WAC 173-162-030   How are the words and phrases used in this chapter?  See other definitions under chapter 173-160 WAC.

     (1) "Constructing a well" or "construct a well" means:

     (a) Boring, digging, drilling, or excavating a well;

     (b) Installing casing, sheeting, lining, or well screens, in a well;

     (c) Drilling a geotechnical soil boring; or

     (d) Installing an environmental investigation well.

     "Constructing a well" or "construct a well" includes the alteration of an existing well.

     (2) "Continuing education provider" is any person, organization, school or other entity involved in education that has received approval from the department for their continuing education plan and curriculum.

     (3) "Continuing education unit" is one credit approved by the department for time spent participating in training or instruction in subject areas approved by the department.

     (4) "Decommissioning" means to fill or plug a well so that it will not produce water, serve as a channel for movement of water or pollution, or allow the entry of pollutants into the well or aquifers.

     (5) "Department" means the department of ecology.

     (6) "Dewatering well" means a cased or lined excavation or boring that is intended to withdraw or divert ground water for the purpose of facilitating construction, stabilizing a land slide, or protecting an aquifer.

     (7) "Director" means director of the department of ecology.

     (8) "Domestic water supply" is any water supply which serves a family residence(s).

     (9) "Driven well" is a well constructed by joining a "drive point" to a length of pipe, then driving the assembly into the ground.

     (10) "Dug well" is a well generally excavated with hand tools or by mechanical methods. The side walls may be supported by material other than standard weight steel casing.

     (11) "Environmental investigation well" means a cased hole intended or used to extract a sample or samples of ground water, vapor, or soil from an underground formation and which is decommissioned immediately after the sample or samples are obtained. An environmental investigation well is typically installed using direct push technology or auger boring and uses the probe, stem, auger, or rod as casing. An environmental investigation well is not a geotechnical soil boring.

     (12) "Geotechnical soil boring" or "boring" means an uncased well drilled for the purpose of obtaining soil samples to ascertain structural properties of the subsurface.

     (13) "Ground source heat pump boring" means a vertical boring constructed for the purpose of installing a closed loop heat exchange system for a ground source heat pump.

     (14) "Ground water" means and includes ground waters as defined in RCW 90.44.035.

     (15) "Grounding well" means a grounding electrode installed in the earth by the use of drilling equipment to prevent buildup of voltages that may result in undue hazards to persons or equipment. Examples are anode and cathode protection wells.

     (16) "Instrumentation well" means a well in which pneumatic or electric geotechnical or hydrological instrumentation is permanently or periodically installed to measure or monitor subsurface strength and movement. Instrumentation well includes bore hole extensometers, slope indicators, pneumatic or electric pore pressure transducers, and load cells.

     (17) "Monitoring well" means a well designed to obtain a representative ground water sample or designed to measure the water level elevations in either clean or contaminated water or soil.

     (18) "Observation well" means a well designed to measure the depth to the water or water level elevation in either clean or contaminated water or soil.

     (19) "Operator" means a person who:

     (a) Is employed by a well contractor;

     (b) Is licensed under this chapter; or

     (c) Who controls, supervises, or oversees the construction of a well or who operates well construction equipment.

     (20) "Owner" or "well owner" means the person, firm, partnership, copartnership, corporation, association, other entity, or any combination of these, who owns the property on which the well is or will be constructed or has the right to the well by means of an easement, covenant, or other enforceable legal instrument for the purpose of benefiting from the well.

     (21) "Public water supply" is any water supply intended or used for human consumption or other domestic uses, including source, treatment, storage, transmission and distribution facilities where water is furnished to any community, collection or number of individuals, available to the public for human consumption or domestic use, excluding water supplies serving one single-family residence and a system with four or fewer connections all of which serve residences on the same farm.

     (22) "Remediation well" means a well intended or used to withdraw ground water or inject water, air (for air sparging), or other solutions into the subsurface for the purpose of remediating, cleaning up, or controlling potential or actual ground water contamination.

     (23) "Resource protection well" means a cased boring intended or used to collect subsurface information or to determine the existence or migration of pollutants within an underground formation. Resource protection wells include monitoring wells, observation wells, piezometers, spill response wells, remediation wells, environmental investigation wells, vapor extraction wells, ground source heat pump boring, grounding wells, and instrumentation wells.

     (24) "Resource protection well contractor" means any person, firm, partnership, copartnership, corporation, association, or other entity, licensed and bonded under chapter 18.27 RCW, engaged in the business of constructing resource protection wells or geotechnical soil borings.

     (25) "Spill response well" means a well used to capture or recover any spilled or leaked fluid which has the potential to, or has contaminated the ground water.

     (26) "Structured properties" means subsurface engineering properties or geotechnical information used for the purpose of designing structures such as bridges, buildings, highways, pipelines, or for assessing slope stability samples.

     (27) "Test well" is a well (either cased or uncased), constructed to determine the quantity of water available for beneficial uses, identifying underlying rock formations (lithology), and to locate optimum zones to be screened or perforated. If a test well is constructed with the intent to withdraw water for beneficial use, it must be constructed in accordance with the minimum standards for water supply wells, otherwise they shall be constructed in accordance with the minimum standards for resources protection wells. A water right permit, preliminary permit, or temporary permit shall be obtained prior to constructing a test well unless the anticipated use of water is exempt as provided in RCW 90.44.050. A "test well" is a type of "water well."

     (28) "Vapor extraction well" means a well used to withdraw gases or vapors from soil, rock, landfill, or ground water or allow air or vapor to enter subsurface soil or rock for the purpose of remediating soil and/or ground water contamination.

     (29) "Water well" means any excavation that is constructed when the intended use of the well is for the location, diversion, artificial recharge, observation, monitoring, dewatering or withdrawal of ground water. Water well includes ground source heat pump borings and grounding wells.

     (30) "Water well contractor" means any person, firm, partnership, copartnership, corporation, association, or other entity, licensed and bonded under chapter 18.27 RCW, engaged in the business of constructing water wells.

     (31) "Well alterations" include(s), deepening, hydrofracturing or other operations intended to increase well yields or change the characteristics of the well. Well alterations does not include general maintenance, cleaning, sanitation, and pump replacement.

     (32) "Well contractor" means a resource protection well contractor and a water well contractor licensed and bonded under chapter 18.27 RCW.

     (33) "Well driller(s)" or "driller(s)" means a resource protection well contractor or operator and a water well contractor or operator.

     (34) "Well" means water wells, resources protection wells, dewatering wells, and geotechnical soil borings. Well does not mean an excavation made for the purpose of obtaining or prospecting for oil, natural gas, geothermal resources, minerals, or products of mining, or quarrying, or for inserting media to repressure oil or natural gas bearing formations, or for storing petroleum, natural gas, or other products.



[Statutory Authority: Chapter 18.104 RCW. 06-23-121 (Order 06-08), § 173-162-030, filed 11/21/06, effective 12/22/06. Statutory Authority: Chapter 18.104 RCW and RCW 43.21A.080. 98-08-031 (Order 97-08), § 173-162-030, filed 3/23/98, effective 4/23/98. Statutory Authority: Chapter 18.104 RCW. 88-08-070 (Order 88-58), § 173-162-030, filed 4/6/88; Order DE 73-10, § 173-162-030, filed 6/29/73.]