EP 1110-1-27
27 Jan 00
Chapter 4
Data Evaluations and Troubleshooting in Well System Maintenance
Making and refining maintenance decisions and evaluating the degree of maintenance action success
requires a systematic and effective data evaluation and troubleshooting process. Organizing such a
process requires both institutional and technical planning.
4-1. Institutional and Funding Issues in Maintenance Planning, Analysis and
Execution
a. Historic lack of well O&M planning. Successful O&M of any mechanical system such as a
pumping well array requires an institutional structure and indoctrination that preventive maintenance is
valuable and indeed essential in preventing future problems. This is well demonstrated for wells in a
variety of operating settings (including water supply, dewatering, and hydraulic relief) and particularly
well demonstrated in HTRW remediation. Despite the well-known vulnerability of monitoring and
remediation wells to performance degradation, provisions for preventive design and maintenance are
routinely shortchanged in practice (e.g., Smith 1995; Alford and Cullimore 1999).
encouraging rational well maintenance planning and execution is the array of roadblocks that discourage
the implementation of these logical behaviors in the HTRW remediation field. In the project
development-contract administration process, USACE internal professionals or a contracted architectural-
engineering (AE) firm develops a scope of work (SOW), specifications, and design. Once a contract is let,
the work is administered by Construction teams. It is imperative that well system O&M be explicitly
incorporated into the SOW and specifications, and included as an issue in design (designing for ease of
maintenance). Likewise, contract administration needs to enforce the well system O&M imperatives of
the SOW.
(1) History and experience (e.g., Smith 1995; Alford and Cullimore 1999) demonstrate the
necessity of planning and adequately funding well system O&M oversight and professional review. Such
funding and O&M planning (with professional review):
Should be an integral part of Title II HTRW remediation planning and funding activities at
the outset of project development, and should be included in any specifications or SOWs
involving the monitoring and pumping of ground water.
Should be part of the USACE review checklist.
Should include maintenance monitoring data management as an integral part of site data
management.
Should ensure that, once constructed and active, HTRW remediation projects have the
funding budgeted and available to perform adequate routine well system maintenance
monitoring, repair, replacement, and cleaning as part of the overall site and system O&M
contract.
Should be protected to the extent possible contractually from transfer to other purposes.
(2) Checklists for well system O&M maintenance planning are addressed in Chapter 8 and
examples provided in Appendix D.
c. Expected outcomes of a lack of maintenance planning. The logical necessity of such planning
takes the form of a typically remorseless "pay me now or pay me later" scenario:
4-1
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