Wellhead Protection Area Delineation Guidance
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OHIO WELLHEAD PROTECTION PROGRAM’S WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREA DELINEATION GUIDANCE OHIO ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY DIVISION OF DRINKING AND GROUND WATERS 122 SOUTH FRONT STREET COLUMBUS, OHIO AUGUST, 1994 FOREWORD The Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986 mandate that each state develop a wellhead protection program to protect public water supplies that use a ground water source. Guidelines were prepared by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, recognizing that each state would develop and tailor a program to suit its own needs. The Governor of Ohio designated the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency as the lead agency for carrying out the mandates outlined in the Safe Drinking Water Act. Ohio’s Wellhead Protection Program was approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in May, 1992. This document has been developed to assist public water supply owner/operators and/or their consultants in delineating wellhead protection areas in accordance with the requirements outlined in Ohio’s Wellhead Protection Program. Development of this guidance document has been funded, in part, with monies from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, under Section 106 of the federal Clean Water Act. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION TO WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREA DELINEATION ............................... 1-1 INTRODUCTION .................................................. 1-1 DELINEATING A WHP AREA ....................................... 1-2 ORGANIZATION OF GUIDANCE DOCUMENT ......................... 1-2 GETTING STARTED ............................................... 1-3 BASICS OF GROUND WATER OCCURRENCE AND GROUND WATER FLOW ........................................... 1-5 Zone of Influence......................................... 1-5 Zone of Contribution...................................... 1-8 BASIC CONCEPT AND TERMINOLOGY .............................. 1-8 Delineation Criteria............................................. 1-8 Time-of-Travel........................................... 1-8 Flow Boundaries ........................................ 1-11 Combined Criteria....................................... 1-11 CHAPTER 2. FACTORS TO CONSIDER IN SELECTING AND APPLYING A DELINEATION METHOD............................. 2-1 INTRODUCTION .................................................. 2-1 HYDROGEOLOGIC CONSIDERATIONS .............................. 2-1 Aquifer Material ......................................... 2-1 Aquifer Vulnerability ...................................... 2-2 Aquifer Confinement...................................... 2-2 Flow Boundaries ......................................... 2-3 Hydraulic Properties ...................................... 2-4 Local Flow Gradients and Flow Directions..................... 2-8 Summary ..................................................... 2-8 PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS ..................................... 2-12 Current and Anticipated Size of System ...................... 2-12 WHP Goals and Management Strategies...................... 2-12 Defensibility ............................................ 2-13 Similar Cases or Nearby WHP Areas ........................ 2-13 Preliminary Assessment of Potential Pollution Sources .......... 2-13 Wellfield Geometry...................................... 2-13 Nearby Pumping Centers.................................. 2-14 Quality of Data .......................................... 2-14 Ability to Collect Additional Data ........................... 2-14 RESOURCE CONSIDERATIONS .................................... 2-15 Equipment ............................................. 2-15 Technical Expertise...................................... 2-16 MAKING THE DECISION.......................................... 2-17 i TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued Page CHAPTER 3. WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREA DELINEATION METHODS ........ 3-1 INTRODUCTION .................................................. 3-1 TRAVEL TIME BASED DELINEATION METHODS ..................... 3-1 Calculated Fixed Radius Methods ............................ 3-1 The Uniform Flow Equations ............................... 3-6 WHP Area Delineation Based on Computer Models .................. 3-11 Gridding the Flow Domain ................................ 3-12 Calibration............................................. 3-12 Capture Zone Delineation ................................. 3-12 FLOW BOUNDARY BASED DELINEATION METHODS ................ 3-17 Delineations Based on Hydrogeologic Mapping...................... 3-17 DELINEATIONS IN FRACTURE FLOW SETTINGS .................... 3-22 The Discrete Approach ................................... 3-24 The Continuum Approach ................................. 3-24 CHAPTER 4. APPLICATIONS AND COMMON PROBLEMS ........................ 4-1 INTRODUCTION .................................................. 4-1 Inadequate Determination of Flow Direction ......................... 4-1 Using Well Logs to Develop Potentiometric Maps............... 4-2 Varying or Multiple Flow Directions ............................... 4-4 Inadequate Determination of Regional Flow Gradient .................. 4-8 Determining the Appropriate Value for “Maximum Projected Pumping Rate”................................................. 4-8 Wellfields with Wells Completed in Multiple Aquifers ................ 4-10 Effect of Well Drawdown on Delineation Validity.................... 4-11 Conceptual Errors ............................................. 4-11 Data Gaps and Uncertainty of Input Parameters ...................... 4-14 Failure to Account for the Future ................................. 4-14 Data Errors................................................... 4-14 CHAPTER 5. PRESENTATION OF RESULTS..................................... 5-1 Documentation of the Effort ...................................... 5-1 Introduction ............................................. 5-1 Hydrogeologic Setting ..................................... 5-1 Conceptual Hydrogeologic Model............................ 5-1 Rationale for Delineation Method Choice ...................... 5-1 Data Collection .......................................... 5-1 Presentation of Input Data .................................. 5-2 Presentation of Computer Modeling Information................ 5-2 Delineation Results/Summary............................... 5-3 Ohio EPA Review Procedure......................................5-3 REFERENCES CITED........................................................... 5-4 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued APPENDICES Appendix 1. A Short List of Recommended Readings Appendix 2. Glossary Appendix 3. Sources of Information for Hydrogeologic Investigations Appendix 4. Conversion Factors Appendix 5. Typical Values of Soil and Rock Hydraulic Properties iii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1. Ohio EPA’s District Boundaries and Office Locations ......................... 1-3 Figure 2. Ohio’s Aquifers: A Legacy of Ancient Seas and Glacial Meltwaters .............. 1-6 Figure 3. The Difference Between Zone of Influence and Zone of Contribution............. 1-7 Figure 4. Cross-Sectional View of a Capture Zone.................................... 1-9 Figure 5. WHP Areas Based on Delineation Criteria.................................. 1-10 Figure 6. WHP Areas Based on Combined Delineation Criteria......................... 1-12 Figure 7. Alteration of a Local Flow Divide by Installation of a Wellfield (for hypothetical town - “Anytown”) ....................................... 2-5 Figure 8. Effect of Multiple Pumping Centers on the Shape of a Public Wellfield’s Capture Zone................................................ 2-6 Figure 9. Effects of Local Flow Gradient and Direction of Ground Water Flow on Shape and Orientation of Capture Zone.............................. 2-8 Figure 10. WHP Area Delineation Using the Volumetric Equation ........................ 3-3 Figure 11. WHP Area Delineation Using the Darcy Flow Equation........................ 3-4 Figure 12. Types of Inaccuracies in WHP Areas Based on Fixed-Radius Methods ............ 3-5 Figure 13. Parameters Obtained from Uniform-Flow Equations........................... 3-7 Figure 14. WHP Area Delineation Using Uniform Flow Equation for Confined Aquifer (Todd, 1980) ........................................... 3-9 Figure 15. WHP Area Delineation Using Uniform Flow Equation for Unconfirmed Aquifer (Grubb, 1993) ...................................... 3-10 Figure 16. Five-Year Capture Zones Delineated Using a Semi-Analytical Computer Model...................................................... 3-15 Figure 17. A Comparative Analysis: Delineations of Zone of Contribution Using the Uniform Flow Equation, Flow-Boundary Mapping, and Numerical Modeling................................................... 3-18 Figure 18. Delineating a Zone of Contribution from a Potentiometric Map................. 3-19 iv LIST OF FIGURES - Continued Page Figure 19. Designating “Buffer Zones”............................................. 3-21 Figure 20. Techniques for Demonstrating Whether a Fractured Medium Behaves as a Porous Medium............................................ 3-26 Figure 21. Determining the Direction of Local Ground Water Flow Using a “Three-Point Problem” ................................................ 4-5 Figure 22. “Composite Capture Zones” Used to Delineate a WHP Area Where Flow May Be From Multiple Directions .................................... 4-6 Figure 23. Delineating a Capture Zone in a River Valley: Which Capture Zone is Correct? ......................................................