Well Rules in Chesterfield, VA: Permits, Setbacks & Closing a Well

Private wells in Chesterfield County answer mostly to Virginia's statewide well regulations, enforced locally by the Chesterfield Health District, with the county stepping in on building permits and anything touching its water system. This page sorts out which office handles what, when a health department permit is needed, the construction and setback rules, how an unused well is closed, the county's rule on wells and county water, and what to know when a house with a well is sold.

Which office handles what

• Well permits, records and abandonment: VDH's Chesterfield Health District, which also serves Powhatan and Colonial Heights. Environmental health is at 9501 Lucy Corr Circle, Chesterfield, 804-748-1691, or chesterfield_eh@vdh.virginia.gov.
• Building permits: Chesterfield Building Inspection, 9800 Government Center Parkway, main line 804-751-4990, open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Permit applications can go through the county's ELM portal.
• County water availability and connections: Chesterfield Utilities, 9840 Government Center Parkway; availability 804-748-1864, connection fees 804-748-1862.
• Contractor licensing: the state Board for Contractors, through DPOR. See who fixes well pumps.

When you need a VDH permit

Under 12VAC5-630-220, nobody may construct, alter, abandon or deepen a private well without a written construction permit from the health department. Three things are carved out because they aren't alterations: replacing the pump, replacing a seal or cap with an equivalent one, and extending the casing above ground. A permit is valid for 18 months and can be renewed once for another 18. A new well also needs a written inspection statement before it goes into use.

The state fee for a private well construction or abandonment permit is $300 (12VAC5-620-70), and the Chesterfield Health District's own fee table lists the same amount for a private well. Its septic and well application is linked from the district's onsite sewage and well water page.

How Virginia classifies wells

The definitions in 12VAC5-630-10 go by method: a drilled well is made "wholly or in part by means of a drill," a bored well with a hand or power soil auger, and a dug well with picks, shovels or other hand tools. Drinking-water wells then fall into construction classes under 12VAC5-630-360 and -410:

Class III drinking-water wells, like Class IV wells built for other uses, need a sanitary well seal or a pitless adapter, and the casing has to reach at least 12 inches above the ground, apart from a few exempt suction-pump, ejector-pump and heat pump wells. The class matters later, too, because some setback distances differ by class.

Disinfection after work inside the casing

Section 410 also says private wells are to be disinfected under 12VAC5-630-430 after any work that requires access to the inside of the casing, pump pulls included. Method 1 keeps a 100 mg/L chlorine solution in the well for 24 hours. Method 2 gets at least 100 mg/L throughout the well and requires at least 1,000 contact units, concentration multiplied by hours, such as 50 mg/L for 20 hours or 200 mg/L for 5.

Setback distances

Table 1 in 12VAC5-630-380, as amended November 6, 2024, sets minimum distances from a well. These matter most when a new well is sited or a septic system, addition or outbuilding goes in near an existing one.

A pending county change. Chesterfield's Board of Supervisors scheduled a public hearing for March 25, 2026, on proposed ordinance amendments "relating to setbacks from private wells." We haven't been able to confirm what the proposal covers or whether it passed. If you're planning construction near a well, ask the county's Planning Department at 804-748-1050.

Closing a well you no longer use

Virginia's definition of an abandoned well is broader than most people expect. It includes a well whose pump has been disconnected for any reason other than repair or replacement, which could take in a well left behind after a move to county water or to a new well. Closing one takes a $300 VDH permit, and 12VAC5-630-450 sets out how it's done:

• The owner notifies the health department in advance that abandonment is starting.
• A well that's only temporarily out of service must be sealed with a watertight cap or wellhead seal.
• For permanent closure, the well is chlorinated, and a drilled well is filled with grout placed through a tremie pipe.
• Bored and uncased wells can be closed with clean fill or with grout; both methods remove the top 5 feet of casing.
• Brick, broken concrete and fly-ash flowable fill are not allowed as fill.

The regulation doesn't set a deadline for closing a well. If you're unsure whether an old well on your property counts, ask the health district.

Your well and the county's water system

Chesterfield's Cross-Connection Control and Backflow Prevention manual (5th edition, November 2024) says auxiliary water supplies "shall not be interconnected with the County's potable water system," and it cites County Code Section 18-147 for the penalties on violations. Its property survey asks specifically about individual wells, springs or cisterns. So a home with county water and a well can't have the two plumbed together.

What we couldn't confirm is whether the county code requires an existing home on a well to connect when a line arrives or when the well fails. Don't assume either way. Ask Chesterfield Utilities at 804-748-1864 for your address, or read Chapter 18 (Water and Sewers) of the County Code. The county's published connection fees are on the cost page.

Building permits

Section 108.2 of the Uniform Statewide Building Code (13VAC5-63-80) exempts replacing plumbing fixtures and well pumps that don't alter the water supply and distribution systems, and lets the building official exempt other repair work they consider minor and ordinary. A separate exception lets the official require a permit for exempt items in a special flood hazard area. Pressure tanks aren't mentioned anywhere in the section.

Chesterfield has no page on well pumps. Its list of exempt ordinary repairs covers things like cabinets, electric water heaters and reroofing, and adds: "Call the Building Inspection office at 804-748-1057 if you are in doubt." For a new tank, switch, circuit or constant-pressure controller, that call settles it.

Buying, selling and testing

VDH's real estate FAQ is clear that "Virginia's Private Well Regulations do not require a well inspection for a property transfer." A buyer or lender may still ask for one. The same FAQ says your local VDH office keeps well records and can help you get a copy, which is the best way to learn a well's depth and construction. Testing is likewise the owner's job: VDH says "it is the homeowner's responsibility to test the water," calls once a year a good idea, and notes that it has no authority to test private well quality itself.

East of I-95: the groundwater management area

The part of Chesterfield east of Interstate 95 lies in the Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Area (9VAC25-600-20), where large groundwater withdrawals need a DEQ permit. DEQ's permit rules exclude withdrawals of less than 300,000 gallons a month (9VAC25-610-50). The ZIP codes with the most well homes in Chesterfield are mostly west of I-95.

Well rule questions

Does replacing a well pump need any permit in Chesterfield?

Not from VDH. The state building code exempts a pump swap that doesn't alter the water system, except that the building official may require one in a special flood hazard area. Tank, switch and wiring work is a question for Building Inspection.

Do I have to close the old well if I switch to county water?

A well whose pump is disconnected for reasons other than repair or replacement falls under Virginia's definition of an abandoned well, and abandonment takes a permit and follows set procedures. The well also can't be connected to the county system. Ask the health district what applies to your well.

How do I find out how deep my well is?

Ask the Chesterfield Health District for its records on your property. Closing papers and any well report from the original construction may also show it.

How long is a well permit good for?

Eighteen months, with one 18-month renewal allowed.

Can I build an addition close to my well?

The state minimum from a building foundation is 15 feet, or 10 with borate termite treatment. With a county setback ordinance also proposed in 2026, check with Planning and Building Inspection before you draw plans.

How this site helps

This site explains the rules but doesn't do the work; call or send a request and one independent local well and pump contractor will look at your system and quote it.

Related pages

• Who fixes well pumps
• Well pump replacement
• Drought and dry wells
• Well pump cost
• Courthouse and central county

Sources

• Virginia private well regulations: 12VAC5-630-10, -220, -360, -380, -410, -430, -450; fees, 12VAC5-620-70
• VDH Chesterfield Health District, contact information, environmental health, onsite sewage and well water program
• VDH, real estate transfer FAQ, Private Well Program, private well water
• Uniform Statewide Building Code, 13VAC5-63-80
• Chesterfield County, Building Inspection, Permits, residential project requirements, Utilities, cross-connection and backflow prevention manual, hearing notice (Mar. 17, 2026)
• Groundwater management: 9VAC25-600-20, 9VAC25-610-50