WorldWide Drilling Resource

55 NOVEMBER 2016 Environmental Monitoring by Thomas Kwader, Ph.D., P.G. Advantages of Private Wells Over City Municipal Well Systems Over the last 30 years, I have seen an increase in city and county ordinances being enacted to prohibit the construction of private wells within their jurisdictional areas. In some cases, the banning of private wells was because they were poorly constructed. These wells were contaminating the drinking water aquifer due to poorly sealed annular space(s), allowing surface contamination to be carried downward into the aquifer. Sometimes these “problem wells” cannot be located or properly sealed to remediate the problem. Generally, private wells are not a threat to groundwater supplies, and proper grouting can protect the aquifer far into the future. The banning of private wells in recent years by city and county governments has also shown to be related to governments “forcing” residents to “hook up” to their water system so more customers are obligated to pay the high capital expense of these systems. New water systems are often very expensive because the systems must be oversized for growth into the future. Large-diameter wells with big pumps must be drilled and installed, long underground pipelines in right-of-ways need to be laid, and sometimes the water must be treat- ed to remove iron, sulfides, or other com- pounds to meet public drinking water standards, and regular testing of water samples, etc. All these items add to the cost of the water. In high-density housing areas, public water supplies make more sense. As lots are built farther away from town and are above an acre in size, the use of private water supply systems are more economically feasible. I know for a fact, private wells are now prohibited in the city limits of the county in which I live, which was quietly “passed” and noticed in the newspaper for only three days, in a holiday paper - which no one apparently read - and was approved without the general public involvement. Please watch for govern- ment agency’s attempting to ban our private wells. Tom Tom Kwader may be contacted via e-mail to michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com WorldWide Drilling Resource ®