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Committee approves updated well-construction standards, eases low-temperature geothermal requirements
Summary
The committee approved revised well-construction rules (docket 370392401) that clarify casing and seal requirements, align definitions with other rules and allow certain low-temperature geothermal wells to be built to cold-water standards when bottom-hole temperature and flow criteria are met.
The Idaho Senate Resources and Environment Committee approved revised well-construction standards intended to protect groundwater and public health while easing some requirements for low-temperature geothermal wells.
Eric Boe, Water Compliance Bureau Chief and Rules Regulation Officer for the Department of Water Resources, said the chapter provides minimum construction standards for new wells and for modification or decommissioning of existing wells. The department emphasized the rules’ purpose is to “protect public health, safety, welfare, the environment, and to prevent the waste of water or commingling of water from aquifers of differing temperature, pressure, or quality.”
Key changes the department highlighted include removal of unnecessary definitions, clarification of terms (for example, casing and geotechnical borings), updated language on well-seal requirements and alignment of definitions with the department’s injection-well rules and the Department of Environmental Quality’s public-drinking-water rules. In response to concerns from the drilling community, the department updated rules 25 and 30 to allow low-temperature geothermal wells to be constructed to cold-water well standards when the bottom-hole temperature is less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit and the well does not flow at land surface.
Roger Batt of the Idaho Groundwater Association, representing approximately 280 member companies, testified in support and said the revised criteria would reduce construction burdens for drillers and lower costs for homeowners in some cases. Batt said the previous standard led to situations where a well might require two casings, roughly doubling cost; the revised language allows single-casing construction where the lower temperature and nonflowing conditions are met.
Senator Guthrie moved to approve the pending well-construction standards; Senator Harris seconded. The committee approved the pending rules by voice vote.
The department published the proposed well-construction rules on Oct. 2, 2024, and submitted the pending rules without modification on Dec. 4, 2024. The department said the pending rule reduced the chapter by 777 words (a 6% reduction) and reduced restrictive wording by 24 words (10%).
