City decommissions abandoned well

MOSES LAKE — The city of Moses Lake is decommissioning a more than 700-foot deep abandoned water well.

The well, known as Abandoned Well 31, wasn’t used for a long time, according to David Bren, municipal services director for Moses Lake. Bren was unable to find when the well was first put into use or when it was abandoned.

Abandoned Well 31, at 500 Montana St., is on the same site as another well, also named Well 31, which is currently in use. Mark Beaulieu, design engineer for Moses Lake, said documents indicate Abandoned Well 31 is 770 feet deep.

Decommissioning of wells involves removing any debris from when the well was active and filling in the hole to meet the Washington State Department of Ecology’s requirements and for safety measures.

According to city documents, as of Oct. 12, work completed was the demolition of the wellhouse structure and removal of the well pump.

After the pump was removed, a video inspection of Abandoned Well 31 was completed. In the video inspection, it was discovered an air line and other debris were in the well at two depths: 322.2 feet for the airline and 457.7 feet for the other debris.

While there is no exact date of completion for the decommissioning, the city expects it to be completed within three to four weeks, Beaulieu said.

The original contract price for the decommissioning was about $50,000, but a new maximum contract price was brought up at the Oct. 12 city council meeting for about $84,000. However, the city will only pay for work required to fish the debris out of the well, city documents stated.

Royal City-based Empire Well Drilling LLC was awarded the contract for the project, Beaulieu said.