an open pipe sleeve or a
				  bail-down shoe at its lower end and sediment is removed from below the screen
				  to allow the screen to settle into place.
(17) "Basement" means a subsurface structure
				  or part of a structure in which the floor is entirely below grade.
(17m) "Batch chlorination" means the process
				  of disinfecting a well by injecting, in one continuous pour, a chlorine
				  solution that equals or exceeds the volume of standing water in the well and by
				  using a process that recirculates the solution through the pump and pump
				  discharge piping system back into the well.
(18) "Bedrock" means any naturally formed
				  consolidated or coherent material of the earth's crust, composed of one or more
				  minerals, rock fragments or organic material that underlies any soil or other
				  unconsolidated surficial material or is exposed at the surface. Bedrock
				  includes, but is not limited to limestone (dolomite), sandstone, shale and
				  igneous and metamorphic crystalline rock, including granite, rhyolite,
				  quartzite, gabbro, basalt, gneiss, schist, diorite and greenstone.
(19m) "Chemical conditioning" means using
				  department-approved chemicals or products to restore a well to its original
				  capacity, production capability or water quality.
(20) "Cistern" means a tank in which
				  rainwater is stored or collected.
(22) "Clay slurry" means a fluid mixture of
				  water, clean native clay, and drill cuttings or sand.
(23) "Clear water" has the meaning specified
				  in s. SPS 381.01 (56).
Note:
Section SPS 381.01 (56) defines "clear
					 water" as wastewater other than storm water, having no impurities or where
					 impurities are below a minimum concentration considered harmful by the
					 department, including but not limited to noncontact cooling water and
					 condensate drainage from refrigeration compressors and air conditioning
					 equipment, drainage of water used for equipment chilling purposes and cooled
					 condensate from steam heating systems or other equipment.
(24) "Community water system" has the meaning
				  specified in s. NR 810.02 (6).
Note:
Section NR 810.02 (6) defines "community
					 water system" as a public water system which serves at least 15 service
					 connections used by year-round residents or regularly serves at least 25
					 year-round residents. Any water system serving 7 or more homes, 10 or more
					 mobile homes, 10 or more apartment units, 10 or more duplex units, or 10 or
					 more condominium units shall be considered a community water system unless
					 information is provided by the owners indicating that 25 year-round residents
					 will not be served.
(24m)
				  "Comparable protection" means to substitute alternative protective measures to
				  provide similar or equal sanitary protection to that provided by this chapter
				  including the well location requirements of s. NR 812.08.
(25) "Conduit" means piping or tubing used to
				  protect discharge or suction piping or electrical wires.
(26) "Confining bed" means a geological layer
				  of either unconsolidated material, usually clay or hardpan, or bedrock, usually
				  shale, that is all or partially saturated with water and having permeability
				  low enough relative to the aquifer to give the water in the aquifer artesian
				  head.
(27) "Contaminant" means any
				  physical, chemical, biological or radiological substance or matter in
				  water.
(27m) "Crawl space" means
				  the space below a building having no basement; the space being at ground grade,
				  in a depression or in an excavation.
(27t) "Cross connection" has the meaning
				  specified in s. NR 810.02 (9).
Note:
Section NR 810.02 (9) defines "cross
					 connection" as a connection or potential connection between any part of a water
					 supply system and another environment containing substances in a manner that,
					 under any circumstances, would allow the substances to enter the water supply
					 system by means of back siphonage or back pressure.
(28) "DHS" means the department of health
				  services.
(30) "Department" means
				  the department of natural resources.
(30f) "Detention basin" means an excavation
				  into soils having low permeability or installed with a liner having low
				  permeability, not having a permanent pool of water, designed and constructed to
				  temporarily hold storm water to reduce peak discharges of storm water for flood
				  control and to allow for the physical settling of pollutants.
(30m) "Detention pond" means an impoundment
				  that has a permanent pool of water and is designed to have the capacity to
				  temporarily store storm water runoff to provide flood control and to allow for
				  the physical settling of pollutants.
(30t) "Ditch" means a long narrow excavation
				  dug in the earth for the drainage of surface water.
(31) "Drawdown" means the extent to which the
				  water level or hydraulic head in and near a well is lowered when water is
				  pumped or flows from the well.
(32)
				  "Drilled well" means a well constructed by boring, drilling, jetting, driving
				  or similar methods. "Drilled well" includes a well constructed by driving a
				  point in combination with a process to remove material below the 10-foot depth,
				  or by a combination of jetting and driving.
(33) "Drillhole" means an excavation or
				  opening deeper than it is wide that extends more than 10 feet below the ground
				  surface constructed for any purpose other than to obtain groundwater.
(34) "Drilling mud" means a fluid mixture of
				  water, sodium bentonite, drill cuttings and any approved additives.
(35) "Driven point well" means a well
				  constructed by joining a drive point with lengths of pipe, and driving the
				  assembly into the ground with percussion equipment or by hand, but without
				  first removing material below the 10-foot depth. "Driven point well" does not
				  include a well constructed by driving a point in combination with a process to
				  remove material below the 10-foot depth or by a combination of jetting and
				  driving.
Note:
A "driven point well" is also known as a
					 point well or sand point well.
(35g) "DSPS" means the department of safety
				  and professional services.
(35m)
				  "Dug well" means a well consisting of a large diameter hole, deeper than it is
				  wide, constructed into the ground, usually by hand, but if by mechanical means,
				  by methods other than drilling, jetting or boring; and within which the side
				  walls are supported by a curbing.
(36) "Entry point" has the meaning specified
				  in s. NR 809.04 (29).
Note:
Section NR 809.04 (29) defines "entry
					 point" as a location in the public water system after treatment or chemical
					 addition, if any, but prior to the distribution system. A sample collected in
					 the distribution system may be considered an entry point sample if the
					 department has determined it is more representative of the water
					 sources.
(37) "Established
				  ground surface" means the permanent elevation of the surface of the site of a
				  well.
(38) "Existing" when
				  referring to an installation, well, water system, reservoir, spring, pit or
				  alcove means an installation, well, water system, reservoir, spring, pit or
				  alcove that was constructed, reconstructed or installed before July 1,
				  2020.
(40) "FDA" means U.S. food
				  and drug administration.
(41)
				  "Feature" means any well construction or pump installation item for which there
				  is a specification in this chapter.
(41m) "Filling and sealing" means to fill a
				  well, drillhole, pit or reservoir with a material or materials so the well,
				  drillhole, pit or reservoir will not act as a vertical conduit to contaminate
				  another well, groundwater or an aquifer.
Note:
The term "filling and sealing" replaces
					 the term "abandonment," previously used in this chapter.
(43) "Floodfringe" has the meaning specified
				  in s. NR 116.03 (14).
Note:
Section NR 116.03 (14) defines
					 "floodfringe" as that portion of the floodplain outside of the floodway, which
					 is covered by flood water during the regional flood. The term "floodfringe" is
					 generally associated with standing water rather than flowing water.
(44) "Floodplain" has the meaning
				  specified in s. NR 116.03 (16).
Note:
Section NR 116.03 (16) defines
					 "floodplain" as that land which has been or may be covered by flood water
					 during the regional flood. The floodplain includes the floodway, floodfringe,
					 shallow depth flooding, flood storage and coastal floodplain areas.
(45) "Floodway" has the meaning
				  specified in s. NR 116.03 (22).
Note:
Section NR 116.03 (22) defines
					 "floodway" as the channel of a river or stream, and those portions of the
					 floodplain adjoining the channel required to carry the regional flood
					 discharge.
(46) "Flowing
				  well" means a well from which groundwater flows above the ground surface
				  without pumping.
(47) "Flushing"
				  means causing a rapid intermittent flow of water from a well by pumping,
				  bailing or similar operation.
(48)
				  "Grease interceptor" or "grease trap" has the meaning specified in s. NR 113.03
				  (21).
Note:
Section NR 113.03 (21) defines "grease
					 interceptor" as a water tight receptacle designed to intercept and retain
					 grease or fatty substances contained in kitchen and other food wastes. Grease
					 interceptor and grease trap mean the same thing.
(49) "Groundwater" means any of the waters of
				  the state, as defined in s.
				  281.01(18),
				  Stats., occurring in a saturated subsurface geological formation of rock or
				  soil.
Note:
Section
					 281.01(18),
					 Stats., defines "waters of the state" to include those portions of Lake
					 Michigan and Lake Superior within the boundaries of this state, and all lakes,
					 bays, rivers, streams, springs, ponds, wells, impounding reservoirs, marshes,
					 watercourses, drainage systems and other surface water or groundwater, natural
					 or artificial, public or private, within this state or its jurisdiction.
(50) "Hazardous waste treatment
				  facility" means "treatment facility" as defined in s.
				  291.01(22),
				  Stats.
Note:
Section
					 291.01(22),
					 Stats., defines "treatment facility" as a facility at which hazardous waste is
					 subjected to treatment and may include a facility where hazardous waste is
					 generated. This term does not include a wastewater treatment facility whose
					 discharges are regulated under ch. 283, Stats., unless the facility is required
					 to be permitted as a hazardous waste treatment facility under the resource
					 conservation and recovery act.
(50b) "Heat exchange driller" means an
				  individual who performs heat exchange drilling.
(50d) "Heat exchange drillhole" has the
				  meaning specified in s.
				  280.01(2b),
				  Stats.
Note:
Section
					 280.01(2b),
					 Stats., defines "heat exchange drillhole" as an excavation or opening in the
					 ground that is deeper than it is wide, that extends more than 25 feet below the
					 ground surface, and that is made for the purpose of installing a geothermal
					 closed-loop heat exchange system.
(50e) "Heat exchange drilling" has the
				  meaning specified in s.
				  280.01(2c),
				  Stats.
Note:
Section
					 280.01(2c),
					 Stats., defines "heat exchange drilling" as the industry and procedure employed
					 in making heat exchange drillholes.
(51) "High capacity property" means one
				  property on which a high capacity well system exists or is to be
				  constructed.
(52) "High capacity
				  well" has the meaning specified in s.
				  281.34(1)
				  (b), Stats.
Note:
Section
					 281.34(1)
					 (b), Stats., defines "high capacity well" as
					 a well, except for a residential well or fire protection well, that, together
					 with all other wells on the same property, except for residential wells and
					 fire protection wells, has a capacity of more than 100,000 gallons per
					 day.
(53) "High capacity
				  well system" means one or more wells, drillholes, or mine shafts used or to be
				  used to withdraw water for any purpose on one property, if the total pumping or
				  flowing capacity of all wells, drillholes, or mine shafts on one property is 70
				  or more gallons per minute based on the pump curve at the lowest system
				  pressure setting, or based on the highest flow rate from a flowing well or
				  wells.
(54) "Holding tank" has the
				  meaning specified in s. SPS 381.01 (121).
Note:
Section SPS 381.01 (121) defines
					 "holding tank" as a watertight receptacle for the collection and holding of
					 wastewater.
(54r) "Hung
				  well casing pipe" means a casing pipe that is smaller in diameter than the
				  enlarged drillhole into which it is placed and installed in a manner so it does
				  not extend all the way to the bottom of the enlarged drillhole.
(55c) "Infiltration basin" means an
				  excavation into permeable soils designed and constructed to temporarily store
				  surface water runoff and allow it to infiltrate so as to provide flood control,
				  groundwater recharge and to allow for the settling of pollutants.
(55s) "Land disposal system" has the meaning
				  specified in s. NR 140.05 (11).
Note:
Section NR 140.05 (11) defines "land
					 disposal system" as a facility for disposing of liquid wastes consisting of:
(a) absorption or seepage pond system,
(b) ridge and furrow system,
(c) spray irrigation system,
(d) overland flow system,
(e) subsurface field absorption
				  system,
(f) land spreading system,
				  or
(g) any other land area
				  receiving liquid waste discharges.