Wells and Well DrillingWells and Well Drilling

Presented By:Melinda Dominguez, Katie

Hatley, and Cindy Gonzales

Contacting an ExpertContacting an Expert In order for us to try and

understand well drilling and the process, we contacted Rob McGill. McGill works for hydro GEOPHYSICS Inc. They are a geophysical consulting and service company which specializes in the application of non-invasive, non-destructive geophysical methods to environmental, hydrological, civil, and geological engineering problems.

All content and design © hydroGEOPHYSICS, Inc. 2000

2302 N. Forbes Blvd., Tucson, Arizona 85745voice: 520-647-3315 fax: 520-647-3428

mail@hydrogeophysics.com

Well DrillingWell Drilling

Because of Rob McGill we were able to make arrangements to visit a well in the process of drilling. On February 13, 2003, Dr. Jim Riley’s Water Resources in the Tucson Basin first-year colloquium class took a trip to Sahuarita Valley. We were to observe the drilling of a water well. The class met with Rich Skillings, the operations manager for High Desert Water Drilling LTD. Unfortunately Dr. Riley’s class arrived just after drilling had been completed.

How Well Drilling WorksHow Well Drilling Works

Understanding Water WellsUnderstanding Water Wells Unfortunately Dr. Riley’s class arrived

just after drilling had been completed. Despite being unable to watch the

drilling process, the class was able to learn some interesting facts. Such as that the well site had been picked by a water witch, which has been thought of to be a very unreliable method in which to pick well sites. Also, the rock dug in the well was granite, and the well had not been a successful attempt. Only 50 gallons of water are produced each night, when typical wells process hundreds of gallons of water a minute.

This well did not produce the desired amount of water. However, because this was a private well it would not need to turn out an enormous amount of water for the owners.

The Ideal WellThe Ideal Well

Contributing to Our Water Contributing to Our Water Consciousness Consciousness

Riley’s students have spent this spring semester investigating water issues in Arizona and in the Tucson Region, specifically to learn more about the systems and problems related to the provision of potable water in Tucson. Learning about well drilling and the process, the students have able to learn one aspect of the water system.