These regulations are intended to promote the health and general
welfare by ensuring that private wells are constructed in a manner
which will protect the quality of the groundwater derived from wells.
These regulations are adopted by the authority of MGL c. 111, § 31.
As used in these regulations, the following terms shall be defined
and interpreted as follows.
A private well that has not been used for a water supply
for a period of one year or more and which the owner does not intend
to use again.
A water-bearing geologic formation that contains water in
sufficient quantities to potentially supply a well for drinking water
or other purposes.
An individual, corporation, company, association, trust,
or partnership.
Water that is satisfactory for drinking and for culinary
and domestic purposes.
A water supply well which will not server either a number
of service connections or a number of individuals sufficient to qualify
as a public water system as defined in 310 CMR 22.02.
Any equipment or materials used or intended for use in withdrawing
or obtaining groundwater, including, without limitation, seals and
tanks, together with fittings and controls.
The Lancaster Board of Health through its agent, the Nashoba
Associated Boards of Health.
An excavation of opening in the ground made by digging, boring,
drilling, driving, or other methods for the purpose of providing a
water supply for any purpose, including but not limited to industrial,
commercial, irrigation, and drinking.
Any person who is licensed by the Water Resource Commission
(as defined by Chapter 620 of the Acts of 1956, as amended) to construct
wells.
An approved arrangement or device used to cap a well or establish
and maintain a junction between the casing or curbing of a well and
the piping or equipment installed therein, the purpose or function
of which is to prevent pollutants from entering the well at the upper
terminal.
A.
No private well shall be deemed a source of potable water unless
it is constructed in accordance with these regulations. No well shall
be destroyed except in accordance with these regulations.
B.
For each private well constructed after the effective date of these
regulations, there shall be:
D.
The Board of Health or its agent shall investigate violations of
these regulations or any permit issued and may take such actions as
it may deem necessary for the protection of the public health and
to restrain violations of these regulations.
E.
Whosoever violates these regulations shall be punished by a fine
of not more than $500 to, and for the use of, the Town in which the
well is located.
A.
No person shall engage in the business of constructing or destroying
a private well within the Town of Lancaster under these regulations
unless registered as a well driller/digger with the Water Resources
Commission, pursuant to 313 CMR 3.00.
B.
An application for a well construction or destruction permit shall
be submitted by the property owner, the well driller/digger or his
agent to the Board's agent on a form furnished by the Board's agent.
C.
A well construction or destruction permit shall be obtained from
the Board's agent prior to the construction or destruction of a private
well. The Board's agent shall charge a fee for each well construction
or destruction permit and said fee shall be paid to the Board's agent.
D.
All well construction permit applications, regardless of the intended
use of the well, must be submitted to the Board for approval before
a permit will be issued by the Board's agent.
A.
The following information shall be submitted by the property owner
or the well driller/digger or its agent with the well construction
application, prior to the issuance of a permit:
(1)
General location of the proposed well, to include the location of
a least one road intersection for reference.
(2)
A sketch of the expected construction of the well, to include an
approximation of the expected well depth.
(3)
A description of any possible source(s) of contamination within 1,000 feet of the proposed well location. See § 303-17.
(4)
The well driller's/digger's name and certification number as it appears
on the Water Resources Commission certificate.
(5)
Description of the prior/current land use in the vicinity of the
proposed well location (i.e., agricultural, industrial, etc.).
B.
For emergency repair, alteration, or replacement of an existing well,
the Board of Health or its agent may waive the requirements of these
regulations for dwellings, which were in existence prior to the effective
date of this regulation.
A.
In establishing the location of a well, the well owner and/or the
driller/digger shall identify any and all sources of potential contamination
(agricultural fields, animal feed lots, beauty salon, dry cleaner,
funeral home, furniture stripper/refinisher, gasoline/service station,
fuel depot, automotive junkyard, railroad line or yard, etc.) which
exist within 1,000 feet of the proposed well site. The following minimum
lateral distances from contamination shall apply with the granting
of a variance under special conditions:
[Amended 4-3-2019]
|
Source of Contamination
|
Minimum Distance
(feet)
|
|---|---|
|
Leaching facility (310 CMR 15.000)
|
100
|
|
Cesspool (310 CMR 15.000)
|
100
|
|
Septic tank (310 CMR 15.000)
|
50
|
|
Sewer line (310 CMR 15.000)
|
10
|
|
Property line (local)
|
50
|
|
Public or private way, common drive, easement (local)
|
50
|
|
Any type of surface water (local)
|
100
|
B.
Where, in the opinion of the LBOH or its agent, adverse conditions
exist, the above minimum distances may be increased or special means
of protection may be required. These special requirements shall be
added to the well construction permit by the Board's agent.
C.
The well shall be upgradient of sources of contamination whenever
possible. The top of the well shall be higher than any surface of
contamination and above any conditions of flooding by drainage or
runoff from the surrounding land, unless otherwise adequately protected.
A.
Wells shall be constructed in compliance with the recommendations
of the latest edition of the Manual of Individual Water Supply, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (USEPS), Water Supply Division (Exception:
Springs shall not be used for the purpose of a potable water supply.).
B.
The annular space between the protective well casing and the wall
of the drilled hole or the surface casing shall be effectively sealed.
The seal is to protect against contamination by surface and/or shallow,
subsurface waters.
C.
The well casing shall be capped or covered with a sanitary well seal.
Casings shall extend a minimum of 24 inches above the highest known
flood level or 18 inches above the ground surface in areas which are
not subject to flooding.
D.
When well screens are used, the screen length and opening size should
be selected to ensure that the water supply would be free from silts
and sands and other suspended solids.
E.
Well pumps and water storage equipment shall be selected to ensure
that the water supply is to be adequate (A minimum of five gallons
per minute (GPM) is recommended over a sustained period of pumping.).
NOTE: The proper selection of the pump is important to protect against
unnecessary wear on the equipment and to maintain a safe and adequate
supply of water.
F.
Pump suction lines (if used) shall not be closer than 100 feet to
subsurface sewerage leaching facilities of 50 feet to a septic tank
(310 CMR 15.211).
G.
Well pits to house the pumping equipment or to permit accessibility
to the top of a well shall not be permitted.
All private wells shall be disinfected following construction,
rehabilitation and well or pump repair, before the well is placed
into service. The well shall be pumped to waste (not to the septic
system) until the water is as clear as possible. Thereafter, the well
and pumping equipment (and plumbing, if installed) shall be disinfected
with a solution containing at least 50 parts per million (PPM) of
chlorine. The well shall remain in contact with the chlorine solution
for a minimum of 24 hours before the well is pumped to waste (not
the septic system) and the water is found to be clear of chlorine.
Information and instructions for the disinfection procedure are available
from the NAHB.
A.
Water samples shall be collected by the Board's agent. All water samples shall be collected in an appropriate manner so as to maintain the integrity of the sample collected. Collection of the sample(s) shall occur following the well development and the disinfection process for that well (see § 303-23). The water sample may be taken to a laboratory of the Board's agent's choice unless the owner selects a specific laboratory, at which time the sample container may be sealed with a custody tag and be delivered to the owner-selected testing laboratory by him-/herself. The laboratory shall be required to notify the Board's agent should the sample be received with a broken custody seal.
B.
A representative water sample for laboratory analysis shall be collected
at the pump discharge or from a tap in the pump discharge line. A
representative sample shall constitute a sample collected after the
removal of at least three standing volumes of water from the well
or a minimum of 10 to 15 minutes of pumping from the well.
C.
The sample(s) shall be analyzed for the following parameters at a
minimum: coliform bacteria, arsenic, lead, sodium, iron, manganese,
color, sulfate, turbidity, alkalinity, chlorine, chloride, hardness,
ammonia, nitrate, pH, conductivity, odor and potassium. All analyses
shall be performed in accordance with U.S. EPA methods or other approved
methods for drinking water analysis.
D.
Analytical tests such as volatile organics (VOCs), pesticides, PCBs
and inorganics (metals) other than those specified above can be added
or deleted as public knowledge increases or at the request of Board
or its agent, when conditions may indicate the need (i.e., prior land
use) for such testing. Samples, which are to be analyzed for volatile
organic compounds, shall not contain air bubbles of any size.
A.
All analytical results shall be reviewed by the Board's agent and
an assessment of the suitability of that well for drinking water will
be made. The Board's agent will adhere to the current and applicable
drinking water standards as detailed by the U.S. EPA and the State
of Massachusetts, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Approval
of the results, by the Board's agent, must be obtained in writing
before the well shall be placed into service as a drinking water supply.
B.
The water sample(s) shall be analyzed by a laboratory certified to
perform drinking water analysis by the DEP for each parameter analyzed.
A copy of the results shall be sent to both the Board and its agent.
All fees for the water testing are the responsibility of the applicant,
and all fees shall be paid in full prior to the approval of the well
permit.
C.
As stated above in § 303-20, the Board or its agent may require that additional chemical analysis be performed on the well water. Any additional requirement shall specify which chemical constituents or chemical fractions (pesticide/PCB, extractables, etc.) shall be tested for.
D.
No result shall exceed the current and applicable drinking water
standards for a public water supply, as detailed by the U.S. EPA and/or
DEP (40 CFR 141 and 310 CMR 22). Coliform results shall be zero colonies
per 100 milliliters of sample or upon a positive result be followed
by two successive zero coliform results. The Board or its agent may
also use professional judgment when assessing the results of the water
prior to approval of that well. When the results indicate a potential
health hazard (i.e., possible gasoline contamination) the Board or
its agent may at its discretion disapprove the well for use as a water
supply.
A.
Within 30 days after the completion of the construction of any well,
the well driller/digger shall submit to the Board's agent a report
containing the following information:
(1)
The name and owner of the well.
(2)
The address of the property served and/or the lot number as assigned
by the Assessor's office.
(3)
The depth, size and method of construction of the well.
(4)
The static water level.
(5)
The yield of the well after pumping.
(6)
The well driller's/digger's log information.
B.
The well driller's/digger's report shall be signed by an authorized
representative and shall constitute a statement of compliance will
all requirements of these regulations. This will satisfy the requirement
of the certificate of compliance.
A well that is abandoned shall be destroyed to protect the groundwater
supply and to eliminate potential physical hazards. Wells shall be
sealed with nonhazardous, impervious materials, which shall be permanently
in place. All exposed casing materials, pumping equipment, and distribution
lines shall be removed. The excavation shall be returned to the existing
grade of the surrounding land. A record of abandonment shall be kept
in accordance with these regulations.
A.
The following information shall be submitted with each well destruction
application, prior to the issuance of a permit:
B.
Within 30 days after the destruction of any well, the well driller/digger
or contractor shall submit to the Board's agent a report containing
the following:
C.
The well driller's/digger's report shall be signed by an authorized
representative and shall constitute a statement of compliance with
all requirements of these regulations. This will satisfy the requirement
of the certificate of compliance.
The installation of any well shall be prohibited when the dwelling,
business or structure is served by a municipal water supply.
A.
Variances may be granted only as follows: The Board may vary the
application of these regulations with respect to any particular case
when, in its opinion, the enforcement thereof would do manifest injustice,
and the applicant has proven that the same degree of public health
and environmental protection required under these regulations can
be achieved without strict application of a particular provision(s).
B.
Variance requests shall be in writing to the Board and include all
information/reasons and proposed measures necessary to ensure the
protection of the public health and environment. The Board shall grant,
modify, or deny a variance in writing, and state the reasons for any
denial.
Substantive procedures shall be performed as specified in 105
CMR 400.000.
