June 2010 DOH 331-018 (Revised) Washington State Wellhead Protection Program Guidance Document June 2010 For more information or additional copies of this publication contact: Constituent Services Section Office of Drinking Water Department of Health PO Box 47822 Olympia, WA 98504-7822 (800) 521-0323 If you need this publication in alternate format, call (800) 525-0127. For TTY/TDD, call (800) 833-6388. Acronyms and Abbreviations BMPs Best Management Practices CARA Critical Aquifer Recharge Area CCWF Centennial Clean Water Fund CFR Calculated Fixed Radius COM Washington State Department of Commerce CWSRF Clean Water State Revolving Fund DOH Washington State Department of Health Ecology Washington State Department of Ecology EPA U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ESA Environmentally sensitive area GMA Growth Management Act GWI Groundwater under the direct influence of surface water GWMA Groundwater management area IGWC Interagency Groundwater Committee LEPC Local Emergency Planning Committee LHJ Local health jurisdiction MCL Maximum contaminant level NRCS Natural Resources Conservation Service ODW Department of Health Office of Drinking Water OTA Office of Technology Assessment PWS Public water system RCRA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act RCW Revised Code of Washington SAL State Advisory Level SARA Title III Superfund Act Reauthorization Amendments SDWA Safe Drinking Water Act SEPA State Environmental Policy Act SOC Synthetic organic compound SOP Standard operating procedures SSA Sole Source Aquifer TOT Time of travel UIC Underground Injection Control Program USDA U.S. Department of Agriculture USGS U.S. Geological Survey VOC Volatile organic compound WAC Washington Administrative Code WFI Water Facilities Inventory WHPA Wellhead Protection Area WSCC Washington State Conservation Commission WSDA Washington State Department of Agriculture WSU Washington State University ZOC Zone of contribution Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................... 1 Overview ....................................................................................................................................................................... 1 Wellhead Protection Area Delineation Methods .......................................................................................................... 1 Wellhead Protection Area Zones .................................................................................................................................. 2 Roles and Responsibilities ............................................................................................................................................. 2 Wellhead Protection Area Inventory and Management ............................................................................................... 3 Contingency Planning ................................................................................................................................................... 3 Spill or Incident Response Planning .............................................................................................................................. 3 Relationship to Current Planning Requirements .......................................................................................................... 4 New Wells used for Public Water Systems ................................................................................................................... 4 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................. 5 COSTS OF CONTAMINATION ................................................................................................................................................ 6 WELLHEAD PROTECTION AND MONITORING REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................................... 7 2. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES ............................................................................................................................ 9 PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS .................................................................................................................................................... 9 LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ..................................................................................................................................................... 10 LOCAL WELLHEAD PROTECTION COMMITTEES ...................................................................................................................... 11 LOCAL AND COUNTY HEALTH JURISDICTIONS ........................................................................................................................ 11 STATE AGENCIES ............................................................................................................................................................. 12 FEDERAL AGENCIES ......................................................................................................................................................... 16 FEDERAL FACILITIES ......................................................................................................................................................... 16 TRIBES .......................................................................................................................................................................... 17 3. IMPLEMENTATION ............................................................................................................................................ 18 LEGAL BASIS FOR REQUIREMENTS ...................................................................................................................................... 18 IMPLEMENTATION ........................................................................................................................................................... 18 RELATIONSHIP TO PLANNING REQUIREMENTS AND COMPLIANCE MECHANISMS .......................................................................... 19 4. DELINEATING WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREAS .................................................................................................. 20 SELECTED WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREA DELINEATION METHODS ........................................................................................... 23 ASSESSMENT OF SUSCEPTIBILITY ........................................................................................................................................ 29 ASSESSMENT OF HYDROGEOLOGIC SETTING ......................................................................................................................... 30 5. INVENTORY OF POTENTIAL CONTAMINANT SOURCES ....................................................................................... 35 CONDUCTING AN INVENTORY ............................................................................................................................................ 35 6. WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREA MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES AND IMPLEMENTATION ........................................ 42 7. CONTINGENCY PLANS ....................................................................................................................................... 47 8. SPILL AND INCIDENT RESPONSE PLANNING ....................................................................................................... 49 9. WELLHEAD PROTECTION REQUIREMENTS FOR NEW PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY WELLS .......................................... 50 10. LOCAL WELLHEAD PROTECTION PROGRAM FINANCING .................................................................................. 51 11. HOW THE WELLHEAD PROTECTION PROGRAM RELATES TO OTHER PROGRAMS .............................................. 53 GLOSSARY ............................................................................................................................................................ 57 RESOURCES .......................................................................................................................................................... 61 APPENDIX A: WELLHEAD PROTECTION RULES ....................................................................................................... 63 APPENDIX B: CHECKLIST OF REQUIRED WELLHEAD PROTECTION ELEMENTS .......................................................... 64 APPENDIX C: SAMPLE SCOPE OF WORK FOR WELLHEAD PROTECTION PLANNING ................................................. 70 APPENDIX D: SAMPLE NOTIFICATION LETTERS ...................................................................................................... 73 APPENDIX E: KEY CONTACTS ................................................................................................................................. 74 APPENDIX F: SUSCEPTIBILITY ASSESSMENT INFORMATION ................................................................................... 76 Introduction to Susceptibility Assessments ................................................................................................................ 77 Instructions: How to complete the Susceptibility Assessment Form .......................................................................... 79 Element 1: Creating a Wellhead Protection Map ....................................................................................................... 88 Element 2: Diagram of a Drinking Water