(a)
(1) The minimum horizontal distance between
each proposed nontemporary, nondomestic well and all other senior nontemporary,
nondomestic wells diverting water from a confined aquifer shall be determined
from the following schedule.
Quantity per well (acre-feet per year) Minimum well spacing
requirement Required distance from hydraulic contact point
15 or less 660 feet 2,640 feet
16 to 25 2,300 feet 1 mile
26 to 100 5,280 feet 2 miles
More than 100 10,560 feet 5 miles
(A) The minimum spacing for the total
authorized and requested annual quantity of water of the proposed well; or
(B) the total authorized and
requested quantity of water for nontemporary, nondomestic well against which
spacing is being measured that is senior to the date on which the application
was filed.
The total annual quantity of water per well shall be the sum of
all of the quantities authorized or requested by any water rights, approvals of
applications, or applications requesting or authorizing that well as a point of
diversion.
If the quantity of water applied for includes a fraction of an
acre-foot, the quantity of water shall be rounded down to the next whole number
of acre-feet for the purpose of applying the table in this subsection.
(b)
In the case of a battery of wells, as defined in
K.A.R. 5-1-1, the minimum
horizontal distance shall be measured from the geographic center of the wells
comprising the battery.
(c) A well
penetrating both a confined and unconfined aquifer shall be constructed to
prevent the vertical migration of water between the aquifers. A well diverting
water from the Dakota aquifer system shall be constructed to prevent the
vertical migration of water between the Dakota aquifer system and all other
freshwater aquifers.
(d) The
location of a well or wells on an application for approval to change the point
of diversion under an existing water right shall be no more than 2,640 feet
from the currently authorized and completed point of diversion.
(e) A well shall be exempt from the minimum
well spacing requirements of this regulation if the well meets either of the
following conditions:
(1) The well is being
replaced within 300 feet of the currently authorized point of diversion.
(2) The proposed replacement well
location improves the spacing to all other wells for which the spacing
requirement was not met on the date on which the application for a change in
point of diversion was filed and continues to meet requirements for spacing to
all wells for which the spacing requirement was met at the time the application
for change in point of diversion was filed.
(f) No application for approval to change the
point of diversion under an approval of application for which the original well
has not been drilled shall be approved if the location of the proposed point of
diversion decreases the distance from the approved location to any other
existing wells to less than the spacing requirements for a new application.
(g) Each nondomestic, nontemporary
well shall be located a minimum of 1,320 feet from all domestic wells in the
same or a hydraulically connected aquifer with a priority earlier than the date
on which the change application was filed, unless all of the following
conditions are met:
(1) The domestic well is
owned by the applicant.
(2) The
applicant signs a written request to waive the requirements for spacing to the
domestic well.
(3) The applicant
submits information documenting the location and depth of the domestic well and
any other information necessary for the chief engineer to determine whether the
domestic well is likely to be impaired.
(4) A Theis analysis or other hydraulic
analysis shows that the domestic well is not likely to be impaired by the
proposed well.
(h) The
minimum horizontal distance between a nontemporary, nondomestic well
withdrawing water from a confined aquifer and a well withdrawing water from an
unconfined aquifer shall be 660 feet.
Notes
Kan. Admin. Regs. §
5-23-3a
Authorized by
K.S.A. 82a-706a and K.S.A. 2002 Supp.
82a-1028; implementing
K.S.A. 82a-706a, K.S.A. 2002 Supp.
82a-711, K.S.A. 2002 Supp.
82a-708b, and K.S.A. 2002 Supp.
82a-1028; effective Sept. 22,
2000; amended Feb. 27, 2004.
