Groundwater Wells & Permitting

Abbreviation for Arizona Administrative Code.

Abbreviation for Arizona Revised Statutes.

Well abandonment is accomplished through filling or sealing the well so as to prevent the well, including the annular space outside the casing, from being a channel allowing the vertical movement of water. A.A.C. R12-15-816(G). Wells that are capped and not in use are not considered abandoned.

The amount of water it takes to cover one acre of land to the depth of one foot, approximately 325,851 gallons

This is a geographical area which has been designated pursuant to [A.R.S. Title 45, Chapter 2, Article 2] as requiring active management of groundwater or, in the case of the Santa Cruz Active Management Area, active management of any water, other than stored water, withdrawn from a well. A.R.S. § 45-402(2). Established Active Management Areas (AMAs) include: The Phoenix, Pinal, Prescott, Tucson, and Santa Cruz AMAs. A map of the AMAs and their boundaries can be viewed here. Wells drilled in AMAs are subject to stricter regulations. 

The space between the outer well casing and the borehole wall. Also means the space between the inner and outer well casing. A.A.C. R12-15-801(1).

(1) Recharge - Aquifer definition since it is specific to the Recharge Program. It should read: Aquifer means a geologic formation that contains sufficient saturated material to be capable of storing water and transmitting water in usable quantities to a well, pursuant to A.R.S. 45-802.01.

(2) Permitting and Wells - An underground formation capable of yielding or transmitting usable quantities of water. A.A.C. R12-15-801(2).

An aquifer which is overlain by a confining formation and which contains groundwater under sufficient
pressure for the water to rise above the top of the aquifer. A.A.C. R12-15-801(3).

A well that penetrates an artesian aquifer. A.A.C. R12-15-801(4).