Water Well Drilling Information

Revised: February 25, 2005

In the State of Utah, any well drilled to a depth of greater than 30 feet must be constructed by a currently licensed Utah Water Well Driller. The State Engineer, through the Division of Water Rights, is responsible for licensing requirements and well construction criteria and the promulgation of the Administrative Rules for Water Well Drillers. Specifically, the drilling, construction, deepening, repair, renovation, replacement, cleaning, development, and abandonment of the following well types, if greater than 30 feet deep, is regulated by the Administrative Rules for Water Well Drillers and the work must be completed by a licensed water well driller:

  • Private Water Production Wells (e.g., domestic, stockwater, irrigation, industrial, and commercial wells)
  • Public Water System Supply Wells
  • Recharge and Recovery Wells
  • Cathodic Protection Wells
  • Heating and Cooling Exchange Wells
  • Test Wells and Monitoring Wells

Click here to view the Water Well Handbook (1.5 megabytes, please wait for it to fully load). The Handbook includes the Administrative Rules for Water Well Drillers and other important well drilling information. The existing version of the Administrative Rules for Water Well Drillers has been in effect since October of 2004. The purpose of these Rules is to assist in the orderly development of underground water, insure minimum well construction standards, prevent pollution of aquifers, and to obtain accurate records of well drilling operations.

Changes to the Utah well drilling statute (Section 73-3-25 of the Utah Code Annotated) were proposed during the recent 2008 legislative session. Senate Bill #228 passed through the legislature and has been incorporated into Water Rights Law. Subsequently, the Well Drilling Rules (R655-4 UAC) must be revised to reflect the changes in the well drilling statute. Click here to view the proposed draft revisions to Well Drilling Rules. Comments to these proposed rules should be directed to Jim Goddard or Lee Sim.

By law, well driller reports, or well logs, must be submitted to the State Engineer on any well drilled deeper than 30 feet. All data relating to these reports are recorded in the Division of Water Right's well drilling database and are available for viewing over the Internet or in person at the Division's Salt Lake Office. Information recorded on the reports includes lithology or geologic strata penetrated during the drilling process, the location of water bearing strata, static and pumping water levels, water quality and all materials and procedures used in the construction of the well.

This website also offers links (left side of page) to other important well drilling-related information including:

  • Licensed Well Drillers: Information on past and currently licensed well drillers and registered operators including names, addresses, phone numbers, drilling methods and current and past drilling activity. Well logs, by driller, can also be accessed through this site.
  • Administrative Drilling Rules: This page links to the official Administrative Rules for Water Well Drillers (R655-4 UAC) on the State of Utah Division of Administrative Rules website.
  • Well Drilling Database: This page provides a well log search engine by Section, Township, and Range as well as by map search. The coordinate conversion tool (location calculator) can also be accessed from this page. Alternatively, a search of well logs can also be done through the Water Rights Point of Diversion search engine located in the Water Rights database.
  • Geologic Well Logs: A database of Geologic Well Logs is also being developed under a cooperative arrangement between well drillers, Utah Geological Survey, and the Division of Water Rights. These special logs can also be found when doing a search in the well drilling database and water right database.
  • Well Drilling Statistics: This page provides statistics for certain well drilling activities in table and chart format for information including activity type, drilling method, water right area, and distribution over time. Statistics on this page are updated when the data comes available. Some data may be missing because it has not been process to date.
  • Driller Licensing and Registration: This page explains the process of obtaining and renewing a well drillers license and operator’s registration. Pertinent forms can also be accessed from this page.
  • Driller Continuing Education: This page summarized the requirements of the Utah licensed well driller continuing education program and provides pertinent forms as well as a schedule of upcoming education opportunities.
  • Well Drilling Contacts: This page provides contact information for staff within the Division who work directly with the well drilling program as well as staff in the Division’s regional offices.