8 Conclusion
Water well record databases, which store information about water well construction, are widely viewed as an important component of groundwater and drinking water management programs. Records of well construction are typically compiled in a central database and made available to various users of the information which may include anyone from homeowners and well contractors to groundwater consultants, managers and researchers. These databases are arguably the world’s largest and most important source of groundwater information and it is estimated that there could be up to a 100 million water well records archived worldwide. The main types of information recorded in well record databases include details pertaining to the well location, construction, and hydrogeological conditions.
The number of records in a jurisdiction’s well record database varies depending on factors such as the size of the population reliant on domestic wells, the jurisdictional framework for managing and reporting well construction activities (e.g., voluntary versus mandatory) and the enforcement of reporting requirements where well record submission is a legal requirement.
Over the past 50 years well record databases have evolved in many jurisdictions from hard copy forms filed in a central location to open distribution of well record data over the internet. The digitization of well record information in these jurisdictions has engendered enhanced access and utilization of the datasets and permitted the development of new tools for data visualization and analytics. Despite these technological improvements, however, the availability of water well record databases is highly variable, ranging from hard copy reports to digital data.
A robust system for collecting, managing, and disseminating well record data, in addition to adequate standards for training and data quality, are important components of drinking water and groundwater protection programs. Key objectives for well record management include the effective capture of water well location and construction activities, the collection of high quality and useful data, the timely publication of well record data and the open distribution of this data in various formats that can be easily found and accessed on the internet.
Adopting best practices in well record management can yield high quality hydrogeological data suitable for various types of uses relating to water well stewardship, groundwater protection, human health protection and groundwater assessment and research. As a research tool, well record databases have contributed significantly to our understanding of groundwater resources at local to regional scales. Continued improvements to the online accessibility of well record data will foster greater utilization of these datasets for groundwater management and research.