OCWD Management Area
A properly destroyed and sealed well has been filled so that it cannot produce water or act as a vertical conduit for the movement of groundwater. In cases where a well is paved over or under a structure and can no longer be accessed it is considered destroyed but not properly sealed. Many of these wells may not be able to be properly closed due to overlying structures, landscaping or pavement. Some of them may pose a threat to water quality because they can be conduits for contaminant movement as well as physical hazards to humans and/or animals. OCWD supports and encourages efforts to properly destroy abandoned wells. As part of routine monitoring of the groundwater basin, OCWD will investigate on a case-by-case basis any location where data suggests that an abandoned well may be present and may be threatening water quality. When an abandoned well is found to be a significant threat to the quality of groundwater, OCWD will work with OCHCA and the well owner, when appropriate, to properly destroy the well. The City of Anaheim has a well destruction policy and has an annual budget to destroy one or two wells per year. The funds are used when an abandoned well is determined to be a public nuisance or needs to be destroyed to allow development of the site. The city’s well permit program requires all well owners to destroy their wells when they are no longer needed. When grant funding becomes available, the city uses the funds to destroy wells where a responsible party has not been determined and where the well was previously owned by a defunct water consortium. Information on the status of wells is kept within OCWD’s Water Re source Management System data base. Since the 2017 Alternative was submitted, a total of 15 production wells were properly destroyed and sealed. During this same period, a total of 9 new production wells were constructed.
6.2 GROUNDWATER QUALITY PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT
OCWD has a number of policies and programs to project groundwater quality. The list of programs below is described in detail in the 2017 Alternative.
• OCWD Groundwater Protection Policy (2014) • Various Salinity Management Programs o Seawater Intrusion Barriers o Coastal Pumping Transfer Program o Groundwater Replenishment System o Septic Systems o
Nitrogen and Selenium Management Program o Groundwater Desalters and Inland Empire Brine Line and Non-Reclaimable Waste Line o Basin Monitoring Program Task Force o Salinity Management and imported Water Workgroup o Nitrate Management Program
BASIN 8-1 ALTERNATIVE 2022 UPDATE
Water Resource Management Programs 6-3
Appendix F - 133
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