Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 39, September 26, 2024
(a) All water wells
abandoned by the landowner on or after July 1, 1979, and all water wells that
were abandoned prior to July 1, 1979 which pose a threat to groundwater
supplies, shall be plugged or caused to be plugged by the landowner. In all
cases, the landowner shall perform the following as minimum requirements for
plugging abandoned wells.
(1) The casing
shall be cut off three feet below ground surface and removed.
(2) All wells shall be plugged from bottom to
top using volumes of material equaling at least the inside volume of the well.
(3) Plugging top of well:
(A) For cased wells a grout plug shall be
placed from six to three feet below ground surface.
(B) For dug wells, the lining material shall
be removed to at least five feet below ground surface, and then sealed at five
feet with a minimum of six inches of concrete or other materials approved by
the department. Compacted surface silts and clays shall be placed over the
concrete seal to ground surface.
(4) Any groundwater displaced upward inside
the well casing during the plugging operation shall be removed before
additional plugging materials are added.
(5) From three feet below ground level to
ground level, the plugged well shall be covered over with compacted surface
silts or clays.
(6) Compacted
clays or grout shall be used to plug all wells from the static water level to
six feet below surface.
(7) All
sand and gravel used in plugging abandoned domestic or public water supply
wells shall be chlorinated prior to placement into a well.
(b) Abandoned wells formerly
producing groundwater from an unconfined aquifer shall be plugged in accordance
with the foregoing and in addition shall have washed sand, and gravel or other
material approved by the department placed from the bottom of the well to the
static water level.
(c) Abandoned
wells, formerly producing groundwater from confined and unconfined aquifers or
in confined aquifers only, shall be plugged according to K.A.R. 28-30-7(a) and
by using one of the following additional procedures:
(1) The entire well column shall be filled
with grout, or other material approved by the department, by use of a grout
tremie pipe.
(2) A 10 foot grout
plug shall be placed opposite the impervious formation or confining layer above
each confined aquifer or aquifers by use of a grout tremie pipe; and
(A) The space between plugs shall be filled
with clays, silts, sand and gravel or grout and shall be placed inside the well
so as to prevent bridging.
(B) A
grout plug at least 20 feet in length shall be placed with a grout pipe so at
least 10 feet of the plug extends below the base of the well casing and at
least 10 feet of the plug extends upward inside the bottom of the well casing.
(C) A grout plug at least 10 feet
in length shall be placed from at least 13 feet below ground level to the top
of the cut off casing.
(3) Wells that have an open bore hole below
the well casing, and where the casing was not grouted into the well bore when
the well was constructed, shall be plugged by (1) or (2) above except that the
top 20 feet of well casing shall be removed or perforated with a casing ripper
or similar device prior to plugging. If the well is plugged according to part
(2) of this subsection, the screened or perforated intervals below the well
casing shall be grouted the entire length by use of a grout tremie pipe.
(d) Plugging of
abandoned holes. If the hole penetrates an aquifer containing water with more
than 1,000 milligrams per liter, mg/l, total dissolved solids or is in an area
determined by the department to be contaminated, the entire hole shall be
plugged with an approved grouting material from the bottom of the hole, up to
within three feet of the ground surface using a grout tremie pipe or similar
method. From three feet below ground surface to ground surface the plugged hole
shall be covered over with compacted surface silts or clays; otherwise, the
hole shall be plugged in accordance with the following paragraphs.
(1) Plugging of abandoned cased test holes.
The casing shall be removed if possible and the abandoned test hole shall be
plugged with an approved grouting material from the bottom of the hole, up to
within three feet of the ground surface, using a grout tremie pipe or similar
method. From three feet below ground surface to ground surface the plugged hole
shall be covered over with compacted surface silts or clays. If the casing
cannot be removed, in addition to plugging the hole with an approved grouting
material the annular space shall also be grouted as described in K.A.R. 28-30-6
or as approved by the department.
(2) Abandoned uncased test holes, exploratory
holes or any bore holes except seismic or oil field related exploratory and
service holes regulated by the Kansas corporation commission under K.A.R.
82-3-115 through 82-3-117. A test hole or bore hole drilled, bored, cored or
augered shall be considered an abandoned hole immediately after the completion
of all testing, sampling or other operations for which the hole was originally
intended. The agency or contractor in charge of the exploratory or other
operations for which the hole was originally intended is responsible for
plugging the abandoned hole using the following applicable method, within three
calendar days after the termination of testing or other operations.
(A) The entire hole shall be plugged with an
approved grouting material from bottom of the hole, up to within three feet of
the ground surface, using a grout tremie pipe or similar method.
(B) From three feet below ground surface to
ground surface the plugged hole shall be covered over with compacted surface
silts or clays.
(C) For bore holes
of 25 feet or less, drill cuttings from the original hole may be used to plug
the hole in lieu of grouting material, provided that an aquifer is not
penetrated or the bore hole is not drilled in an area determined by the
department to be a contaminated area.
(3) Plugging of heat pump holes drilled for
closed loop heat pump systems. The entire hole shall be plugged with an
approved grouting material from bottom of the hole, to the bottom of the
horizontal trench, using a grout tremie pipe or similar method approved by the
department.
(e)
Abandoned oil field water supply wells. A water well drilled at an oil or gas
drilling site to supply water for drilling activities shall be considered an
abandoned well immediately after the termination of the oil or gas drilling
operations. The company in charge of the drilling of the oil or gas well shall
be responsible for plugging the abandoned water well, in accordance with K.A.R.
28-30-7(a), (b), and (c), within 30 calendar days after the termination of oil
or gas drilling operations.
Responsibility for the water well may be conveyed back to the
landowner in lieu of abandoning and plugging the well but the well must conform
to the requirements for active or inactive status. The transfer must be made
through a legal document, approved by the department, advising the landowner of
the landowner's responsibilities and obligations to properly maintain the well,
including the proper plugging of the well when it is abandoned and no longer
needed for water production activities. If a transfer is to be made, the oil or
gas drilling company shall provide the department with a copy of the transfer
document within 30 calendar days after the termination of oil or gas drilling
operations. Within 30 calendar days of the effective date of the transfer of
the well the landowner shall notify the department of the intended use and
whether the well is in active status or inactive status in accordance with
K.A.R. 28-30-7(f).
(f)
Inactive status. Landowners may obtain the department's written approval to
maintain wells in an inactive status rather than being plugged if the landowner
can present evidence to the department as to the condition of the well and as
to the landowner's intentions to use the well in the future. As evidence of
intentions, the owner shall be responsible for properly maintaining the well in
such a way that:
(1) The well and the annular
space between the hole and the casing shall have no defects that will permit
the entrance of surface water or vertical movement of subsurface water into the
well;
(2) the well is clearly
marked and is not a safety hazard;
(3) the top of the well is securely capped in
a watertight manner and is adequately maintained in such a manner as to prevent
easy entry by other than the landowner;
(4) the area surrounding the well shall be
protected from any potential sources of contamination within a 50 foot radius;
(5) if the pump, motor or both,
have been removed for repair, replacement, etc., the well shall be maintained
to prevent injury to people and to prevent the entrance of any contaminant or
other foreign material;
(6) the
well shall not be used for disposal or injection of trash, garbage, sewage,
wastewater or storm runoff; and
(7) the well shall be easily accessible to
routine maintenance and periodic inspection.
The landowner shall notify the department of any change in the
status of the well. All inactive wells found not to be in accordance with the
criteria listed in lines one through seven above shall be considered to be
abandoned and shall be plugged by the landowner in accordance with K.A.R.
28-30-7(a) through (c).
