What does it take to drill a new well on a BC lot?

What the answer means

On rural land without a community water system, the house's water usually comes from a well drilled on the lot. Nothing guarantees water will be found or how much; the wells on record nearby show what drillers found there. The rules below say who may build the well, where it may go, what is filed and what happens to an old one nobody uses.

Who may drill it

Constructing, deactivating or decommissioning a well must be done by a registered well driller qualified for that kind of well, or under the direct supervision of one or of a professional in hydrogeology or geotechnical engineering (Water Sustainability Act s. 49 (2)). The exception is a well excavated by hand or machine to no more than 15 m, which anyone may build (s. 49 (3)). The pump goes in by a registered well pump installer or a water well driller. The Province's register lists both.

Where it may go

A new water supply well must be at least 15 m from an existing water supply well, unless that well isn't in use and won't be, or it's the owner's own and only one well is being drilled; closer only on a hydrogeologist's plan accepted by the Province's engineer (Groundwater Protection Regulation s. 18). A septic field needs 30 m from a water supply well under the Standard Practice Manual, so plan the well and the field together, and keep the wellhead clear of anything that could pollute it: nothing stored within 3 m (s. 62).

How it's finished

A drilled water supply well gets a surface seal at least 5 m long, 1 m into bedrock where rock is shallower (s. 23), casing at least 0.3 m above the ground with the ground sloped away (ss. 33, 35), a secure well cap (s. 38) and the Province's well identification plate (s. 53, Schedule 6). A new well pit isn't allowed unless a professional designs it (s. 36).

The well record

The driller must give the owner and the Province a well construction report within 90 days (s. 76, Schedule 6): depth, what was drilled through, the water level and the tested yield. It becomes the well's record in GWELLS. Keep it with the deed: a later buyer will ask for it.

Licence or not

Groundwater for the household of one or more homes on the lot, including a garden up to 1,000 m² and animals kept as pets or for household use, needs no water licence (Water Sustainability Act ss. 2, 6 (4)); the Province encourages owners to register a domestic well for free so its use is counted when water runs short. Water for a business, farm irrigation, more than the lot's own homes or any other non-domestic use needs a groundwater licence, and possibly a pumping test (the Province's brochure puts one at $5,000 to $30,000 or more).

An old well on the lot

A well not used for 5 years is out of service, and its owner must have it deactivated or decommissioned as soon as practicable; a deactivated well unused another 5 years must be decommissioned (Act s. 56; Regulation s. 69). Decommissioning fills it with sealant and backfill and a closure plug at least 5 m long for a water supply well (s. 71); a registered driller does it, except a well no deeper than 5 m or a dug one no deeper than 15 m (s. 17). Where the landowner doesn't know who owns a well on the land, the duty is the landowner's (Act s. 56 (6)).

Local rules

Some councils and regional districts have their own rules on wells, such as a proof of water before a building permit or subdivision (our reading: ask whether one applies). The Province publishes well drilling advisories for areas with water shortages, poor water or flowing artesian wells.

What it means for a buyer

A lot with no well carries an unknown: the cost of drilling, and whether the water is enough and fit to drink. The wells on record nearby give typical depths and yields, not a promise. On a lot with an old unused well, its decommissioning is the new owner's duty and cost.

Our summary of the Water Sustainability Act (SBC 2014, c. 15, ss. 2, 6, 49, 56) and the Groundwater Protection Regulation (B.C. Reg. 39/2016, ss. 17, 18, 23, 33, 35, 36, 38, 53, 62, 69, 71, 76 and Schedule 6) on BC Laws, and the Province's pages for well owners and its Before You Drill brochure, read 2026-10-20. The 30 m from a septic field is the Sewerage System Standard Practice Manual's, read 2026-10-04.

Sources, read 2026-10-20 and summarised in our words unless marked otherwise: Water Sustainability Act, SBC 2014, c. 15 (ss. 2, 6, 49, 56); Groundwater Protection Regulation, B.C. Reg. 39/2016; Information for well owners, Province of BC; Well records and registration, Province of BC; Before You Drill, Province of BC (2020); Registers of well drillers and well pump installers, Province of BC (read 2026-10-20); Well drilling advisories, Province of BC (read 2026-10-20); Sewerage System Standard Practice Manual, version 3 (2014), Province of BC: Tables II-6, II-19 and III-16 (summarised in our words, read 2026-10-04).

Before you buy: who to ask

The seller or their agent

Is there a well on the lot, old or new, and do you have its well record, a flow test and a water test? Is any old well still to be decommissioned?

A registered well driller

How deep do wells around here go, what do they yield, and what would one cost on this lot?

FrontCounter BC

Does the use I have in mind need a groundwater licence?

The local government

Does it ask for proof of water before a building permit or subdivision?

Look up the lot above: its report gives the wells on record within 2 km with their median depth, yield and water level, the aquifer under the lot and what the groundwater nearby tested for.

See also water wells, sharing a well, well water quality, septic and living off the grid.