| (II) any noncompliance with a permit condition or malfunction
of the injection system that may cause fluid migration into or between
fresh water strata.
(F) The operator shall report any noncompliance not
reported under subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) of this paragraph at
the time monitoring reports are submitted. The report must contain
the information listed in subparagraph (E) of this paragraph.
(G) If the operator becomes aware that it failed to
submit any relevant facts or submitted incorrect information in a
permit application or a report to the commission, the operator shall
promptly submit the relevant facts or correct information.
(13) Transfers. The permit is not transferable to any
person except by modification, or revocation and reissuance, to change
the name of the operator and incorporate other necessary requirements.
(14) Completion report. Injection operations may not
begin in any new brine mining injection well until the operator has
submitted a completion report to the director, and the director has
reviewed the completion report and found the well in compliance with
the conditions of the permit.
(15) Workovers. The operator shall notify the appropriate
district office at least 48 hours before performing any workover or
corrective maintenance operations that involve the removal of the
tubing or well stimulation.
(16) Mechanical integrity.
(A) No person may perform injection operations in a
brine mining injection well that lacks mechanical integrity. A well
has mechanical integrity if:
(i) there is not significant leak in the casing; and
(ii) there is no significant fluid movement into fresh
water strata through vertical channels adjacent to the wellbore.
(B) For any existing brine mining injection well, mechanical
integrity must be demonstrated annually. For any new brine mining
injection well, mechanical integrity must be demonstrated before injection
operations begin and annually thereafter. In addition, for all brine
mining injections wells, mechanical integrity must be demonstrated
after any workover that involves the removal of the tubing.
(C) To demonstrate the absence of a significant leak
in the casing, the operator shall conduct a fluid pressure test in
accordance with the following procedures:
(i) the operator shall submit a written test procedure
to the commission in Austin at least 15 days before the test;
(ii) the operator shall notify the district office
orally at least 48 hours before the test;
(iii) the operator shall perform the test using the
test procedure submitted prior to the testing unless otherwise instructed
by the commission; and
(iv) the operator shall file a complete record of the
test with the commission in Austin within 30 days after the test.
(D) In lieu of an annual fluid pressure test, the operator
may monitor the pressure of a hydrocarbon pad or blanket contained
in the annulus space of the well, provided the operator has obtained
written approval from the director prior to using this method.
(E) One of the following methods shall be used to demonstrate
the absence of significant fluid movement into fresh water strata
through vertical channels adjacent to the wellbore:
(i) the results of a temperature or noise log; or
(ii) where the nature of the casing precludes the use
of the logging techniques prescribed in clause (i) of this subparagraph,
cementing records demonstrating the presence of adequate cement to
prevent such movement.
(F) The director may allow the use of a method of demonstrating
mechanical integrity other than one listed in subparagraphs (C), (D),
and (E) of this paragraph with the approval of the administrator of
the Environmental Protection Agency obtained pursuant to 40 Code of
Federal Regulations §146.8(d).
(G) Mechanical integrity must be demonstrated to the
satisfaction of the director. In conducting and evaluating the results
of a mechanical integrity test, the operator and the director will
apply procedures and standards generally accepted in the industry.
In reporting the results of a mechanical integrity test, the operator
must include a description of the method and procedures used. In evaluating
the results, the director will review monitoring and other test data
submitted since the previous mechanical integrity test.
(17) Notice of conversion or abandonment. The operator
shall notify the commission at such times as the permit requires before
conversion or abandonment of the well.
(18) Plugging. Within one year after cessation of brine
mining injection operations, the operator shall plug the well in accordance
with §3.14(a) and (c)(h) of this title (relating to Plugging)
(Rule 14(a) and (c) - (h)). For good cause, the director may grant
a reasonable extension of time in which to plug the well if the operator
submits a proposal that describes actions or procedures to ensure
that the well will not endanger fresh water during the period of the
extension.
(g) Other permit conditions. In addition to the conditions
required in all permits, the commission will establish conditions,
as required on a case-by-case basis, to provide for and assure compliance
with the requirements specified in this subsection.
(1) Duration. Permits will be effective for a term
up to the operating life of the facility. The commission will review
each permit issued pursuant to this section at least once every five
years to determine whether cause exists for modification, revocation
and reissuance, or termination of the permit.
(2) Operating requirements. Permits will prescribe
operating requirements, which will at a minimum specify that:
(A) except during well stimulation, injection pressure
at the wellhead may not exceed a maximum calculated to assure that
the injection pressure does not initiate new fractures or propagate
existing fractures in the injection zone; and
(B) in no case may the injection pressure initiate
fractures in the confining zone or cause the escape of injection or
formation fluids from the injection zone.
(3) Monitoring requirements. Permits will specify the
following monitoring requirements:
(A) requirements concerning the proper use, maintenance,
and installation, when appropriate, of monitoring equipment or methods;
(B) requirements concerning the type, intervals, and
frequency of monitoring sufficient to yield data representative of
the monitored activity, including continuous monitoring when appropriate;
and
(C) requirements to report monitoring results with
a frequency dependent on the nature and effect of the monitored activity,
but in no case less than quarterly.
(4) Construction requirements. Permits will specify
construction requirements to assure that the injection operations
will not endanger fresh water. Changes in construction requirements
during construction may be approved by the director as minor modifications
of the permit. No such changes may be physically incorporated into
the construction of the well prior to approval of the modifications
by the director.
(A) An existing brine mining injection well shall achieve
compliance with the construction requirements according to a compliance
schedule established as soon as possible and in no case later than
one year after the effective date of the permit. The permit will require
the operator to submit a written compliance report within 30 days
after compliance has been achieved.
(B) A new brine mining injection well must be cased
and cemented in accordance with §3.13 of this title (relating
to Casing, Cementing, Drilling, and Completion Requirements), (Rule
13), provided, however, that the operator shall set and cement surface
casing in accordance with the letter obtained from the Groundwater
Advisory Unit of the Oil and Gas Division pursuant to subsection (d)(4)(I)
of this section regardless of the total depth of the well. No alternative
program for setting less surface casing will be authorized.
(C) Appropriate logs and other tests must be conducted
during the drilling and construction of a new brine mining injection
well. A descriptive report interpreting the results of such logs and
tests must be prepared by a knowledgeable log analyst and submitted
to the director. The logs and tests appropriate to each well will
be determined based on the depth, construction, and other characteristics
of the well, the availability of similar data in the area, and the
need for additional information that may arise from time to time as
the construction of the well progresses.
Cont'd... |
