WorldWide Drilling Resource

23 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® OCTOBER 2013 Environmental Monitoring by Thomas Kwader, Ph.D., P.G. Protect the Top of the Well - It’s Good Business Have you ever come across an open well and wonder how deep it is, or where the water is? An open well is like a magnet; it invites curious persons to drop a stone or something else into it. A perfectly good well is an asset that costs someone a thousand dollars or more to drill, perhaps much more. Left unprotected, mischievous persons can drop all kinds of stuff down the bore- hole. Some items may be very difficult to retrieve. Some items can be harmful to the regional drinking water supply, such as fuels, solvents, pesticides, or waste products, which can flow to other drinking water wells and can be very difficult to clean up or cause other wells to be abandoned and/or make it difficult to locate the source of contamination. Open wells should not be left unat- tended, even for short periods of time, even if a drilling rig is actively working on the well. At the end of the day it is advisable to place a plate or piece of wood over the opening, with the weight of the bit and drill rod on top, while the well is left unattended. If it has been decided the well must be abandoned, it is recommended the producing portion of the well, screen, or open hole section be filled with clean crushed stone and/or sand to the bot- tom of the casing. From the bottom of the casing, upward, the well should be filled with neat Portland cement (6 gal- lons of water per 94-pound bag of cement), to which clean sand may be added at a mixture of 1 to 3 depending upon regulations for the area. This mix- ture should be brought to the top of the well casing. The casing may be left above land surface or cut off a few feet below land surface depending upon future use of the property. It is also recommended the drill crew place a metal tag (stamped alu- minum is good) with the drilling firm’s name, location, and phone number (for example, John Smith & Sons, Liberty, Texas, phone number). The tag could also be used to provide information about the well, such as whether it can be used in the future. Providing this information could lead to more work for the drilling professional. Tom Tom Kwader may be contacted via e-mail at admin@ worldwidedrillingresource.com Bonnie, We got our hard copy of the mag- azine on Friday. It looks awesome!! The article is great and the ad looks good as well. Have a great week! Bruce R. Condit VP-Director Public Relations Allegiance Capital Corporation