W. Va. Code R. § 64-46-3

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 36, September 6, 2024

Section 64-46-3 - Definitions

3.1. Abandoned water well. -- A water well that is no longer in use or is declared to be abandoned by the owner. A water well is also abandoned if the Commissioner has determined that the well presents a threat to groundwater or public health.

3.2. Abandonment of a water well. -- The act of properly sealing a water well in accordance with applicable standards.

3.3.ANSI. -- American National Standards Institute. ANSI creates standards for many water well applications, especially materials and equipment.

3.4. Annular Space. -- The space between a borehole wall and a permanent casing or between a temporary casing and a permanent casing or both.

3.5. API. -- American Petroleum Institute. API has specifications for steel casing.

3.6. Aquifer. -- A geological formation, group of formations, or part of a formation that yields ground water to a well.

3.7. ASHRAE. -- American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air - Conditioning Engineers. ASHRAE applications mainly relate to geothermal systems.

3.8. ASTM. -- American Society for Testing Materials. ASTM develops standards nationally and internationally for a wide array of materials and processes.

3.9. AWWA. -- American Water Works Association. AWWA is a non-profit scientific and educational society dedicated to the improvement of drinking water quality and supply.

3.10. Barnyard. -- A fenced area for animals, which generally adjoins the barn on a farm. It applies to traffic alleys, holding pens, convalescent pens, maternity pens, calf pens and confined exercise yards.

3.11. Bedrock. -- Solid rock exposed at the surface or overlain by unconsolidated materials.

3.12. Bentonite. -- A plastic, colloidal clay derived from volcanic ash consisting of at least 85% montmorillonite, with an ability to absorb fresh water and swell in volume.

3.12.a. Bentonite granules. -- Commercially manufactured pure bentonite, without additives, with a diameter of 3/8 inch or less.

3.12.b. Bentonite pellets. -- Commercially manufactured tablets made by compressing pure bentonite, without additives, into forms with a diameter ranging from 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch.

3.12.c. Bentonite chips. -- Commercially processed angular fragments of pure bentonite, without additives. Size ranges from 3/8 to 3/4 of an inch.

3.13. Bureau. -- The Bureau for Public Health of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.

3.14. Casing. -- The pipe or tubing, constructed of specific materials with specified dimensions and weights, that is installed in a borehole during or after completion of the borehole to support the side of the hole and thereby prevent caving, to allow completion of the water well, to prevent formation material from entering the water well, and to prevent entry of undesirable water into the well.

3.15. Closed-Loop Heat Pump Well. -- A well in which fluid is circulated in a continuous unbroken pipe beneath the surface of the earth or in a medium where the system can obtain a sufficient cooling or heat exchange. Depths of installation vary and are dependent upon the type and size of the closed-loop system, the land area available, soils/formation, climate, and seasonal variation in ground temperature, etc.

3.16. Commissioner. -- The Commissioner of the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health or his or her designee.

3.17. Commercial Well. -- A well that serves small businesses and facilities in which water is the prime ingredient of the service rendered.

3.18. Confined Water Table. -- Groundwater confined by an impervious layer of rock or other material under sufficient pressure to raise the water level above the upper level of the saturated zone when penetrated by a well.

3.19. Confined Aquifer. -- An aquifer bounded above and below by beds of distinctly lower permeability than that of the aquifer itself containing groundwater under pressure greater than that of the atmosphere. The term is synonymous with the term "artesian aquifer".

3.20. Contaminant. -- Any substances either manmade or natural, which are concentrated enough to degrade water quality to a degree making the water harmful to public health or to the environment.

3.21. Contamination. -- Any manmade, man-induced or natural alteration of the chemical, physical, or biological integrity of the ground water, resulting from activities regulated under the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection's rule, Groundwater Protection Regulations, 47CSR58. Any alteration in excess of existing ground water quality, unless that site has been granted a deviation or variance from existing quality as provided in the West Virginia Ground Water Protection Act, or is subject to an order, permit, or other regulatory action that requires restoration or maintenance of ground water quality at a different concentration or level.

3.22. Dewatering Well. -- A well used to lower groundwater levels to allow for construction of footings, sewer lines, building foundations, dams, etc.

3.23. Direct Exchange Well (DX) -- A small diameter bore hole constructed for the purpose of sinking or sourcing thermal energy between the direct exchange loop and the earth. The refrigerant circulates throughout the heat exchange loop.

3.24. Disinfection. -- The inactivation of pathogenic organisms in water by chemical oxidants or equivalent agents, ultraviolet light, ozonation, or other methods approved by the Commissioner.

3.25. Drive Shoe. -- A device fastened to the bottom of a length of casing to protect the casing during driving.

3.26. Feedlot. -- A lot or facility (other than an aquatic animal production facility) where the following conditions are met:

1. animals (other than aquatic animals) have been, are or will be stabled or confined and fed or maintained for a total of forty-five days or more in any twelve month period, and

2. crops, vegetation forage growth, or post-harvest residues are not sustained in the normal growing season over other portions of the lot or facility. Two or more animal feeding operations under common ownership shall be considered, for the purposes of this rule, to be a single feedlot if they adjoin each other or if they use a common area or system for the disposal of wastes.

3.27. Filter Pack. -- Sand, gravel, or both placed in direct contact with the well screen.

3.28. Grout or Grout Material. -- A stable and impervious bonding material, with minimum shrinkage, capable of producing a watertight seal to protect against contamination, approved by the Commissioner.

3.29. Grouting. -- The placement of grout into the annular space to seal the annular space, and prevent the infiltration or migration of surface water and contaminants into the ground water aquifer.

3.30. Hand Dug Well. -- A manually excavated well of permanent nature installed for water supply.

3.31. Heat Pump or Geothermal Well. -- Any well constructed to use the heat exchange properties of either groundwater or of geologic material penetrated by the well.

3.32. IGSHPA. -- International Ground Source Heat Pump Association. IGSHPA is a non-profit organization, established in 1987 to advance ground source heat pump technology and applications.

3.33. Inactive Well. -- A well that is no longer actively used. It shall have a sanitary well cap and remain in a state of repair to prevent contamination from entering the well. It may be used in the future or be properly abandoned.

3.34. Industrial Well. -- A well used in industrial processing, fire protection, washing, packing, or manufacturing of a product excluding food and beverages, or similar non-potable uses.

3.35. Installation. -- The installation, alteration or deepening of a water well, pump and pump equipment.

3.36. Irrigation Well. -- A well used to provide water for plants, livestock, or other agricultural processes.

3.37. Location. -- The designation of the well site by using longitude and latitude or other approved means.

3.38. NSF. -- The National Sanitation Foundation. The NSF assists in educational and research programs, and develops standards pertinent to the areas of environmental sanitation and health.

3.39. NSF Potable Water (PW). -- Product standards for pressure-rated potable water applications as required by ANSI/NSF Standard 14 and ANSI/NSF Standard 61 for health effects.

3.40. Neat Cement. -- A mixture of Portland cement (ASTM C-150) and water in the proportion of 5 to 6 gallons of clean potable water per bag (94 pounds or 1 cubic foot) of cement.

3.41. Open-Loop Heat Pump Supply Water Well. -- A well drilled to supply water for heat transfer. Water quality, quantity and disposal are primary concerns with open- loop systems.

3.42. Permanent Casing. -- A durable, impervious pipe placed or driven into the borehole and left in place to maintain the well opening.

3.43. Pitless Adapter. -- A device approved by the Commissioner for attachment to one (1) or more openings through a well casing and constructed to prevent the entry of contamination into the well. The adapter is used to transfer water from the well, decrease the probability of frozen water lines and provide access to the well and water system components within the well.

3.44. Pitless Well Cap. -- A sanitary device, approved by the Commissioner, that covers and encloses the upper termination of a pitless well unit or the well casing to prevent entry of contamination into the well.

3.45. Pitless Unit. -- A preassembled device approved by the Commissioner which extends from the upper end of a well casing to above grade, provided with an approved well cap, and constructed to prevent the entry of contamination into the well. The unit is used to conduct water from the well, prevent the water from freezing and provide access to the well and water system components within the well.

3.46. Potable Water. -- Water free from impurities in amounts sufficient to cause disease or harmful physiological effects, with bacteriological, chemical, physical and radiological quality conforming to applicable rules and standards of the Bureau for Public Health.

3.47. Potable Water Well. -- Any water well that provides potable water, other than a public water supply for human consumption.

3.48. PPI. -- Plastics Pipe Institute. Founded in 1950, The Plastics Pipe Institute Inc. (PPI) is the major trade association representing all segments of the plastics piping industry.

3.49. Pressure Tank. -- A closed water and air storage device that modulates the water supply system pressure and sometimes allows for expansion during temperature fluctuations in the water system.

3.50. Public Water System. -- A public water system is any water supply or system that regularly supplies or offers to supply water for human consumption through pipes or other constructed conveyances, if serving at least an average of twenty-five individuals per day for at least sixty days per year, or which has at least fifteen service connections, and shall include:

3.50.1 Any collection, treatment, storage, and distribution facilities under the control of the owner or operator of the system and used primarily in connection with the system; and

3.50.2 Any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such control which are used primarily in connection with the system.

3.50.3. A public water system does not include a system that meets all of the following conditions:

3.50.3.a. It consists only of distribution and storage facilities, and does not have any collection or treatment facilities;

3.50.3.b. It obtains all of its water from, but is not owned or operated by, a public water system that otherwise meets the definition;

3.50.2.c. It does not sell water to any person; and

3.50.3.d. It is not a carrier conveying passengers in interstate commerce.

3.51. Pump. -- Any mechanical equipment or device used to transfer water from a well.

3.52. Pumping Equipment. -- Equipment or related materials that are used or intended to assist withdrawing groundwater from a well, including seals and other safeguards to protect the water from contamination; associated fittings; intake and discharge piping; and controls to provide sanitary water storage facilities and deliver water to a distribution piping system.

3.53. Rapid Joint Assembly. -- A device intended to join two pieces of pipe without threads or glue and approved by the ASTM or NSF.

3.54. Standard Dimension Ratio (SDR). -- The quotient obtained when the outside diameter of thermoplastic well casing is divided by the wall thickness.

3.55. Standing Column Open-Loop Well. -- A vertical well filled with water, in which water is removed from and returned to the same well for heat exchange.

3.56. Temporary Casing. -- A durable pipe placed or driven into a borehole to maintain an open annular space around the permanent casing during construction of a well.

3.57. Test Wells (Exploratory/ Observation). -- A well that is used to obtain information on groundwater quantity; quality; aquifer characteristics; and availability of production water supply for manufacturing, commercial, and industrial facilities.

3.58. Tremie Pipe. -- A small diameter pipe, hose, or tubing used in the down hole placement of well construction grouting material.

3.59. Unconsolidated Formation. -- A sediment that is loosely arranged whose particles are not cemented together, occurring either at the surface or at depth.

3.60. Under-reaming. -- A process of drilling just below casing to allow casing to be set while drilling, especially in unconsolidated or unstable formations.

3.61. Under-reamer. -- A drill bit used for under-reaming.

3.62. Unweathered Bedrock. -- Bedrock that is competent, firmly consolidated, and unaltered by erosion or surficial weathering.

3.63. Vertical Closed Loop Heat Pump Well. -- A borehole essentially perpendicular to the horizon into which a closed-loop pipe is placed for heat transfer.

3.64. Water system. -- Includes any well and equipment for distribution, extending from and including the source of the water to the point of discharge from any pressure tank or other storage vessel to the point of discharge from the water pump where no pressure tank or other storage vessel is present.

3.65. Watertight. -- A condition that does not allow the entrance, passage or flow of water under normal operating conditions.

3.66. Water Return Well. -- A well constructed for returning water that has passed through the heat pump system to the subsurface.

3.67. Water Well. -- Any excavation or penetration in the ground, whether drilled, bored, cored, driven, washed, jetted, hand dug or otherwise constructed that enters or passes through an aquifer for purposes that may include, but are not limited to, a potable water supply, exploration for water, industrial, irrigation, commercial, dewatering, or geothermal heat pump wells, and water return wells. This definition shall not include ground water monitoring activities, and all activities for the exploration, development, production, storage and recovery of coal, oil and gas and other mineral resources regulated under Chapters 22, 22a, or 22b of the WV Code.

3.68. Well Cap. -- A casing seal, approved by the Commissioner, that covers and encloses the upper termination of the well casing above the pitless well adapter or unit to prevent entry of contamination into the well.

3.69. Well Liner. -- A casing placed inside the well, which may be required due to conditions encountered during and after drilling. A liner does not include casing that, once installed, requires the placement of grout to comply with construction standards of this rule.

3.70. WSC. -- Water System Council. WSC is the only national, non-profit organization solely focused on household wells and small, water well systems.

W. Va. Code R. § 64-46-3