| (a) The owner or operator of a Class I salt cavern
disposal well shall prepare, maintain, and comply with a plan for
post-closure care that meets the requirements of subsection (b) of
this section, and that is acceptable to the executive director.
(1) The owner or operator shall submit the plan as
a part of the permit application and, upon approval by the executive
director, such plan shall be a condition of any permit issued.
(2) The owner or operator shall submit any proposed
significant revision to the plan and obtain any necessary permit amendment,
as appropriate over the life of the well, but no later than the date
of the closure report required under §331.46 of this title (relating
to Closure Standards).
(3) The plan shall provide financial assurance as required
in this chapter. The owner or operator shall demonstrate and maintain
financial assurance in the amount of the post closure cost estimate
to cover post closure in a manner that meets the requirements of this
chapter and Chapter 37, Subchapter Q of this title (relating to Financial
Assurance for Underground Injection Control Wells). The amount of
the funds available shall be no less than the amount identified in
paragraph (4)(F) of this subsection.
(4) The plan shall include the following information:
(A) the pressure in the injection zone before injection
began;
(B) the anticipated pressure in the injection zone
at the time of closure;
(C) the predicted time based on actual preclosure monitoring
data until pressure in the injection interval reaches equilibrium
with the surrounding salt stock;
(D) predicted position of the waste front at closure
(cavern sealing and well plugging);
(E) the status of any corrective action required under §331.44
of this title (relating to Corrective Action Standards);
(F) the estimated cost of proposed closure and post-closure
care to be based on a reasonable worst case scenario.
(5) At the request of the owner or operator, or on
his own initiative, the executive director may modify the post-closure
plan after submission of the closure report following the procedures
in §331.46 of this title.
(b) The owner or operator shall:
(1) continue and complete any corrective action required
under §331.44 of this title;
(2) continue to conduct any groundwater monitoring
and subsidence monitoring required under the permit until pressure
in the injection interval reaches equilibrium with the salt stock.
The executive director may extend the period of post-closure monitoring
if he determines that the well or cavern may endanger an underground
source of drinking water or freshwater aquifer;
(3) submit a survey plat to the local zoning authority
designated by the executive director. The plat shall indicate the
location of the well relative to permanently surveyed benchmarks,
the depth of the cavern ceiling and floor, and the maximum cavern
radius. A copy of the plat shall be submitted to the underground injection
control staff of the commission;
(4) provide appropriate notification and information
to such state and local authorities as have authority over drilling
activities to enable such state and local authorities to impose appropriate
conditions on subsequent drilling activities that may penetrate the
well's confining or injection zone;
(5) retain for a period of three years following well
closure records reflecting the nature, composition, and volume of
all injected materials. The executive director shall require the owner
or operator to deliver the records to the executive director at the
conclusion of the retention period, and all records shall thereafter
be retained at a location designated by the executive director for
that purpose.
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §331.171 adopted to be effective June 22, 1992, 17 TexReg 4097; amended to be effective January 2, 1995, 19 TexReg 10099; amended to be effective March 21, 2000, 25 TexReg 2385; amended to be effective November 23, 2000, 25 TexReg 11433; amended to be effective August 16, 2012, 37 TexReg 6078 |
