Water Licensing
Driller's licences
The Department of Water and Energy has responsibility for managing groundwater in New South Wales. To protect this resource, there are requirements on accessing and drilling for groundwater.
Landholders considering accessing groundwater must first obtain either a work approval or a bore licence from the Department before any drilling or bore construction takes place. For more information on work approvals or bore licences go to water licensing.
Drillers are required to obtain a drilling licence from the relevant State or Territory in which they intend to operate.
Drillers must sight the landholder's current work approval or bore licence before drilling a bore.
The driller must construct the bore to the minimum requirements set out in guidelines developed by the National Groundwater Committee, Minimum Construction Requirements for Water Bores in Australia (PDF 1.96MB).
The Department recommends conducting pumping tests as per the Australian Standards. A pump test will allow determination of the safe yield, optimum pump rate and pump depth for the bore.
After the bore has been constructed, the driller must provide the landholder with a completed DWE 'Form A' (PDF 83KB) (XLS 144KB) providing details of the location and construction details of the bore, as well as information on the quality of the bore water. The landholder must send the Form A to the Department, together with any other additional information required in the water supply works approval, within two months of completion of the bore.
Why drillers are licensed
Poor drilling practices and poorly constructed or failed bores can cause and contribute to groundwater misuse, wastage and degradation through uncontrolled bore flow or contamination of aquifers via the borehole or annulus around the bore casing. Materials and surface water can also cause groundwater contamination through bore holes.
The aim of licensing drillers who carry out bore construction, abandonment or other work on an existing bore is to ensure the:
- protection of the groundwater resource from contamination, deterioration and undue depletion
- long-term economic production of groundwater of the best possible quality.
The emphasis of this licensing is on groundwater protection. A driller's licence classification system relating to aquifer types is the most appropriate way to protect the resource and determine the skills and knowledge required by drillers.
Unconfined aquifers:
An unconfined aquifer system must be protected primarily from surface pollution and the skills involved in achieving this (relating to drilling) are relatively modest, as surface pollution around the casing is easily prevented.
Multiple aquifers:
Drilling and bore construction in multiple aquifer systems requires more knowledge and skills on the part of drillers as inter-aquifer communication must be prevented to avoid aquifer contamination and depletion.
Artesian aquifers:
Artesian (flowing or high pressure) aquifers require a high level of knowledge and skills on the part of the driller due to the need to understand and control hydrostatic pressures.
Licence classes
The Department of Water and Energy issues driller's licences to construct bores under the following classes:
| Class 1 licence | allows the construction of water level and water quality monitoring bores including spear points, dewatering, geotechnicaldrilling and piezometers |
| Class 2 licence | allows the construction of sub-artesian stock and domestic supply bores up to 152 mm nominal bore casing |
| Class 3 licence | allows the activities of a Class 2 licence and also allows the construction of sub-artesian, screened and developed bores (with open hole, slotted casing or screen completion methods, including the use of a formation stabiliser, but NOT including gravel filter envelope completion techniques). Does not require a Screens and Gravel Pack Certificate |
| Class 4 licence | allows the activities of a Class 3 licence and also allows the use of gravel filter envelope completion techniques Requires a Screens and Gravel Pack Certificate |
| Class 5 licence | allows the activities of a Class 2 licence and also allows the construction of flowing and non-flowing bores that penetrate the sandstone aquifers of the Great Artesian Basin and the construction of flowing bores elsewhere in New South Wales |
| Class 6 licence | allows the activities of both a Class 4 licence and a Class 5 licence |
A drillers' licence may restrict its holder to the use of one or more of the following drilling methods:
- Auger
- Jetting
- Cable tool
- Rotary air
- Rotary mud
- Such other method as is specified in the licence.
There are a range of actions the Department can take in relation to illegal bore drilling, which include licence cancellation and/or prosecution.
If you are a driller, you are at risk of prosecution if you construct a bore and the landholder has not first obtained a valid work approval or bore licence to construct a bore.
Drillers must hold a drilling licence to construct a water bore and are only permitted to drill the kind of bore specified in their licence class. It is an offence for a driller to drill a bore that is outside their licence class.
How to apply
To apply for a driller's licence or for further information call 1800 353 104.