Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 12, December 1, 2024
(1) A permittee
must notify the department within 2 hours of the down hole loss of a
radioactive source (source or radioactive source). The notice must include the
date of loss and location (county, survey name, abstract number, lease name,
well API number, distances from survey boundaries, and Lambert
Coordinates).
(2) Procedures for
recovery of the lost radioactive source must be furnished to the department,
and the radioactive source may not be declared decommissioned until all
reasonable effort has been expended to retrieve the radioactive source, as
determined by the department.
(3)
Decommission procedures.
(a) Wells with
decommissioned radioactive sources must be mechanically equipped to prevent
either accidental or intentional mechanical disintegration of the radioactive
source.
(A) Radioactive sources
decommissioned in the bottom of a well must be covered with a cement plug, dyed
a standard color red iron oxide at least 100 feet thick, on top of which a
whipstock or other approved deflection device is set. The dye is to alert a
reentry drilling engineer prior to encountering the source.
(B) Upon decommissioning a well where a
radioactive source has been cemented in place behind a casing string above
total depth, a standard color-dyed cement plug must be placed opposite the
decommissioned source and a whipstock or other approved deflection device
placed on top of the plug. The standard color-dyed cement plug must have a
minimum 100-foot cement plug set opposite the source, extending at least 50
feet above and 50 feet below the source.
(C) In the event a permittee finds that after
expending a reasonable effort it is not possible to decommission the source as
prescribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this section, the permittee may seek
department approval for an alternate decommission procedure.
(D) If the hole is later sidetracked above
the source, the sidetracked hole must be controlled to ensure that it is at
least 15 feet away from the source.
(b) Upon permanent decommission of any well
in which a radioactive source is left in the hole, and after removal of the
wellhead, a permanent plaque must be attached to the top of the casing left in
the hole in such a manner that reentry cannot be accomplished without
disturbing the plaque. This plaque will serve as a visual warning that a
radioactive source has been decommissioned in place in the well. The plaque
must contain the trefoil radiation symbol with a radioactive warning and must
be constructed of a long-lasting material such as monel or brass, in accordance
with specifications established by the department. Additionally, the plaque
must be labeled with the well name, API number, and "Oregon Department of
Geology and Mineral Industries."
(c) A plugging report must be filed with the
department and must identify the well as a decommissioned radioactive source
well and include a signed affidavit stating that all plugging reports are
accurate and comply with OAR 632-010-0015.
(d) The permittee must erect, under
supervision of the department, a standardized permanent surface marker as a
visual warning showing that the well contains a radioactive source. This marker
must contain the following information: well name, API number, surface
location, name of the permittee, name of the lease, the source or material
decommissioned in the well, the total depth of the well, the depth at which the
source is decommissioned, the plug-back depth, the date of the decommission of
the source, the activity of the source, and a warning not to drill below the
plug-back depth;
(4) The
department will maintain a list of all decommissioned radioactive source
wells.
Stat. Auth.: ORS 520
Stats. Implemented: ORS
520.095