178 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 12, § 014

Current through September 17, 2024

Section 178-12-014 - VARIANCES

The Department may grant a variance from any rule, regulation, or standard adopted and promulgated by the Department relating to the construction of a water well upon proof by a licensed water well contractor or well owner that the enforcement of the rule, regulation, or standard would create an unreasonable hardship or be unreasonable, impractical, or not feasible under the circumstances. A variance is limited to the construction of a water well to replace an existing water well. A variance may only be requested after a declaratory order about substantially equivalent procedure or material has been requested and denied.

12-014.01Procedures for Requesting a Variance: The party requesting the variance or renewing a variance must submit the variance request to the Department along with any applicable fee. The request for a variance must be submitted in writing at least 10 days prior to the planned initiation of construction of the well involved. Variances may only be granted in writing by the Department. All variance requests must contain the following:

1. The name, address, telephone number, and signature of the individual(s) requesting the variance;

2. The specific rule(s) for which the variance is requested (if more than 1 rule is affected then each must be listed):

3. The reason the rule(s) cannot be met, with supporting evidence;

4. The length of time for which the variance is requested

5. The alternative or protective measure that will be taken to assure a comparable degree of protection to health or environment;

6. Construction plans and specifications of the proposed water well with all the relevant and required information listed in 178 NAC 12-003.12A; and

7. A scaled map showing the location of the well in relation to property lines, structures, utilities, and contamination sources.

12-014.02Variance Conditions: A variance may be under such terms and conditions and for such time as the Department may prescribe. The Department must notify the requesting party in writing of the decision to grant or deny the variance. If a variance is granted, the notification must specify conditions or alternative measures imposed upon the variance, if any. If the variance is denied, the Department will specify the reasons for the denial.

12-014.03Alternative Measures or Conditions: Alternative measures or conditions attached to a variance have the force and effect of the applicable regulation. If the alternative measure or condition attached to the variance is violated, the party may be enjoined from continuing such activities. The injunction may include an order to properly decommission the water well.

12-014.04Renewal of a Variance: A request for a renewal of a variance must be submitted in writing to the Department within 30 days of the expiration date. A renewal request must contain the information in 178 NAC 12-014.01 (Procedures for Requesting a Variance). A variance may be renewed if the party continues to satisfy the criteria for granting the variance and demonstrates compliance with the alternative measures or conditions imposed at the time the original variance was approved.

TABLE 1

Decontamination Chart Calculator for Total System Volumes

Casing ID Inches	Gal/ft	Ft of H20	Standing Well Volume1 Feet	Total Treat. Volume2	Total Decontam. Volume3	200 ppm	200 ppm
						5% chlorine gallons4	65% HCL oz. 4
4	.065	100	65	130	260	0.26	15.6
5	1.02	100	102	204	408	0.408	24.48
6	1.47	100	147	294	588	0.588	35.28

Casing ID Inches	Gal/ft	Ft of H20	Standing Well Volume1 Feet.	Total Treat. Volume2	Total Decontam. Volume3	200 ppm	200 ppm
						5% chlorine gallons4	65% HCL oz.4
8	2.61	100	261	391.5	1044	1.044	62.64
10	4.08	100	408	612	1632	1.632	97.92
12	5.87	100	587	880.5	2348	2.348	140.88
16	10.45	100	1045	1567.5	4180	4.18	250.8
24	23.51	100	2351	3526 .5	9404	9.404	564.24

¹Standing Well Volume equals the total amount of water in the casing.

²Total Treatment Volume equals the amount of water in the casing plus the annular space of the borehole.

1.For 4" to 6" wells, the standing well volume times 2 equals the total treatment volume.

2.For 8" wells and larger the standing well volume times 1.5 equals the total treatment volume.

³Total Decontamination Volume equals the standing volume times 4 to approximate the water in the system.

⁴The decontamination amounts are based on a calculation or percent of the available chlorine and dosage strength per given volume of water.

TABLE 2

Disinfection Chart Calculator for Total System Volumes

Casing ID Inches	Gal/ft	Ft of H20	Standing Well Volume1 Feet	Total Treat. Volume2	Total Disinf. Volume3	50 ppm	50 ppm
						5% chlorine gallons4	65% HCL oz. 4
4	.065	100	65	130	260	0.065	3.9
5	1.02	100	102	204	408	0.102	6.12
6	1.47	100	147	294	588	0.147	8.82

Casing ID Inches	Gal/ft	Ft of H20	Standing Well Volume1 Feet.	Total Treat. Volume2	Total Disinf. Volume3	50 ppm	50 ppm
						5% chlorine gallons4	65% HCL oz.4
8	2.61	100	261	391.5	1044	0.261	15.66
10	4.08	100	408	612	1632	0.408	24.48
12	5.87	100	587	880.5	2348	0.587	35.22
16	10.45	100	1045	1567.5	4180	1.045	62.7
24	23.51	100	2351	3526.5	9404	2.351	141.06

¹Standing Well Volume equals the total amount of water in the casing.

²Total Treatment Volume equals the amount of water in the casing plus the annular space of the borehole.

1.For 4" to 6" wells, the standing well volume times 2 equals the total treatment volume.

2.For 8" wells and larger the standing well volume times 1.5 equals the total treatment volume.

³Total Disinfection Volume equals the standing volume times 4 to approximate the water in the system.

⁴The disinfection amounts are based on a calculation or percent of the available chlorine and dosage strength per given volume of water.

Table 3

Well casing volume and bentonite needed to fill a well casing

Diameter of opening	Volume		Approximate pounds graded bentonite per foot*	Approximate linear feet filled per 50 pound bag of graded bentonite
	Gallons per foot of depth	Cubic feet per foot
2 inches	0.16	0.02	1.4	35.70
3 inches	0.37	0.05	3.5	14.30
4 inches	0.65	0.09	6.3	7.90
5 inches	1.02	0.14	9.8	5.10
6 inches	1.47	0.20	14.0	3.60
8 inches	2.61	0.35	24.5	2.00
10 inches	4.08	.055	38.5	1.30
12 inches	5.88	0.79	55.3	0.90
14 inches	8.00	1.07	74.9	0.67
16 inches	10.44	1.40	98.0	0.51
18 inches	13.22	1.77	123.9	0.40
2 feet	23.50	3.14	220.0	0.23
2.5 feet	36.72	4.91	344.0	0.16
3 feet	52.88	7.07	495.0	0.10
4 feet	94.00	12.57	880.0	0.06
5 feet	146.90	19.64	1375.0	0.04
6 feet	211.50	28.27	1979.0	0.03
7 feet	287.90	38.48	2694.0	0.02
8 feet	376.00	50.27	3519.0	0.01
9 feet	475.90	63.62	4453.0	0.01
10 feet	587.50	78.54	5498.0	0.01

*Based on a granular bentonite bulk density of 70 pounds per cubic foot. (The typical range of reported bulk density is 68 to 72 pounds per cubic foot)

Table 4

Useful Equivalents
1 cup	8 fluid ounces
2 cups	1 pint
1 pint	16 fluid ounces
1 quart	32 fluid ounces
1/2 gallon	64 fluid ounces
1 gallon	128 fluid ounces
1 cubic foot (ft3)	7.48 gallons
1 cubic yard (yd3)	27 cubic feet
Gallons per foot of depth	0.0408 (opening diameter, square inches)
Cubic feet per foot of depth	0.0055 (opening diameter, square inches)
1o Latitude	69.2 miles
1 minute of 1o	6,089.6 feet
1 second of 1 minute of 1o	101.49333 feet
1/10 of 1 second of 1 minute of 1o	10.149333 feet
1o Longitude	69.172 miles
1 minute of 1o	6,087.136 feet
1 second of 1 minute of 1o	101.45226 feet
1/10 of 1 second of 1 minute of 1o	10.145226 feet

178 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 12, § 014