N.J. Admin. Code § 7:9D-3.1

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 19, October 7, 2024

Section 7:9D-3.1 - General requirements for the decommissioning of all wells and boreholes

(a) The owner of any well shall be responsible for having a well or borehole decommissioned in accordance with this chapter if the well is abandoned, destroyed, lost, and/or endangers or threatens the subsurface or percolating waters with the intrusion of saltwater or from any other cause, or if it endangers life.

(b) Notwithstanding (a) above, the well driller is also and primarily responsible for decommissioning a borehole or well that is abandoned during construction or is not completed or is not constructed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter in effect at the time of construction.

(c) The Department may order the decommissioning of any well or borehole, or any appurtenances thereto, which:

1. Is abandoned as defined in this chapter;

2. Has been constructed in violation of the Act or this chapter;

3. Has not been maintained in a condition that ensures protection from contamination for the subsurface and percolating waters of the State;

4. Is damaged or destroyed;

5. Has been replaced by another well;

(d) Any person who fails to comply with an order to decommission a borehole or well pursuant to (c) above shall be subject to penalties pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:9D-4.

(e) The Department may require or allow a well or borehole to be decommissioned by a method other than as set forth in this subchapter, for good cause, where unusual circumstances are encountered which would prevent compliance with the standard decommissioning requirements.

(f) All wells and boreholes shall be decommissioned by, or in the presence of and under the onsite supervision of, a well driller of the proper class. The well driller shall keep an electronic or paper copy of the well record or approved decommissioning plan onsite at all times for inspection by any authorized local, county, or State official.

(g) For all wells, other than hand dug or domestic wells that have a diameter of two inches or less, the well driller shall obtain all applicable well records prior to decommissioning the well in order to verify the depth, diameter, and construction of the well. If a well record is not available from the property owner or local regulating agency, a well driller shall follow the well search directions available on the Department's website pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:9D-1.17.

(h) Upon request, the well driller shall provide additional information to the Department about a well or borehole prior to the well being decommissioned. Such information may include, but is not limited to, data gathered via geophysical logging, downhole televising, or groundwater sampling.

(i) Any hazardous waste, including, but not limited to, contaminated casing, cuttings, sediment, displaced water, or free product generated during the decommissioning, shall be handled in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:26G.

(j) The following types of wells shall not be decommissioned until the well driller proposing to decommission the well has first obtained written approval of a decommissioning plan from the Department pursuant to (k) below:

1. Wells, other than hand dug or domestic wells that have a diameter of two inches or less, for which no well record can be obtained;

2. Wells that are contaminated with hazardous waste and/or radiological materials;

3. Wells that are affected by saltwater intrusion;

4. Wells installed in unconsolidated formations that are screened in more than one aquifer;

5. Wells which cannot be cleared of all obstructions throughout the entire length and diameter of the well;

6. Multiple cased wells;

7. Wells drilled for the installation of elevator shafts; or

8. Wells for which the well record does not match the measured depth, diameter, and construction of the well.

(k) A decommissioning plan proposal shall be submitted by a well driller on the form prescribed by the Department pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:9D-1.17 prior to the decommissioning of a well in accordance with (j) above. The Department shall issue a written approval or denial of the decommissioning plan proposal. Approved decommissioning plans will be issued an approval number and shall be valid for a period of two years. If the well is not decommissioned within two years of approval, a new decommissioning plan shall be submitted to the Department. All decommissioning plans shall include the following information:

1. Well owner and location of well, including county, municipality, lot, block, New Jersey State Plane coordinates, and street address;

2. Well construction, including, but not limited to, depth and diameter of the well and number of casings. If a well search fails to locate a well record for a domestic well, the well driller may only report known construction details;

3. Proposed grout materials and method of decommissioning;

4. Actual or potentially hazardous conditions within the well or surrounding site, such as obstructions, impacts on nearby wells, or contamination;

5. Well driller name, license number, and company name; and

6. A copy of the approved plan shall be kept available onsite at all times and made available for inspection upon request of any State, county, or local official.

(l) All other wells shall be decommissioned as follows:

1. The well shall be cleared of pump, pipe, debris, and all other obstructions;

2. If the well has been overdrilled to remove the entire casing, screen, and gravel pack, the resulting borehole shall be constructed to, and maintained at, the original depth of the well until this borehole is properly sealed in accordance with this subchapter;

3. Adequate protection shall be provided for the top of the borehole and/or the top of the well casing to prevent surface contamination from entering the well during the sealing operation and when the driller is not at the sealing site;

4. If it is known that an unsealed annular space exists between the outermost casing and the borehole, the casing shall be perforated, ripped, or removed to insure that this space is sealed; and

5. All water used in the sealing process shall be of potable quality.

(m) The grout materials specified in N.J.A.C. 7:9D Appendix A and the grouting methods and selection criteria in N.J.A.C. 7:9D-2.9 shall be used to decommission wells.

1. Only those materials or additives specifically designed for well decommissioning by the manufacturer and approved by the Department as specified in N.J.A.C. 7:9D Appendix A, shall be used to decommission wells. The material shall have a maximum permeability of 1 x 10<-7> centimeters per second when prepared in accordance with manufacturer's specifications;

2. Bentonite-based thermally enhanced geothermal grout materials containing a minimum silica sand content of 200 pounds per 50 pounds of bentonite may be used in consolidated formations, provided the permeability meets the value specified in (m)1 above. All other bentonite-based grout materials listed in Table 3 and Table 5 of N.J.A.C. 7:9D Appendix A shall not be used as a decommissioning material in consolidated formations, or in those instances where it will come in contact with groundwater of a pH of less than 5.0 or a Total Dissolved Solids content in excess of 1,000 ppm.

3. Where the grout material extends through zones of saltwater, a cement-based grout approved for use in saltwater environments shall be used. See N.J.A.C. 7:9D Appendix A for mixes approved for use in saltwater environments.

(n) Decommissioning materials shall be installed using one of the following methods:

1. Pumped into the well under pressure through a tremie pipe that discharges at the bottom of the well. If an annular space is being sealed, the material shall discharge at the bottom of the annular space. During sealing, the tremie pipe may be raised from the bottom of the space being filled in a manner which insures that the discharge end of the tremie pipe is constantly submerged within the column of undiluted decommissioning material in the well. The decommissioning material shall be pumped into the well until all water has been displaced from the well and until the decommissioning material overflowing the well has a density within the acceptable density range for that material; or

2. Sodium-based bentonite chips and bentonite pellets may be gravity poured in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications as follows:

i. To seal the annular space between casings or the annular space between the casing and the borehole to a maximum depth of 50 feet or inside the inner casing or borehole to a maximum depth of 100 feet;

ii. After all fine material has been removed through screening or equivalent methods to prevent bridging; and

iii. From bottom to top until all space that is to be sealed is completely filled.

(o) The well driller who decommissions the well shall return to the well no sooner than 24 hours, nor later than 72 hours, and fill any settlement of the decommissioning material in the well as follows:

1. By the pressure method, or by using sodium-based bentonite chips and shaped pellets in accordance with (n)2 above, for settlement less than 50 feet from ground surface; or

2. By the pressure method, for any settlement of 50 feet or greater in accordance with (n)1 above; and

3. After the completion of either (o)1 or 2 above, concrete shall be poured to form a slab which shall extend beyond the perimeter of the casing after any settlement is filled in accordance with (o)1 and 2 above. This slab shall be a minimum of six-inches thick and located at or below grade.

(p) The driller shall obtain written approval of a decommissioning plan from the Department pursuant to this chapter according to the procedures set forth at (k) above prior to deviating from the methods or materials set forth in this subchapter.

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:9D-3.1

Amended by 50 N.J.R. 171(a), effective 1/2/2018