Article 300-8 states different systems such as water air etc. cannot be in the same raceway as electrical wires. I would like to know if a ditch containing a 12/2 uf wire and a well water pipe can be in the same trench. per definitions article 100 for raceways is a trench a raceway?

No, a trench is not a raceway so it is permissible to put a UF cable and a water line in the same trench.
Hope this helps
Mike T.

Thanks Mike I will print this and show it to one of our old time electrical inspectors who is fighting me on this, I tried every which way i could to explain it and he doesn't buy it.

What did the electrical inspector say? Please post back and let us know.

Well it took a lot of persuading, but the "old time inspector" only agreed because the majority ruled. He still doesn't buy it and says we are sacrificing safety for the benefit of the code.

I am in a state of confusion by the remark If the NEC is a safety code how does one perceive we are sacrificing safety for the benefit of the code?
After all is not the NEC what we are charged with enforcing. If there is a issue with the current code there is a process in place to make changes to the NEC.

I guess I am at a loss myself. In that I don't know what the safety hazard would be.

If the conductor installed in the trench is a type UF, or USE, or thwn installed in PVC, it is listed for direct burial, and wet locations. If the water pipe breaks what problem or safety hazard would the water create for a conductor or cable listed for direct burial and wet locations?

I agree with Ruben, if we have a problem with the Code, there is a process to fix it. But in order to accomplish that we need to identify the hazard and show justification of the hazard for the code panel to vote positive to make that change.

So my question is to all...What's the safety hazard? Let's identify that!

That's just it there is no safety hazard given the fact uf, use, and thwn in pvc are all rated for wet locations. This is the point I was trying to get across to the inspector to no avail
I may have misquoted him about sacrificing safety for the code, as he really believes that code article pertains to a ditch with water pipes and cables. He thinks this is a safety issue, one which I and other's can't see, given the above circumstances, any way on to better topics.