Operations and Maintenance

Operations and maintenance on remediation wells can last for years or even decades following the installation of the well. Subsequent tweaks to the remediation system are critical for the longevity of the remedial effectiveness.  Through highly customizable layout options, horizontal remediation wells offer safer and more efficient operations and maintenance solutions.  

Operations and maintenance in the context of remediation wells involve a set of activities and processes aimed at ensuring the ongoing effectiveness and efficiency of the remediation system. The process of routine operations and maintenance is critical for the performance of all remediation wells, but is especially important in soil vapor extraction and air sparging applications since these types of systems are often continuously operating to clean up contamination.

Contamination, however, rarely exists at sites that are blessed with limitless open space. It is more likely that there are buildings, warehouses, or storage tanks that need to be navigated around in order to reach the contamination. Horizontal remediation wells offer distinct advantages compared to vertical wells in their ability to reach the contamination but also provide safety and efficiency benefits for operations and maintenance long after the wells are installed.

Horizontal directional drilling techniques allow flexibility in the setup location of the drill rig. The rig can be situated in locations that are out of the way of any normal operations taking place on-site, while still providing access to the target zones. This makes the client and tenants happy during installation and means that the wellheads are situated in convenient locations. As a result, when subsequent operations and maintenance are performed on the wells (checking pressures, adjusting flows, etc.), the staff performing these procedures do not need to invade the client’s working space.

The customization ability in the wellhead location also provides health and safety benefits to field staff performing well operations and maintenance. Rather than accessing the contamination vertically and being forced to have well heads in the middle of roads, rights-of-way, or busy work sites, the horizontal wellheads are installed away from hazards. This is particularly useful in highly trafficked sites where personnel or continuous vehicle usage may threaten the field staff.

Due to the nature of how horizontal remediation wells are installed, they provide safety and efficiency advantages during the operations and maintenance phases of the project.