Water Well Journal

Industry NEWSLINE FMCSA Offers Informational Webinar on Forthcoming ELD Mandate T he mandate to install electronic log- ging devices (ELDs) goes into effect this month on December 18. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released a recording (www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue =3&v=7lWdmqvmD2M) of a recent briefing held in October on ELD imple- mentation plans. The webinar provides a general overview of the ELD rule, as well as information on exemptions, and includes questions and answers from at- tendees at the briefing about compliance. Not all trucks will be required to install ELDs. Exemptions in the rule include those for short-haul operations —drivers limited to a 100 air-mile radius, and for trucks manufactured prior to 2000, among others. More information on the mandate, as well as current exemptions to the mandate, can be found in the May 2017 article in Water Well Journal (http:// waterwelljournal.com/electronic-loging- mandate). A list of Frequently Asked Questions on the ELD mandate is available at www. fmcsa.dot.gov/hours-service/elds/faqs. Home Building Falls to One-Year Low Due to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma U .S. home building fell to a one-year low in the month of September due to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma disrupt- ing the construction of single-family homes in the South, as was announced on October 18. Housing starts decreased 4.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.127 million units in September, the Commerce Department said. That was the lowest level since September 2016 and marked the third monthly decline in starts. The report also showed a decline in building permits, raising concerns the housing market recovery was stalling. Home building and sales are well below their peaks before the housing bubble burst in 2006. Groundbreaking fell 9.3% in the South to the lowest level since October 2015, with single-family home building in the region plunging 15.3% to more than a one-year low. The South, which was pummeled by Harvey and Irma, accounts for almost half of the nation's home building. Building permits fell 4.5% to a rate of 1.215 million units in September. Permits in the South dropped 5.6%. The Commerce Department said the areas in Texas and Florida impacted by the storms accounted for about 13% of U.S. building permits in 2016. NEWS continues on page 14 Potentially 750,000 Private Water Wells Affected by Recent Hurricanes M any private water wells were flooded by hurricanes and their aftermath during the past year, and each is a business opportunity for water well system professionals. The recent string of hurricanes includes Matthew (North and South Carolina, Octo- ber 2016), Harvey (Texas, August 2017), Irma (Florida, September 2017), and Maria (Puerto Rico, September 2017). Some water well contractor members of the National Ground Water Association have reported responding to well owners' needs for well recovery assistance. In addition, in areas of private wells with known flooding potential in the spring, summer, and fall of each year— such as low-lying coastal areas, and river and creek valleys—contractors can work with state and county agencies, and local media, to alert them to their services and inform well owners of actions they can take before and after flooding to protect their groundwater supply. Following a flood, disinfection and wellhead repair may be common needs among well owners. Well relocation and elevation may be other services offered. NGWA recommends that water well system professionals be used to assess and service the wells. Through October 20, this year has marked the seventh most active Atlantic hurricane season of record, according to statistics compiled by Phil Klotzbach, Ph.D., a Colorado State University tropi- cal meteorologist. The Atlantic hurricane season is typically considered the period from June 1 through November 30. Using the U.S. Census Bureau's 1990 Household Water Supply Survey, potentially 750,000 or more private wells may have been affected by hur- ricane effects of flooding, high water table connection to septic systems, flood debris damage, or related incidents. The following numbers of private wells (drilled and dug) were tabulated for counties receiving 10 inches or more of rainfall during the respective hurri- canes that struck these states: • Texas — 215,906 • Florida — 306,382 • South Carolina — 92,477 • North Carolina — 150,692 • Total — 765,457. Many household wells were likely affected in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria, but no county census count is available for them at press time. To derive these numbers of wells, state county boundary maps were over- lain with National Weather Service rainfall intensity maps to identify the counties and wells potentially affected, according to Chuck Job, NGWA regu- latory affairs manager, who compiled this data. "Our members helping their neigh- bors maintain their safe water supply presents a unique combination of sup- porting community health protection and recovery that is also a business opportunity," Job says. See page 22 for Job's in-depth case study article on lessons learned from Hurricane Matthew as well as a sidebar article on the importance of groundwater infrastructure resilience. NGWA also has an online resources page for both well owners and water well system professionals to aid them in recovery following a hurricane. To view it, visit www.NGWA.org/Media-Center/ news/Pages/Hurricane-Resources.aspx. waterwelljournal.com 12 December 2017 WWJ

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