Nockamixon Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XIVB
Groundwater Quality Evaluation for Water Wells
§ 234-116 Groundwater quality testing.
The purpose of the following groundwater quality testing requirements is to determine the potability of water to be withdrawn. In the event that one or more constituents do not meet applicable drinking water standards, standard treatment systems need to be readily available. If treatment systems are not available, the project must be abandoned. Water quality testing is required for all applicants.
§ 234-117 Water quality analysis.
A.
Each applicant shall perform a water quality analysis. Registrants need not perform a water quality analysis, but it is highly recommended.
B.
Water samples shall be collected and analyzed from each test well and each observation well installed by or under the control of the applicant. One sample from each well shall be collected within the last hour of the constant head phase of the pump testing.
(1)
Multi-well projects must also comply with the post-approval, preoccupancy testing requirements specified in § 234-111D.
(2)
When initial water testing performed by the applicant shows that water quality in certain production wells is noncompliant with the applicable drinking water standard, and therefore treatment mechanisms are required, Class 2 and above applicants must retest water quality in the affected production wells as a prerequisite to obtaining a certificate of occupancy under § 234-98 for each individual lot with an affected production well.
C.
Water quality analyses must include the constituents listed below, be conducted to determine compliance with federal and Pennsylvania maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), whichever is more protective of water quality, and be analyzed by a certified laboratory. Current federal and Pennsylvania maximum contaminant limits are set forth below for Class 2 and above wells. These MCLs shall also apply to Class 1 wells. When federal or Pennsylvania MCLs are amended and/or updated, the new MCL shall apply in place of the standard listed below.
(1)
Class 1 wells:
Total coliform |
Fecal coliform |
E. coli |
Nitrate |
Iron |
Manganese |
pH |
All volatile organic compounds for which maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) have been established by federal and state law |
Lead |
Arsenic |
Mercury |
Copper |
Total dissolved solids |
Hardness |
Gross alpha particle activity |
Total of all chlorinated alkanes and alkenes |
(2)
Class 2 and above wells:
(a)
Physical characteristics.
Turbidity: 1 NTU units |
Color: 15 color units |
Threshold odor number: 3 units |
pH: 6.5 to 8.5 |
(b)
Chemical characteristics.
Antimony: 0.006 mg/L |
Arsenic: 10 micrograms/L (ppb) (As+3 plus As+5) |
Chloride: 250 mg/L (ppm) |
Chromium: 0.1 mg/L (ppm) |
Copper: 1 mg/L (ppm) |
Iron: 0.3 mg/L (ppm) |
Lead: 15 micrograms/L (ppb) |
Sodium: 20 mg/L (ppm) |
Manganese: 50 micrograms/L (ppb) |
Mercury: 0.002 mg/L (ppb) |
Nitrogen (as nitrate + nitrite): 10 mg/L (ppm) |
Hardness: 250 mg/L (ppm) as CaCO3 |
Detergent: 0.5 mg/L (ppm) as MBAS |
Total dissolved solids: 500 mg/L (ppm) |
Total of all chlorinated alkanes and alkenes: 5 micrograms/L (ppb) |
MTBE - methyl tertiary butyl ether: 20 micrograms/L (ppb) |
(c)
Bacteriological characteristics.
Total coliform: presence/absence |
Total plate count: less than 500 CFU per ml |
Fecal coliform: presence/absence |
E. coli: presence/absence |
(d)
Radionuclides.
Gross alpha: 15 pCi/L |
Combined radium (226 + 228): 5 pCi/L |
(e)
The samples shall also be analyzed for volatile organic compounds for which the USEPA or PaDEP has determined MCLs using USEPA Method 524.2.
D.
The Township may require additional testing of the applicant, regardless of well class, for contaminants associated with the historical land uses of and/or operations on the lot on which the proposed well is to be located to assess current and potential future impacts.
E.
Based on past historical land uses and/or operations at nearby properties, the Township, in its discretion, may require additional analyses of the groundwater, regardless of well class, to assess current and potential future impacts.
F.
The water quality analysis shall contain the results from each well. It shall also contain the range of values, and drinking water standard values, as set forth in the Federal and Pennsylvania Safe Drinking Water Acts and associated regulations. All laboratory analyses shall be performed by a certified laboratory and shall be included in the study.
G.
The analysis shall also contain any available water quality data that is obtained from nearby, adjacent groundwater sources, including data collected by Nockamixon Township or from other studies performed for other developments with the Township or within one mile of the perimeter of the site.
H.
No well permit will be issued for any lot unless the water quality of the well meets these standards or unless the plans for the proposed building, structure, and/or other development include detailed plans for a treatment system to bring the water into compliance with these standards. The plans must be certified by a professional engineer or other qualified individual.
I.
The applicant must agree that in the event the water is not in compliance with the aforementioned standards, the applicant will give the purchasers of the property (if different than the applicant) a copy of the water results from the certified laboratory specifying each contaminant which does not comply with the standards and a written description (including plans) of the treatment system that will be installed to bring the water quality into compliance together with instructions as to how the system must be maintained.
§ 234-118 Septic system water quality impact analyses for Classes 3 and 4 applicants.
Each proposed septic system must complete this analysis, which is an evaluation of the potential impacts to groundwater quality from the discharge of domestic wastewater through a septic system. Septic system discharges may not be used in recharge calculations. These analyses are only required of Class 3 and 4 applicants.
A.
Post-pump test evaluation using nitrate dilution model for on-site sewage disposal systems.
(1)
Applicants must provide a nitrogen dilution model (NDM) to predict the water quality impacts of on-site wastewater disposal systems. The model shall include an analysis of the nitrogen loading, the predicted concentration of nitrate at the property line, the septic effluent leach field area and precipitation input. Specific standards for this model are provided within the nitrate dilution models of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection [N.J.A.C. 7:15-4.5(c)], and the septic dilution model of the State of New Jersey Pinelands Commission. An example of the use of an NDM is the method of Trela-Douglas. An equivalent PaDEP model may also be used.
(2) Target nitrate concentration = background concentration + (10 ppm
In order to assure the availability of reliable and safe water supply to support the intended land uses and to protect the aquifer, no development, regardless of size, shall be approved which will increase nitrates by half the distance to 10 ppm from background nitrate level (taken from the water quality analysis under § 234-117) as measured by a certified laboratory. The formula for calculating the maximum target nitrate concentration allowable is to subtract the background concentration of nitrate from 10 ppm and divide that number in half and add that to the background concentration of nitrate.
Background concentration)/two
B.
Class III and IV applicants shall include a groundwater quality analysis for the dry year nitrate impact of on-site sewage disposal systems within the proposed subdivision. In particular, the analysis must include an estimate of the increase in nitrogen (nitrate, nitrite and ammonia) concentrations in the groundwater and provide a discussion of background nitrogen concentrations. The analysis shall also include an estimate of the nitrogen concentration in the groundwater beneath the downgradient property boundaries during the fifty-year drought.