Immediate Environmental Concern
Potable Well Sampling
NJDEP has developed the following template letters and form that
persons responsible for conducting remediations can use to request
access to properties to conduct potable well sampling and notify
property owners, occupants and health officers of the potable
well sampling results. (The term "person responsible for conducting
the remediation" is defined as any person who is required to remediate
by order or regulation, the owner or operator of certain industrial
establishments and/or regulated underground storage tanks, any
person who discharges or is any way responsible for the discharge
of a hazardous substance, or any other person/investigator who
is remediating a site, and applies to any entity, including but
not limited to a private or public corporation, company, estate,
etc.)
Access
The first of the five property access template letters is a
typical introductory letter to let the property owner know that
the person responsible for conducting the remediation is interested
in sampling his or her well. The remaining property access template
letters address possible scenarios one may encounter when trying
to gain access to properties to conduct potable well testing.
NJDEP has also developed a Potable Well Information Form that
can be attached to the property access letters. It contains questions
regarding ownership information, existing treatment, and use of
the well.
Results
Whenever potable well testing has been conducted at a private
property during the remediation of a contaminated site, the person
responsible for conducting the remediation must ensure the property
owner, any occupants (i.e., tenants) and the local health officer
are notified of the results in writing. A Licensed Site Remediation
Professional (LSRP) or other authorized party may send the letters
on behalf of the person responsible for conducting the remediation.
The first of the two potable well sampling results template
letters addresses testing of a potable well that is not already
being treated to remove site-related contamination, and the second
addresses testing of a potable well where a Point-of-Entry Treatment
(POET) system has been installed to remove site-related contamination.
These template letters are intended to provide basic outlines
for the most common potable well testing scenarios and may need
to be modified to address specific situations. For example, if
an irrigation well was tested instead of a potable well, you should
replace "potable well" with "irrigation well" in the text of the
sampling results letter.
It is important to note that use of the form and template
letters is optional. If you choose to use your own cover letters
and/or tables, the information must be expressed in terms that
are understandable to the layperson. The cover letter should clearly
summarize the sampling results for the property owner/occupant
and discuss the next steps. If contamination is detected, the
information conveyed to the property owner/occupant must not minimize
the urgency to address the potable well contamination and should
accurately describe the source of the contamination.
If you have any questions about reporting potable well sampling
results to property owners/occupants, please contact NJDEP's Office
of Community Relations at (800) 253-5647.
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