The City of Ripon can soon expect one of its water wells to be back in operation.

At last week’s City Council meeting, Deputy Director of Public Works James Pease provided the update on Well No. 12 upon Councilman Leo Zuber’s request.

“It’s back online and will be up and running at the end of the month,” Pease said.

Don Pedro Company, in accordance to the Regional Water Quality Control Board’s approved and monitoring plan, handled the work that called for the installation of the pump and motor on this rehabilitation project.

“The City provided an existing motor, which was stored at the Well 12 site,” he said in a recent report to the council.

The next step was for the City, with assistance from Wood Rodgers, Inc., to begin operating and monitoring of Well 12 in accordance to the RWQCB approved plan.

The work on Well 12 called for modifying a completely sealed off the upper aquifer that eliminated the contamination of nitrates – the nitrate levels here were the result of fertilizer storage at the Ripon Farm Service facility that’s no longer in service – into the lower aquifers of the well.

Pease noted back then that the majority of the City’s drinking water is obtained from these lower aquifers, which provide clean water that meets the State’s drinking water standards.

Work was paid via the Water Enterprise Capital Fund and was not to exceed $48,000.