Louisiana Administrative Code, Chapter 3, Section XIX-307 - Pit Classification, Standards, and Operational Requirements | Louisiana Administrative Code

A. Produced Water, Onshore Terminal, and Washout Pits

1. Except where exempted by §303. K.8 and §303 M, groundwater aquifer and USDW protection for above-listed pits shall be provided by one of the following.

a. A liner along the bottom and sides of pits which has the equivalent of 3 continuous feet of recompacted or natural clay having a hydraulic conductivity no greater than 1 x 10-7 cm/sec. Such liners include, but are not limited to the following.

i. Natural Liner- natural clay having a hydraulic conductivity meeting the requirements of §307. A.1.a above.

ii. Soil Mixture Liner- soil mixed with cement, clay-type, and/or other additives to produce a barrier which meets the hydraulic conductivity requirements of §307. A.1.a above.

iii. Recompacted Clay Liner- in situ or imported clay soils which are compacted or restructured to meet the hydraulic conductivity requirements of §307. A.1.a above.

iv. Manufactured Liner- synthetic material that meets the definition in §301 and is equivalent or exceeds the hydraulic conductivity requirements of §307. A.1.a above. Pits constructed with a manufactured liner must have side slopes of 3:1 and the liner at the top of the pit must be buried in a 1' wide and 1' deep trench. A sufficient excess of liner material shall be placed in the pit to prevent tearing when filled with E and P Waste.

v. Combination Liner- a combination of two or more types of liners described in this Section which meets the hydraulic conductivity requirements of §307. A.1.a above.

b. Any other alternate groundwater aquifer and USDW protection system acceptable to the Office of Conservation.

2. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees or walls and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphon or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination. Authorized surface discharges of pit contents under federal and/or state regulatory programs are not considered to be pollution or contamination as used herein.

3. A representative of the Office of Conservation must be given an opportunity to inspect prior to and during construction of the pit as provided under §305 B

4. Liquid levels in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit levees or walls. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

5. When use of a pit will be permanently discontinued by the operator of record, the Office of Conservation shall be notified in writing. Pits shall be emptied of all fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations and closed in accordance with §303. F and G within six months of abandonment.

B. Reserve Pits

1. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees or walls and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphons or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination. Authorized surface discharges of pit contents under federal or state regulatory programs are not considered to be pollution or contamination as used herein.

2. Liquid levels in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit levees or walls. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

3. Operators shall prevent the placing of produced water, waste oil, trash, or any other material into a reserve pit which would increase the difficulty in clean-up of the pit or otherwise harm the environment. Such material shall be properly stored and disposed of according to applicable state or federal regulations.

4. Pits shall be emptied of fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations, and closed in accordance with §311 and §313 within six months of completion of drilling or work over operations.

C. Burn Pits

1. Pits shall be constructed in such a manner as to keep fire hazards to a minimum, and in no case shall be located less than 100 feet from a well location, tank battery, separator, heater-treater, or any and all other equipment that may present a fire hazard.

2. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees or walls and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphons or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination.

3. A representative of the Office of Conservation must be given an opportunity to inspect prior to and during construction of the pit as provided under §305 B

4. Any burning process shall be carried out in conformance with applicable air quality regulations. Notification as required by said regulation shall be made to the Air Permits Division, Department of Environmental Quality.

5. No produced water, radioactive material (except industry-accepted and license-approved radioactive material utilized in oilfield operations, and radioactive material naturally occurring in the produced fluids), or other noncombustible waste products shall be placed in pits, except water or emulsion which may be associated with crude oil swabbed or otherwise produced during test operations, or during tank or other vessel cleaning operations. E and P Waste must be removed or burned periodically to assure that storage of materials in the pit is kept to a minimum.

6. Liquid levels in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit levees or walls. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

7. When use of pits will be permanently discontinued by the operator of record, the Office of Conservation shall be notified in writing. Pits shall be emptied of fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations, and closed in accordance with §311 and §313 within six months of abandonment.

D. Well Test Pits

1. Pits shall be constructed in such a manner as to keep fire hazards to a minimum, and in no case shall be located less than 100 feet from a well location, tank battery, separator, heater-treater, or any and all other equipment that may present a fire hazard.

2. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees or walls and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphons or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination.

3. A representative of the Office of Conservation must be given an opportunity to inspect prior to and during construction of the pit as provided under §305 B

4. Within 30 days after completion of a well test, pits shall be emptied of produced fluids and must remain empty of produced fluids during periods of nonuse.

5. Liquid levels in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit walls or dikes. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

6. When use of pits will be permanently discontinued, the Office of Conservation shall be notified in writing. Pits shall be emptied of fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations, and closed in accordance with §311 and §313 within six months of abandonment.

E. Emergency Pits

1. Groundwater aquifer and USDW protection for emergency pits shall be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Operators who intend to utilize existing or new emergency pits without liners must demonstrate by written application to the Office of Conservation that groundwater aquifer and USDW contamination will not occur; otherwise, emergency pits shall be lined. Applications to demonstrate unlined pits will not contaminate groundwater aquifers and USDW's shall at a minimum address the following.

a. Emergency Incident Rate- operator shall estimate the number of times a pit will be utilized each year. A detailed discussion of the facility operation and reasons for the emergency incident rate must be addressed.

b. Soil Properties- operator shall describe and evaluate soil properties onsite. Soil hydraulic conductivity and physical properties must be addressed to assess potential groundwater aquifer and USDW impacts.

c. Groundwater Aquifer Evaluation- water quality, groundwater aquifer, and USDW depth shall be evaluated.

d. Produced Water Composition (total dissolved solids and oil and grease)- must be determined to assess potential impacts on the site.

2. All emergency pits required to be lined must conform to hydraulic conductivity requirements in §307. A.1 above.

3. No produced water or any other E and P Waste shall be intentionally placed in any emergency pit not meeting the hydraulic conductivity requirements (1 x 10-7 cm/sec for 3 continuous feet of clay) except in the case of an emergency incident. In emergency situations, notice must be given to the Office of Conservation within 24 hours after discovery of the incident. Produced water and any other E and P Waste must be removed from the pit within seven days following termination of the emergency situation.

4. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphons or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination. Surface discharges of pit contents under federal or state permits are not considered to be pollution or contamination as used herein.

5. A representative of the Office of Conservation must be given an opportunity to inspect prior to and during construction of the pits as provided under §305 B

6. Liquid level in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit levees. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

7. When use of pits will be permanently discontinued, the Office of Conservation shall be notified in writing. After notification to the Office of Conservation, pits shall be emptied of all fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations, and closed in accordance with §311 and §313 within six months of abandonment.

F. Natural Gas Processing Plant Pits, Compressor Station Pits, and Salt Dome Cavern Pits

1. Pits shall be protected from surface waters by levees or walls and by drainage ditches, where needed, and no siphon or openings will be placed in or over levees or walls that would permit escaping of contents so as to cause pollution or contamination. Authorized surface discharges of pit contents under federal and/or state regulatory programs are not considered to be pollution or contamination as used herein.

2. A representative of the Office of Conservation must be given an opportunity to inspect prior to and during construction of the pit as provided under §305 B

3. Liquid levels in pits shall not be permitted to rise within 2 feet of top of pit levees or walls. Pit levees or walls shall be maintained at all times to prevent deterioration, subsequent overfill, and leakage of E and P Waste to the environment.

4. When use of a pit will be permanently discontinued by the operator of record, the Office of Conservation shall be notified in writing. Pits shall be emptied of all fluids in a manner compatible with all applicable regulations and closed in accordance with §311 and §313 within six months of abandonment.

G. Office of Conservation Corrective Action and Closure Requirement. Should the Office of Conservation determine that continued operation of pits specified in this Subparagraph may result in contamination of a groundwater aquifer or a USDW, or the discharge of fluids into man-made or natural drainage or directly into state waters, or contamination of soils outside the confines thereof, further use of the pit shall be prohibited until conditions causing or likely to cause contamination have been corrected. If corrective measures are not satisfactorily completed in accordance with an Office of Conservation compliance order or schedule, the commissioner may require closure of the pit. When an order for closure is issued, a pit shall be closed in accordance with §311 and §313 and the operator must comply with any closure schedule issued by the Office of Conservation.