Denton County, and much of the surrounding area, is becoming increasingly urban. While still a very viable agricultural county, as the population has grown, the infrastructure of the county has changed. There are still rural homes, families and agricultural operations that still use and are dependent on private groundwater wells. However, there are many former rural homes/operations that have been converted to surface water systems whether those of a municipality, the Upper Trinity Regional Water District or a water supply corporation. This means there are many, many wells in the county that are not being used. They can be termed "abandoned wells".

If these wells are not properly plugged, they can be a source of contamination of existing groundwater as well as a safety hazard for children, livestock and pets. A well would be classified as abandoned if it has not been used for six consecutive years. Under Texas Law, a landowner is responsible for plugging abandoned wells on his/her property. It is recommended before you start this process that you seek advice from a local water well driller in your area or through the Water Well Drillers Program with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

An "abandoned well" can be fixed in three different ways. The first is to return the well to an operable state by making sure the casing, pump and pump column are in good condition. Another is to cap the well to prevent surface water or contaminants from entering the well. The cap would need to support 400 pounds and should not be easily removed by hand. The third is to plug the well from the bottom to the top with bentonite, bentonite grout or portland cement. Large diameter wells can be filled with clay or caliche soil.

There are three people who can legally fix an abandoned well. The landowner can fix a well providing it is a simple well and has less than 100 feet of standing water in the well. If the landowner is doing the work, they must notify the Water Well Drillers Program of TDLR and request a state well-plugging form to be filled out and returned. A licensed well driller and a licensed pump installer may also fix an abandoned well.

Other sources of information on abandoned wells are the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission and the Texas Cooperative Extension. A copy of the publication, "Plugging Abandoned Water Wells - L-5413" by Dr. Bruce Lesikar, is [also] available.