(a) Purpose. To protect public health, safety, and welfare and to prevent contamination of water supplies by assuring that unused, unsafe, or noncomplying wells or wells which may act as conduits for contamination of groundwater or wells which may be illegally cross-connected to the municipal water system, are properly maintained or properly filled and sealed.
(b) Applicability. This section applies to all wells located on premises served by the village municipal water system. Communities outside the jurisdiction of a supplying municipal system are also required by code, contract agreement, or Utility rule to adopt and enforce equivalent ordinances within their jurisdictions for purpose stated in subsection (a) above.
(c) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates, or requires, a different meaning.
COMMUNITIES SERVED. Any jurisdiction having customers supplied by a municipal water system as retail or wholesale customers, including those outside the jurisdiction of the supplying system.
MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEM. A community water system owned by a city, village, county, town, town sanitary district, utility district, public inland lake and rehabilitation district, municipal water district or a federal, state, county, or municipal owned institution for congregate care or correction, or a privately owned water utility serving the foregoing.
NONCOMPLYING. A well or pump installation which does not comply with Wis. Admin. Code, Chapter 845, Standards for Existing Installations, and which has not been granted a variance pursuant to Wis. Admin. Code, Chapter 845.
PUMP INSTALLATION. The pump and related equipment used for withdrawing water from a well, including the discharge piping, the underground connections, pitless adapters, pressure tanks, pits, sampling faucets, and well seals or caps.
SERVED BY. Any property having a water supply pipe extending onto it which is connected to the municipal water system.
UNSAFE WELL OR PUMP INSTALLATION. One which produces water which is bacteriologically contaminated or contaminated with other substances exceeding the drinking water standards of Wis. Admin. Code, Chapters NR 140 or 809 or for which a Health Advisory has been issued by the Department of Natural Resources.
UNUSED WELL. One which does not have a functional pumping system or other complying means of withdrawing water.
WELL. A drillhole or other excavation or opening deeper than it is wide that extends more than ten feet below the ground surface constructed for the purpose of obtaining groundwater.
WELL ABANDONMENT. The proper filling and sealing or decommissioning of a well according to the provisions of Wis. Admin. Code, NR 845.01.
(d) Well abandonment required. All wells on premises served by the municipal water system shall be properly filled and sealed in accordance with subsection (f) below by October 1 or not later than 90 days from the date of connection to the municipal water system, or discovery or construction of a well, unless a valid well operation permit has been issued to the well owner by the village under terms of subsection (e) below.
(e) Well operation permit. Owners of wells on premises served by the municipal water system shall make application for a well operation permit for each well no later than 90 days after connection to the municipal water system, or date of discovery or construction of a well. The village shall grant a permit to a well owner to operate a well for a period not to exceed five years providing all conditions of this section are met. A well operation permit may be renewed by submitting an application verifying that the conditions of this section are met. The village, or its agent, may conduct inspections and water quality tests or require inspections and water quality tests to be conducted at the applicant’s expense to obtain or verify information necessary for consideration of a permit application or renewal. Permit applications and renewals shall be made on forms provided by the Clerk. All initial and renewal applications must be accompanied by a fee of $50. The following conditions must be met for issuance or renewal of a well operation permit.
(1) The well and pump installation shall comply with the Standards for Existing Installations described in Wis. Admin. Code, § SNR 812.42, or repaired to comply with current standards. Compliance shall be verified by inspection for initial issuance of a permit and every ten years thereafter. Inspections shall be conducted by a state licensed well driller or pump installer, and documented on inspection report form DNR #3300-221, to be submitted to the Clerk.
(2) a. The well and pump shall have a history of producing safe water evidenced by a certified lab report for at least one coliform bacteria sample collected within prior 30 days, and submitted to the Clerk.
b. In areas where the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has determined that groundwater aquifers are contaminated with substances other than bacteria, additional chemical tests may be required to document the safety of the water.
(3) There shall be no cross-connections or interconnection between the well’s pump installation or distribution piping and the municipal water system unless approved by the utility and DNR.
(4) The water from the private well shall not discharge into a drain leading directly to a public sewer utility unless properly metered and authorized by the sewer utility.
(5) The private well shall have a functional pumping system or other complying means of withdrawing water.
(6) The proposed use of the private well shall be justified as reasonable in addition to water provided by the municipal water system.
(f) Well filling-and-sealing procedures.
(1) All wells abandoned under the jurisdiction of this ordinance shall be filled and sealed according to the procedures of Wis. Admin. Code, § SNR 812.26.
(2) All well filling and sealing under jurisdiction of this ordinance shall be performed by, or under the supervision of, a Certified Water System Operator employed by the village, or by a state-licensed well driller or pump installer, per Wis. Stats. § 280.30.
(3) The owner of the well, or the owner’s agent, may be required to obtain a well abandonment permit prior to any well abandonment, and shall notify the Clerk at least 48 hours in advance of any well abandonment activities. The abandonment of the well may be observed or verified by personnel of the municipal system.
(4) A well filling and sealing report form DNR#3300-005, supplied by the Department of Natural Resources, shall be submitted by the well owner to the Clerk and to the Department of Natural Resources within 30 days of the completion of the well abandonment.
(g) Penalties. Any well owner violating any provision of this section shall, upon conviction, be punished by forfeiture pursuant to § 1-1-6 and the cost of prosecution. Each day of violation is a separate offense. If any person fails to comply with this section for more than 30 days after receiving written notice of the violation, the municipality may impose a penalty and cause the well abandonment to be performed, and the expense to be assessed as a special tax against the property.
(Ord. 9-1-51, passed 4-15-2013)