Section 2649 - Well Construction and Sampling Requirements(a) Owners or operators who use a qualitative release detection method shall comply with the requirements of this section and any applicable requirements of sections 2644, 2647, and 2648.(b) The installation of all monitoring wells and the drilling of all other borings shall be in accordance with local permitting requirements or, in their absence, with the following requirements: (1) All monitoring wells and all other borings shall be logged during drilling according to the following requirements: (A) Soil shall be described in the geologic log according to the Unified Soil Classification System as presented in Geotechnical Branch Training Manual Numbers 4, 5, and 6, published in January of 1986 (available from the Bureau of Reclamation, Engineering and Research Center, Attention: Code D-7923-A, Post Office Box 25007, Denver, Colorado 80225);(B) Rock shall be described in the geologic log in a manner appropriate for the purpose of the investigation;(C) All wet zones above the water table shall be noted and accurately logged. Where possible, the depth and thickness of saturated zones shall be recorded in the geologic log; and(D) Geologic logs shall be prepared by a professional geologist or civil engineer, who is registered or certified by the State of California and who is experienced in the use of the Unified Soil Classification System. The geologic logs may also be prepared by a technician trained and experienced in the use of the Unified Soil Classification System who is working under the direct supervision of one of the aforementioned professionals, provided that the professional reviews the logs and assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the logs.(2) All drilling tools shall be thoroughly steam cleaned immediately before each boring is started;(3) All well casings, casing fittings, screens, and all other components that are installed in a well shall be thoroughly cleaned before installation;(4) Soil and water sampling equipment and materials used to construct a monitoring well shall be compatible with the stored hazardous substance and shall not donate, capture, mask, or alter the constituents for which analyses will be made. All perforated casings used in the construction of monitoring wells shall be factory perforated;(5) Drilling fluid additives shall be limited to inorganic, non-hazardous materials which conform to the requirements of subsection (b)(4). All additives used shall be accurately recorded in the boring log;(6) Representative samples of additives, cement, bentonite, and filter media shall be retained for 90 days for possible analysis for contaminating or interfering constituents;(7) If evidence of contamination is detected by sight, smell, or field analytical methods, drilling shall be halted until a responsible professional determines if further drilling is advisable;(8) All borings which are converted to vadose zone monitoring wells shall have the portion of the boring which is below the monitored interval sealed with approved grout;(9) All borings which are not used for ground water or vadose zone monitoring shall be sealed from the ground surface to the bottom of the boring with an approved grout. All slurry-type grouts used to seal an abandoned boring or an abandoned well shall be emplaced by the tremie method; and(10) All monitoring wells shall be clearly marked and secured to avoid unauthorized access and tampering. Surface seals may be required by the local agency.(c) When installing a vadose zone or ground water monitoring well, the highest anticipated ground water level and existing ground water level shall be determined. Highest anticipated ground water levels shall be determined by reviewing all available water level records for wells within one mile of the site. Existing site ground water levels shall be established either by reviewing all available water level measurements taken within the last 24 months at all existing wells, within 500 feet of the underground storage tank which are perforated in the zone of interest, or by drilling at least one exploratory boring constructed as follows: (1) The exploratory boring shall be drilled down gradient, if possible, and as near as possible to the underground storage tank within the boundaries of the property encompassing the facility, but no further than 10 feet from the underground storage tank;(2) The exploratory boring may be of any diameter capable of allowing the detection of first ground water;(3) The exploratory boring shall be drilled to first perennial ground water, or to a minimum depth of 20 feet for vadose zone monitoring wells, or to a minimum depth of 30 feet for ground water monitoring wells if permitted by site lithology;(4) If ground water is encountered, and ground water monitoring is the monitoring method, the boring shall be converted to a ground water monitoring well consistent with the provisions of this section; and(5) If ground water is encountered, but ground water monitoring is not the monitoring method, or if the exploratory boring does not encounter ground water, the boring shall be sealed in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b)(9).(d) In addition to the requirements of subsection (b), all ground water monitoring wells shall be designed and constructed according to the following minimum requirements: (1) Ground water monitoring wells shall extend at least 20 feet below the lowest anticipated ground water level and at least 15 feet below the bottom level of the underground storage tank. However, wells shall not extend through laterally extensive impermeable zones that are below the water table and that are at least five feet thick. In these situations, the well shall be terminated one to two feet into the impermeable zone;(2) Ground water monitoring wells shall be designed and constructed as filter packed wells that will prevent the migration of the natural soil into the well and with factory perforated casing that is sized to prevent migration of filter material into the well;(3) Ground water monitoring well casings shall extend to the bottom of the boring and shall be factory perforated from a point of one foot above the bottom of the casing to an elevation which is either five feet above the highest anticipated ground water level or to within three feet of the bottom of the surface seal or to the ground surface, whichever is the lowest elevation;(4) All well casings shall have a bottom cap or plug;(5) Filter packs shall extend at least two feet above the top of the perforated zone except where the top two feet of the filter pack would provide cross-connection between otherwise isolated zones or where the ground surface is less than 10 feet above the highest anticipated ground water level, the local agency may reduce the height of the filter pack so long as the filter pack extends at least to the top of the perforated zone. Under such circumstances, additional precautions shall be taken to prevent plugging of the upper portion of the filter pack by the overlying sealing material;(6) Ground water monitoring wells shall be constructed with casings having a minimum inside diameter of two inches and shall be installed in a boring whose diameter is at least four inches greater than the outside diameter of the casing;(7) Ground water monitoring wells shall be sealed in accordance with local permitting requirements or, in their absence, with the Department of Water Resources Standards for Well Construction (Reference Bulletins 74-81 and 74-90 on Water Well Standards are available from the Department of Water Resources, Sacramento);(8) Seventy-two or more hours following well construction, all ground water monitoring wells shall be adequately developed and equilibrium shall be established prior to any water sampling;(9) Wellheads shall be provided with a water-tight cap and shall be enclosed in a surface security structure that protects the well from surface water entry, accidental damage, unauthorized access, and vandalism. Traffic lids shall be clearly marked as monitoring wells; and(10) Pertinent well information including well identification, well type, well depth, well casing diameters (if more than one size is used), and perforated intervals shall be permanently affixed to the interior of the surface security structure and the well identification number and well type shall be affixed on the exterior of the surface security structure.(e) In addition to the requirements of subsection (b), all vadose zone vapor monitoring wells shall be cased and sealed as follows:(1) Well casings for vapor monitoring shall be fully perforated except for the portion adjacent to a surface seal and that portion used as a free liquid trap;(2) Surface seals for vapor wells that are completed no more than five feet below the bottom of the underground storage tank and which are above any free water zones may be required at the discretion of the local agency on a site-specific basis;(3) If surface seals for vapor wells are completed in or below a potential free water zone, the seal shall not extend below the top of the underground storage tank; and(4) Vapor wells need not be sealed against infiltration of surface water if constructed wholly within backfill that surrounds the underground storage tank and which extends to the ground surface.(f) Undisturbed (intact) soil samples shall be obtained from all borings for the installation of monitoring wells and all other borings and analyzed according to the following minimum requirements, unless the local agency waives this requirement under this subsection:(1) Borings shall be drilled and sampled using accepted techniques which do not introduce liquids into the boring and which will allow the accurate detection of perched and saturated zone ground water. If this cannot be accomplished using acceptable techniques, the requirement for soil sampling may be waived by the local agency provided, however, that installation of the vadose zone or ground water monitoring system shall be completed; and provided further, that once below the water table, borings need not be advanced using the same method that was used in the vadose zone;(2) Soil samples shall be obtained at intervals of five feet or less and at any significant change in lithology, beginning at the ground surface. Sampling is not required in un-weathered bedrock which has little or no permeability;(3) A soil sample shall be obtained at the termination depth of a dry boring regardless of the spacing interval;(4) Soil samples shall be of sufficient volume to perform the designated analyses including soil vapor and soil extract analyses and to provide any specified replicate analyses;(5) Soil samples shall be acquired, prepared, preserved, stored, and transported by methods that are appropriate for the objectives of the investigation which safeguard sample integrity and satisfy the requirements of subsection (g);(6) Samples shall be analyzed in a State-certified laboratory by methods that provide quantitative or qualitative results. Lower detection limits shall be verified by the laboratory;(7) Samples shall be analyzed for one or more of the most persistent constituents that have been stored in the underground storage tank. If the use of the underground storage tank has historically changed, samples shall be analyzed for at least one constituent from each period of use. If the hazardous substance is known to degrade or transform to other constituents in the soil environment, the analysis shall include these degradation and/or transformation constituents;(8) If hazardous substances known or suspected to have been contained in the underground storage tank are detected at concentrations in excess of background concentrations (background concentrations shall be applicable only if the constituent occurs naturally at the site), further soil analysis is not necessary pursuant to this subsection. The hazardous substance(s) shall be assumed to have originated from the underground storage tank. In this situation, the remainder of the soil samples need not be analyzed pursuant to these regulations and the owner or operator shall comply with subdivision (9) below. A permit shall not be granted unless further detailed investigation clearly establishes that the underground storage tank is not the source of the hazardous substance or that it has been properly repaired since the unauthorized release and that any subsequent unauthorized release from the underground storage tank can be detected despite the presence of the hazardous substance already in the environment; and(9) If soil analysis indicates that an unauthorized release has occurred, the owner or operator shall comply with the release reporting requirements of Article 5 and shall replace, repair, upgrade, or close the underground storage tank pursuant to the applicable provisions of this chapter.(g) The qualitative release detection method shall include consistent sampling and analytical procedures, approved by the local agency, that are designed to ensure that monitoring results provide a reliable indication of the quality of the medium (e.g., ground water, soil-pore liquid, soil vapor, or soil) being monitored. Some acceptable procedures are listed as references in Appendix I, Table C. The owner or operator shall provide a written detailed description, to be specified in the permit and to be maintained as part of the records required under section 2712 of Article 10, of the procedures and techniques for: (1) Sample collection (e.g., purging techniques, water level, sampling equipment, and decontamination of sampling equipment);(2) Sample preservation and shipment;(3) Analytical procedures; and(4) Chain-of-custody control.Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 23, § 2649
1. New section filed 8-9-91 as an emergency; operative 8-9-91. Text remains in effect uninterrupted pursuant to Health and Safety Code section 25299.7 (Register 92, No. 14).
2. Editorial correction of printing errors in HISTORY 1 (Register 92, No. 43).
3. Amendment filed 4-5-94; operative 5-5-94 (Register 94, No. 14).
4. Amendment of subsections (b)(6), (c), (c)(1), (d)(5), (d)(9) and (f)(2) filed 8-27-2018; operative 10-1-2018 (Register 2018, No. 35). Note: Authority cited: Sections 25299.3 and 25299.7, Health and Safety Code. Reference: Section 25292, Health and Safety Code; and 40 CFR § 280.43.
1. New section filed 8-9-91 as an emergency; operative 8-9-91. Text remains in effect uninterrupted pursuant to Health and Safety Code section 25299.7 (Register 92, No. 14).
2. Editorial correction of printing errors in History 1 (Register 92, No. 43).
3. Amendment filed 4-5-94; operative 5-5-94 (Register 94, No. 14).
4. Amendment of subsections (b)(6), (c), (c)(1), (d)(5), (d)(9) and (f)(2) filed 8-27-2018; operative 10/1/2018 (Register 2018, No. 35).