Environmental & Geotech Drilling

Backyard Bores & Geotech Drilling Pty Ltd are your Geotechnical & Environmental Drilling specialists in the Mackay region.

We offer the following environmental drilling and geotechnical products and capabilities:

• Drilling and installing piezometer monitoring wells up to 200m depth. Unlike all of the southern-based drillers that blow into town, we log all of our monitoring wells. Less than 5% of their work is logged or completed correctly, especially at service stations. Check it out on Qld Globe.
• Auger drilling from 80mm to 250mm dia, continuous flight and hollow stem up to 24m deep
• Rotary air (rock) drilling from 100mm to 450mm dia and up to 1000m deep
• Providing soil samples with equipment decon (Environmental Management Register listed sites)
• NDD, SPT (Standard Penetration Testing), DCP (Dynamic Cone Penetrometer), Geoprobe and push tubes, split spoon and auger sampling (AS1289, AS1726-2017, ASTM D3441 - ASTM D1586 - 08a)
• Specialist PFAS / PFOA (fire fighting foam) soil sampling and environmental drilling
• Test pumping of bores to Australian Standard AS2368–1990 Test Pumping of Water Wells from 2 hours to 28 days in duration. Includes creation of official documents for government requirements.
• Flow rate logging and data analysis from 0.1L/s to 100L/s
• Water level depth logging from hours during a pump test to years in situ with data capture, transmission and analysis
• Water quality testing for salt (TDS & conductivity), iron (TDI), pH, free chlorine, total hardness & alkalinity
• Comprehensive drinking water testing can be arranged through our partners (pesticides, heavy metals, trace elements, PFAS, PFOA etc.)
• Well development using a combination of over pumping, surging or airlifting to protect the natural water table
• Polymer removal and cleanup of mud (polymer) drilled holes using physical brushing, airlifting, sodium hypochlorite injection, and capture of the toxic polymer wastewater for approved disposal
• Production well (high flow and large diameter) steel and PVC investigation and cleaning
• Downhole camera inspections and video reports
• Decommissioning bores & wells
• Drilling monitoring wells and installing vibrating wire piezometers (VWP) up to 200m deep
• Deep earthing, drilling for installation of earthing rods at substations
• Cathodic protection and pre-cannistered anode/cable installation for fuel oil pipelines

Please call us on 1800 193 194 to see how we can help your project reach successful completion.

1 Quote, 1 Invoice

Let Backyard Bores and Geotech Drilling reduce your paperwork and administrative overhead by providing you with one quote to cover NDD, underground utility locating, concrete cutting and coring, drilling, providing samples and installing monitoring wells.

We have a long-term working relationship with Mackay's best:

• NDD (vacuum truck) company
• Underground utility locators with GPR (ground penetrating radar)
• Concrete cutter and corer (up to 300mm thick)

Experience, skills & local knowledge

Backyard Bores & Geotech Drilling Pty Ltd have drilled thousands of soil sampling and groundwater test holes and installed hundreds of groundwater monitoring wells between Bowen and Rockhampton over the last 20 years.

We have drilled and installed 5 times* the number of monitoring wells around Mackay compared to any other drilling company. Why is that? Because our team uses the right equipment with the right processes and the methods for the right reason by utilising wisdom, judgment, and discretion in the pursuit of your project's goals.

(*Jul 2024 Queensland Spatial Data extract)

Qld Licensed drillers - Every monitoring well logged

Backyard Bores & Geotech Drilling Pty Ltd have Queensland licensed drillers, and we log every monitoring well we drill as required by the obligation of our water bore drilling licenses. Ask the other drilling companies quoting on jobs for copies of their logs or the RN on Qld Globe. Ask them if they use a licensed driller and if that driller logs EVERY monitoring well. The consequences for all involved in not logging monitoring wells are harsh. Look at Qld Globe and, in particular, every service station to see how many other companies log their groundwater monitoring wells. Almost none of them. Do not risk possible fines, legal action, and bad publicity by using untrustworthy companies and drillers that never log groundwater monitoring wells.

Every monitoring well MUST be drilled by a licensed driller, and a log must be submitted to adhere to the Qld government regulations.

Workplace Health & Risk

We care about our team's health and risk levels at work and have WH&R Policies and Procedures, WH&R Plans, SWMS, and JRAs that put the crew first. As of January 2024, we have a zero lost time injury rate since 2012.

PFAS PFOS Firefighting Foam

We have drilled hundreds of soil sampling and groundwater test holes and installed dozens of groundwater monitoring wells in suspected/confirmed PFAS / PFOA areas. Our rigorous PFAS drilling quality control process allows for the most accurate samples possible.

Call us on 1800 193 194 for more information.

Past Project Partners

Backyard Bores & Geotech Drilling Pty Ltd have successfully completed works for the following:

• Mackay Regional Council
• Isaac Regional Council
• Whitsunday Regional Council
• Kleinfelder Environmental Consultants
• CatCon Engineering & Construction
• WSP
• Aurecon
• OWAD Environment
• Cardno Geotechnic Services
• Environmental Management and Remediation Pty Ltd
• Ogilvie Civil & Mining
• Environmental Earth Sciences
• Coffey Geotechnics
• Douglas Partners
• GHD
• EMM Consulting
• CQG
• EPIC Environmental
• North Queensland Airports Group (Mackay Airport)
• North Queensland Bulk Ports
• Caltex, Mobil, Puma, Origin Gas, Ergon
• Onesteel
• Aurizon
• Sibelco Australia
• Prensa
• Urbex
• AESTEC
• ATOM - Australian Terminal Operations Management
• Auscor
• CMW Geosciences
• Wilmar
• BP Australia
• AECOM
• Rock n Road Bitumen
• UGM
• Abbot Point Operations
• East Point Developments

Standard Details We Require to Provide a Quote

• Number of holes to drill
• Number of monitoring wells to install
• Physical address or GPS of the drilling sites
• Is concrete cutting or coring required
• Is vacuum NDD required or hand auger to 1m or 1.5m
• Protruding monument or flush mount Gatic cover
• Bollards required
• What type of sampling is required (from auger at depth, push tube, split spoon)
• What depths and frequencies are these samples required
• Is stem/equipment decon required between holes, and what type of decon is preferred
• Estimated completion dates of work
• What paperwork (SWMS, JRA, WH&R) is required
• What off/on site inductions are our crew required to undertake
• Are there any site specific PPE requirements
• Are there any drilling rig limitations