Kansas Administrative Regulations
Agency 5 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE-DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES
Article 23 - SOUTHWEST KANSAS GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT NO. 3
Section 5-23-3a - Minimum well spacing requirements: confined aquifers

Universal Citation: KS Admin Regs 5-23-3a

Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 39, September 26, 2024

(a)

(1) The minimum horizontal distance between each proposed nontemporary, nondomestic well and all other senior nontemporary, nondomestic wells diverting water from a confined aquifer shall be determined from the following schedule.

Quantity per well (acre-feet per year) Minimum well spacing requirement Required distance from hydraulic contact point

15 or less 660 feet 2,640 feet

16 to 25 2,300 feet 1 mile

26 to 100 5,280 feet 2 miles

More than 100 10,560 feet 5 miles

(A) The minimum spacing for the total authorized and requested annual quantity of water of the proposed well; or

(B) the total authorized and requested quantity of water for nontemporary, nondomestic well against which spacing is being measured that is senior to the date on which the application was filed.

The total annual quantity of water per well shall be the sum of all of the quantities authorized or requested by any water rights, approvals of applications, or applications requesting or authorizing that well as a point of diversion.

If the quantity of water applied for includes a fraction of an acre-foot, the quantity of water shall be rounded down to the next whole number of acre-feet for the purpose of applying the table in this subsection.

(b) In the case of a battery of wells, as defined in K.A.R. 5-1-1, the minimum horizontal distance shall be measured from the geographic center of the wells comprising the battery.

(c) A well penetrating both a confined and unconfined aquifer shall be constructed to prevent the vertical migration of water between the aquifers. A well diverting water from the Dakota aquifer system shall be constructed to prevent the vertical migration of water between the Dakota aquifer system and all other freshwater aquifers.

(d) The location of a well or wells on an application for approval to change the point of diversion under an existing water right shall be no more than 2,640 feet from the currently authorized and completed point of diversion.

(e) A well shall be exempt from the minimum well spacing requirements of this regulation if the well meets either of the following conditions:

(1) The well is being replaced within 300 feet of the currently authorized point of diversion.

(2) The proposed replacement well location improves the spacing to all other wells for which the spacing requirement was not met on the date on which the application for a change in point of diversion was filed and continues to meet requirements for spacing to all wells for which the spacing requirement was met at the time the application for change in point of diversion was filed.

(f) No application for approval to change the point of diversion under an approval of application for which the original well has not been drilled shall be approved if the location of the proposed point of diversion decreases the distance from the approved location to any other existing wells to less than the spacing requirements for a new application.

(g) Each nondomestic, nontemporary well shall be located a minimum of 1,320 feet from all domestic wells in the same or a hydraulically connected aquifer with a priority earlier than the date on which the change application was filed, unless all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The domestic well is owned by the applicant.

(2) The applicant signs a written request to waive the requirements for spacing to the domestic well.

(3) The applicant submits information documenting the location and depth of the domestic well and any other information necessary for the chief engineer to determine whether the domestic well is likely to be impaired.

(4) A Theis analysis or other hydraulic analysis shows that the domestic well is not likely to be impaired by the proposed well.

(h) The minimum horizontal distance between a nontemporary, nondomestic well withdrawing water from a confined aquifer and a well withdrawing water from an unconfined aquifer shall be 660 feet.

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