312 IAC 29-33-4 - Temporary abandonment of wells
Authority: IC 14-10-2-4; IC 14-37-3
Affected: IC 14-37
Sec. 4.
(a) An owner
or operator of a well may temporarily abandon a well if the well otherwise
meets the requirements of IC 14-37 and this article and the well conforms to
the requirements of this section. To temporarily abandon a well, the owner or
operator must file an application for temporary abandonment on a form
prescribed by the division within sixty (60) days after any of the following:
(1) The date on which the drilling and casing
of the well is completed.
(2) The
date on which the operation of the well is terminated.
(3) The expiration of the period during which
the owner or operator defers abandoning the well under section 3 of this
rule.
(b) The application
for temporary abandonment shall include sufficient information to demonstrate
that the engineering, geologic, or economic reasons for retaining the well on
temporary abandonment status outweigh the potential benefit of either:
(1) operating the well; or
(2) plugging the well.
(c) The owner or operator shall ensure that
the well has mechanical integrity or does not otherwise threaten an underground
source of drinking water by doing the following:
(1) Installing tubing and packer or a
mechanical bridge plug, cement, or other suitable plug placed within two
hundred (200) feet above the perforated or open hole interval in the cemented
portion of the casing, but no less than one hundred (100) feet below the base
of the lowermost underground source of drinking water and either:
(A) remove any fluid in the well to a level
at least one hundred (100) feet below the base of the lowest underground source
of drinking water; or
(B) pressure
test the casing above the packer or plug at least once every five (5) years at
a pressure of at least three hundred (300) pounds per square inch gauge for a
period of thirty (30) minutes with the pressure varying no more than three
percent (3%) during the test period.
(2) Monitoring the fluid level in the well
using acoustical or wireline measuring methods on an annual basis. Using this
method requires the owner or operator to also comply with the following:
(A) Report the results of monitoring annually
on a form prescribed by the division.
(B) If the fluid level is closer than one
hundred (100) feet to the base of the lowest underground source of drinking
water, the owner or operator shall notify an inspector within twenty-four (24)
hours and either:
(i) verify at least one (1)
time every two (2) years by analysis of a sample of the fluid in the well that
the fluid is water that does not pose a threat to an underground source of
drinking water; or
(ii) use one (1)
of the other methods in this subsection to demonstrate mechanical integrity of
the well.
(3)
Notwithstanding subdivisions (1) and (2) mechanical integrity for a gas well
with a minimum well head pressure of one hundred (100) pounds per square inch
may be established according to the following:
(A) At least ten percent (10%) of the initial
shut-in pressure shall be bled off, and the well shall be shut back in under
the supervision of the inspector.
(B) Once the well returns to the maximum
shut-in pressure, the pressure must be maintained at a constant level for
thirty (30) minutes in the presence of an inspector.
(C) A pressure measuring device displaying a
readout of the shut-in pressure shall be attached to the well head and shall be
accessible at all times for inspection by the inspector.
(d) Temporary abandonment of a
well under this section may be granted for a period not to exceed five (5)
consecutive years.
(e) Upon the
expiration of temporary abandonment status, the owner or operator shall do one
(1) of the following:
(1) Operate the well for
its permitted purpose.
(2) Plug and
abandon the well in accordance with IC 14-37 and this rule.
(3) Submit a request for temporary
abandonment renewal according to the requirements of subsections (b) and
(c).
(f) In considering
whether to extend the period of temporary abandonment beyond the initial five
(5) year period, the division director may require the owner or operator to
submit additional information to justify the need for continued temporary
abandonment and to ensure protection of the environment and validate the
likelihood that a well will be returned to active status or properly plugged
and abandoned as required under this article. Such additional information may
include, but is not limited to, the following:
(1) A list of all improvements or workovers
that will be required to equip the well for active status.
(2) A description of other improvements or
infrastructure that will be needed to return the well to active
status.
(3) An itemized list of the
costs associated with each of the improvements or workovers identified in
subdivisions (1) and (2).
(4) A
detailed time schedule for completing all of the workovers or improvements
identified by the owner or operator.
(5) An estimate of the cost to plug and
abandon the well by an independent plugging contractor.
(g) An owner or operator must notify the
division in writing within thirty (30) days of any change in the operational
status of a well that has been granted temporary abandonment status under this
section.
(h) Operation of a well
that is subject to this section removes the well from temporary abandonment
status.
(i) The authorization to
inject granted under
312 IAC 29-28-1 is withdrawn upon
the division's grant of temporary abandonment status for any Class II well.
Injection operations shall not recommence unless the requirements of
312 IAC 29-28-1(b)
are met and the division has issued a new
authorization to inject.
Notes
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