| (ii) there is no significant fluid movement into a
stratum containing an underground source of drinking water through
channels adjacent to the injection well bore as a result of operation
of the injection well.
(B) The Commission will consider any deviations during
testing that cannot be explained by the margin of error for the test
used to determine mechanical integrity, or other factors, such as
temperature fluctuations, to be an indication of the possibility of
a significant leak and/or the possibility of significant fluid movement
into a stratum containing an underground source of drinking water
through channels adjacent to the injection wellbore.
(37) Monitoring well--A well either completed or re-completed
to observe subsurface phenomena, including the presence of anthropogenic
CO2 , pressure fluctuations, fluid levels
and flow, temperature, and/or in situ water chemistry.
(38) Offshore--The area in the Gulf of Mexico seaward
of the coast that is within three marine leagues of the coast.
(39) Operator--A person, acting for itself or as an
agent for others, designated to the Railroad Commission of Texas as
the person with responsibility for complying with the rules and regulations
regarding the permitting, physical operation, closure, and post-closure
care of a geologic storage facility, or such person's authorized representative.
(40) Owner--The owner of any facility or activity subject
to regulation under the UIC program.
(41) Owner or operator--The owner or operator of any
injection well, or any other facility or activity that is subject
to regulation under the UIC program. When a geologic storage facility
is owned by one person but is operated by another person, it is the
operator's duty to comply with the requirements of this subchapter
and any permit issued under this subchapter, except that either the
owner or the operator may demonstrate financial responsibility.
(42) Packer--A device lowered into a well to produce
a fluid-tight seal.
(43) Permit--An authorization, license, or equivalent
control document issued by the Commission to implement the requirements
of this chapter.
(44) Person--A natural person, corporation, organization,
government, governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate,
trust, partnership, association, or any other legal entity.
(45) Plugging--The act or process of stopping the flow
of water, oil or gas into or out of a formation through a borehole
or well penetrating that formation.
(46) Post-injection facility care--Monitoring and other
actions (including corrective action) needed following cessation of
injection to assure that underground sources of drinking water are
not endangered and that the anthropogenic CO2 remains
confined to the permitted injection interval.
(47) Pressure front--The zone of elevated pressure
that is created by the injection of the CO2 stream
into the subsurface where there is a pressure differential sufficient
to cause movement of the CO2 stream or
formation fluids from the injection zone into an underground source
of drinking water.
(48) Reservoir--A natural or artificially created subsurface
stratum, formation, aquifer, cavity, void, or coal seam.
(49) Stratigraphic test well--An exploratory well drilled
for the purpose of gathering information in connection with a proposed
carbon dioxide geologic storage project, including formation testing
to obtain information on the chemical and physical characteristics
of the injection zones and confining zones. Such testing may include
injectivity testing.
(50) Stratum (or strata)--A single sedimentary bed
or layer, regardless of thickness, that consists of generally the
same kind of rock material.
(51) Surface casing--The first string of well casing
to be installed in the well.
(52) Transmissive fault or fracture--A fault or fracture
that has sufficient permeability and vertical extent to allow fluids
to move beyond the confining zone.
(53) UIC--Underground injection control.
(54) Underground source of drinking water (USDW)--An
aquifer or its portion which is not an exempt aquifer as defined in
40 CFR §146.4 and which:
(A) supplies any public water system; or
(B) contains a sufficient quantity of ground water
to supply a public water system; and
(i) currently supplies drinking water for human consumption;
or
(ii) contains fewer than 10,000 mg/l total dissolved
solids.
(55) Well injection--The subsurface emplacement of
fluids through a well.
(56) Well stimulation--Any of several processes used
to clean the well bore, enlarge channels, and increase pore space
in the interval to be injected thus making it possible for fluid to
move more readily into the formation including, but not limited to,
surging, jetting, blasting, acidizing, and hydraulic fracturing.
(57) Workover--An operation in which a down-hole component
of a well is repaired or the engineering design of the well is changed.
Workovers include operations such as sidetracking, the addition of
perforations within the permitted injection interval, and the addition
of liners or patches. For the purposes of this chapter, workovers
do not include well stimulation operations.
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