40B-3.021. Definitions

When used in this chapter:

(1) “Abandon” or “Well abandonment” means to plug a well as set forth in Rule 40B-3.531, F.A.C.

(2) “Abandoned artesian well” means any well as defined in Section 373.203(1), F.S.

(3) “Abandoned water well” or “abandoned well” means any well as defined in subsection 373.303(1), F.A.C.

(4) “Annulus” or “annular space” means any artificially created void existing between a well casing or liner pipe and a borehole wall or the space between two casings or liner pipes.

(5) “Aquifer” means an underground water-bearing formation sufficiently permeable to yield water to wells or springs.

(6) “Casing diameter” or “diameter of casing” means the largest inside diameter of the final casing when less than 14 inches. When equal to or greater than 14 inches, it is the largest outside diameter of the final casing.

(7) “Contractor” means any person licensed by the Department or a Water Management District, in accordance with Chapter 62-531, F.A.C., and engaged in the business of construction, repair, or abandonment of wells.

(8) “Department” means the Department of Environmental Protection or its successor agency or agencies.

(9) “Dewatering” means the use of wells or other such equipment to temporarily lower a water level as may be necessary during construction activities.

(10) “DOH” means the Department of Health or its successor agency or agencies.

(11) “District” means the Suwannee River Water Management District operating under the authority of Chapter 373, F.S.

(12) “Drive shoe” means any device specifically designed, fabricated, and installed to protect the end of a well casing or liner pipe from collapse or other damage while the casing or liner pipe is being driven into place in a well.

(13) “Governing Board” or “Board” means the Governing Board of the District.

(14) “Neat cement grout” or “grout” means a mixture of water and Portland cement (American Concrete Institute type I, American Concrete Institute type II, Class H, American Concrete Institute type III, or any other types of cement approved by the District), and may include bentonite (not to exceed five pounds per 94-pound sack of cement), calcium chloride (not to exceed three pounds per 94-pound sack of cement) or retarder (not to exceed one pound per 94-pound sack of cement) or other additives approved by the District to reduce permeability or shrinkage, increase fluidity, adjust slurry weight, and/or control set time.

(15) “Inspection port” means any opening in the well seal not less than one quarter (1/4) inch in diameter through which unobstructed access to the inside of the casing can be obtained for measuring water levels and other uses. Inspection ports shall be threaded openings temporarily sealed with a removable watertight plug.

(16) “Liner” means a metallic or nonmetallic pipe which is installed either within the outer casing to improve, repair, or protect the outer casing or below the outer casing to seal off caving materials which may be encountered in the open hole of the well.

(17) “Monitor well” means a well used primarily to monitor hydrogeologic parameters such as water levels or water quality.

(18) “Non-portable well” means a water well that is not intended to produce water for human consumption. Non-potable water wells include, but are not limited to, irrigation wells, geothermal wells, and monitor wells.

(19) “Public supply well” means a well constructed for the purpose of supplying water to a public water system, as permitted under Chapter 62-550, 62-555, 62-560, 62-524 or 64E-8, F.A.C.

(20) “Public supply system” means a system for the provision to the public of piped water for human consumption.

(21) “Test hole” or “Geotechnical boring” means an artificial hole in the ground drilled, bored, cored, washed, or jetted, the intended use of which includes obtaining data for engineering and/or for geophysical or geological exploration; prospecting for minerals or products of mining or quarrying; not for the purposes of either producing, disposing of, or searching for water.

(22) “Test well” means a well constructed for temporary use, designed to allow specific geological or groundwater parameters to be examined prior to the construction of a permanent well.

(23) “Tremie method” means a method of well abandonment or of grouting an annular space by pumping neat cement grout through a pipe in one continuous operation or in stages until grout is observed at land surface.

(24) “Upper well terminus” means that portion of a continuous water-bearing well casing ending above ground surface or within an approved enclosure below ground surface.

(25) “Water use permit” means a permit issued under Chapter 40B-2, F.A.C.

(26) “Water well” means a well as defined in Section 373.303(7), F.S.

(27) “Well casing” means a metallic or nonmetallic pipe installed in a borehole to prevent caving, provide structural strength, seal off zones of poor water quality, or prevent the interchange of waters between aquifers.

(28) “Well completion” means termination of all well construction, repair, or abandonment activities, including well development.

(29) “Well modification” means a change in the intended use of a well.

(30) “Well repair” means a repair activity as defined in Section 373.303(5), F.S.

Rulemaking Authority 373.044, 373.113, 373.171, 373.323(8), 373.324(4), 373.333(1), 373.337 FS. Law Implemented 373.019, 373.106, 373.303, 373.306, 373.342 FS. History–New 4-15-81, Amended 9-15-81, 1-31-83, 7-1-85, 8-15-89, 6-22-99, 10-18-22.