West Virginia presently requires all monitoring well drillers that
operate within the state to be certified by the state (effective March
1, 1997).
A monitoring well is defined as being any cased excavation or
opening into the ground made by digging, boring, drilling, driving,
jetting or other methods for the purpose of determining the physical,
chemical, biological or radiological properties of groundwater. This
would also include piezometers and observation wells which were
installed for purposes other than those listed above, but does not
include wells whose primary purpose is to provide a supply of potable
water.
A monitoring well driller is the individual operating the drilling
rig when drilling, constructing, altering or abandoning a monitoring
well, pursuant to Chapter 22, Article 12, "Groundwater Protection
Act".
To be eligible for certification, an individual must be able to
demonstrate a minimum of two (2) years of monitoring well drilling
experience under the supervision of a certified monitoring well
driller. Monitoring well drillers actively engaged in monitoring well
drilling on or before the effective date of this rule are exempt from
the minimum experience requirements. These individuals will have to
provide verification of this experience. If the individual has been
certified in another state, the individual must provide the state's
name, a contact person's name and telephone number for verification
purposes.
To become a certified monitoring well
driller, the applicant must initially pass a written certification
exam. Testing sessions are administered monthly. We also offer
review/testing sessions quarterly. Additional certification training
and testing sessions may be scheduled on an as needed basis.
Training/Testing Sessions may be canceled if fewer than five
individuals register. All testing and training is administered by the
West Virginia Bureau for Public Health's (BPH) Office of Environmental
Health Services (OEHS) Wellhead Protection Program in Charleston, WV.
(Note: there is currently no certification reciprocity between the
State of West Virginia and another state, i.e. regardless of
certification in other states, you must attain a
West Virginia certification.)
For more information, applications, and
other materials, contact
Dawn A. Newell of
the WV Bureau for Public Health at
(304) 356-4337 or by
e-mail.
Class size is limited to 30 people. All individuals interested
in attending sessions must complete an application and send it to the
WV Bureau for Public Health as instructed on the application at least
two weeks prior to the preferred session. Applicants must
present a test site confirmation letter from the WV Bureau for Public
Health to be admitted to the exam. The examination is free.
