SECTIONS 115700-115720

115700.  (a) Every person owning land in fee simple or in possessionthereof under lease or contract of sale who knowingly permits theexistence on the premises of any abandoned mining shaft, pit, well,septic tank, cesspool, or other abandoned excavation dangerous topersons legally on the premises, or to minors under the age of 12years, who fails to cover, fill, or fence securely that dangerousabandoned excavation and keep it so protected, is guilty of amisdemeanor. (b) Every person owning land in fee simple or in possessionthereof under lease or contract of sale who knowingly permits theexistence on the premises of any permanently inactive well, cathodicprotection well, or monitoring well that constitutes a known orprobable preferential pathway for the movement of pollutants,contaminants, or poor quality water, from above ground to belowground, or vertical movement of pollutants, contaminants, or poorquality water below ground, and that movement poses a threat to thequality of the waters of the state, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. (c) For purposes of this section, "well" includes any of thefollowing: (1) A "monitoring well" as defined by Section 13712 of the WaterCode. (2) A "cathodic well" as defined by Section 13711 of the WaterCode. (3) A "water well" as defined by Section 13710 of the Water Code. (d) A "permanently inactive well" is a well that has not been usedfor a period of one year, unless the person owning land in feesimple or in possession thereof under lease or contract of saledemonstrates an intent for future use for water supply, groundwaterrecharge, drainage, or groundwater level control, heating or cooling,cathodic protection, groundwater monitoring, or related uses. A wellowner shall provide evidence to the local health officer of anintent for future use of an inactive well by maintaining the well ina way that the following requirements are met: (1) The well shall not allow impairment of the quality of waterwithin the well and groundwater encountered by the well. (2) The top of the well or well casing shall be provided with acover, that is secured by a lock or by other means to prevent itsremoval without the use of equipment or tools, to preventunauthorized access, to prevent a safety hazard to humans andanimals, and to prevent illegal disposal of wastes in the well. Thecover shall be watertight where the top of the well casing or othersurface openings to the well are below ground level, as in a vault orbelow known levels of flooding. The cover shall be watertight if thewell is inactive for more than five consecutive years. A pump motor,angle drive, or other surface feature of a well, when in compliancewith the above provisions, shall suffice as a cover. (3) The well shall be marked so as to be easily visible andlocated, and labeled so as to be easily identified as a well. (4) The area surrounding the well shall be kept clear of brush,debris, and waste materials. (e) At a minimum, permanently inactive wells shall be destroyed inaccordance with standards developed by the Department of WaterResources pursuant to Section 13800 of the Water Code and adopted bythe State Water Resources Control Board or local agencies inaccordance with Section 13801 of the Water Code. Minimum standardsrecommended by the department and adopted by the state board or localagencies for the abandonment or destruction of groundwatermonitoring wells or class 1 hazardous injection wells shall not beconstrued to limit, abridge, or supersede the powers or duties of thedepartment, in accordance with Section 13801 of the Water Code. (f) Nothing in this section is a limitation on the power of acity, county, or city and county to adopt and enforce additionalpenal provisions regarding the types of wells and other excavationsdescribed in subdivisions (a) and (b).115705.  The board of supervisors may order securely covered,filled, or fenced abandoned mining excavations on unoccupied publiclands in the county.115710.  The board of supervisors shall order securely fenced,filled, or covered any abandoned mining shaft, pit, or otherexcavation on unoccupied land in the county whenever it appears tothem, by proof submitted, that the excavation is dangerous or unsafeto man or beast. The cost of covering, filling, or fencing is acounty charge.115715.  Every person who maliciously removes or destroys anycovering or fencing placed around, or removes any fill placed in, anyshaft, pit, or other excavation, as provided in this part, is guiltyof a misdemeanor.115720.  This part is not applicable to any abandoned mining shaft,pit, well, septic tank, cesspool, or other abandoned excavation thatcontains a surface area of more than one-half acre.