Utah Administrative Code
Topic - Natural Resources
Title R649 - Oil, Gas and Mining; Oil and Gas
Rule R649-3 - Drilling and Operating Practices
Section R649-3-39 - Hydraulic Fracturing

2.1.1. The method of cementing casing in the hole shall be by pump and plug method, displacement method, or other method approved by the division.

2.1.2. When drilling in wildcat territory or in any field where high pressures are probable, the conductor and surface strings of casing must be cemented throughout their lengths, unless another procedure is authorized or prescribed by the division, and any subsequent strings of casing must be securely anchored.

2.1.3. In areas where the pressures and formations to be encountered during drilling are known, sufficient surface casing shall be run to:

2.1.4. The casing program adopted must be planned to protect any potential oil or gas horizons penetrated during drilling from infiltration of waters from other sources and to prevent the migration of oil, gas, or water from one horizon to another.

2.2.1. No well shall be deepened for the purpose of producing oil or gas from a lower stratum until any upper productive strata are protected, either permanently by casing and cementing or temporarily through the use of tubing and packer, to the satisfaction of the division.

2.2.2. In any well that appears to have defective, poorly cemented, or corroded casing that will permit or may create underground waste or may contaminate underground or surface fresh water, the operator shall proceed with diligence to use the appropriate method and means to eliminate such hazard of underground waste or contamination of fresh water. If such hazard cannot be eliminated, the well shall be properly plugged and abandoned.

2.2.3. Natural gas that is encountered in substantial quantities in any section of a drilled hole above the ultimate objective shall be shut off with reasonable diligence, either by mudding, casing or other approved method, and shall be confined to its original source to the satisfaction of the division.

2.3.1. In order to determine the integrity of the casing string set in the well, the operator shall, unless otherwise requested by the division, perform a pressure test of the casing to the pressures specified under R649-3-7.4 before drilling out of any casing string, suspending drilling operations, or completing the well.

2.4.1. Drilling operations shall be conducted according to the drilling program submitted on the original APD and as approved by the division. Any change of plans to the original drilling program shall be submitted to the division by using Form 9, Sundry Notices and Reports on Wells and shall receive division approval prior to implementation. A change of plans necessary because of emergency conditions may be implemented without division approval. The operator shall provide the division with verbal notice of the emergency change within 24 hours and written notice within five days.

2.4.2. An operator of a drilling well as designated in R649-2-4 shall comply with reporting requirements as follows:

2.5.1. When drilling in wildcat territory, the owner or operator shall take any reasonably necessary precautions for keeping the well under control at any time and shall provide, at the time the well is started, proper high pressure fittings and equipment. Any pressure control equipment shall be maintained in good working condition at any time.

2.5.2. In any proved areas, the use of blowout prevention equipment "BOPE" shall be in accordance with the established and approved practice in the area. Any pressure control equipment shall be maintained in good working condition at any time.

2.5.3. Upon installation, any ram type BOPE and related equipment, including casing, shall be tested to the lesser of the full manufacturer's working pressure rating of the equipment, 70% of the minimum internal yield pressure of any casing subject to test, or one psi/ft of the last casing string depth. Annular type BOPE are to be tested in conformance with the manufacturer's published recommendations. The operator shall maintain records of such testing until the well is completed and will submit copies of such tests to the division if required.

2.5.4. In addition to the initial pressure tests, ram and annular type preventers shall be checked for physical operation each trip. Any BOPE components, with the exception of an annular type blowout preventer, shall be tested monthly to the lesser of 50% of the manufacturer's rated pressure of the BOPE, the maximum anticipated pressure to be contained at the surface, one psi/ft of the last casing string depth, or 70% of the minimum internal yield pressure of any casing subject to test.

2.5.5. If a pressure seal in the assembly is disassembled, a test of that seal shall be conducted prior to the resumption of any drilling operation. A shell test of the affected seal shall be adequate. If the affected seal is integral with the BOP stack, either pipe or blind ram, necessitating a test plug to be set in order to test the seal, the division may grant approval to proceed without testing the seal if necessary for prudent operations.

2.5.6. Any tests of BOPE shall be noted on the driller's log, IADC report book, or equivalent and shall be available for examination by the director or an authorized agent during routine inspections.

2.5.7. BOPE used in possible or probable hydrogen sulfide or sour gas formations shall be suitable for use in such areas.

2.6.1. Requests for approval of a notice of intention to perform a workover or recompletion shall be filed by an operator with the division on Form 9, Sundry Notices and Reports on Wells, or if the operation includes substantial redrilling, deepening, or plugging back of an existing well, on Form 3, Application for Permit to Drill, Deepen or Plug Back.

2.6.2. The division shall review the proposed workover or recompletion for conformance with the Oil and Gas Conservation General Rules and advise the operator of its decision and any necessary conditions of approval.

2.6.3. Recompletions shall be conducted in a manner to protect the original completion interval(s) and any other known productive intervals.

2.6.4. The same tests and reports are required for any well recompletion as are required following an original well completion.

2.6.5. The applicant shall file a subsequent report of workover on Form 9, Sundry Notices and Reports, or a subsequent report of recompletion on Form 8, Well Completion or Recompletion Report and Log, within 30 days after completing the workover or recompletion operations.

3.1.1. The operator shall take any reasonable precautions to avoid polluting lands, streams, reservoirs, natural drainage ways, and underground water.

3.2.1. Small onsite oil field pits including, but not limited to, reserve pits, emergency pits, workover and completion pits, storage pits, pipeline drip pits, and sumps shall be located and constructed in such a manner as to contain fluids and not cause pollution of waters and soils. They shall be located and constructed according to the Division guidelines for onsite pits. See Ranking Criteria for Reserve and Onsite Pit Liner Requirements, on the Oil, Gas and Mining web page.

3.2.2. Reserve pit location and construction requirements including liner requirements will be discussed at the predrill site evaluation. Special stipulations concerning the reserve pit will be included as part of the Division's approval to drill.

3.2.3. Following drilling and completion of the well the reserve pit shall be closed within one year, unless permission is granted by the Division for a longer period.

3.2.4. Pit contents shall meet the Division's Cleanup Levels (guidance document for numeric clean-up levels) or background levels prior to burial.

3.2.5. The contents may require treatment to reduce mobility or toxicity in order to meet cleanup levels.

3.2.6. The alternative to meeting cleanup levels would be transporting of material to an appropriate disposal facility.

3.3.1. Wastes addressed by these rules are E and P Wastes that are exempt from the RCRA hazardous waste management requirements.

3.3.2. Reduction of the amount of material generated that must be disposed of is the preferred practice.

3.3.3. The method of disposal used shall be compatible with the waste that is the subject of disposal.

3.3.4. Every operator shall file an Annual Waste Management Plan by January 15 of each year to account for the proper disposition of produced water and other E and P Wastes.

3.4.1. Operations to increase ultimate recovery, such as cycling of gas, the maintenance of pressure, the introduction of gas, water or other substances into a reservoir for the purpose of secondary or other enhanced recovery or for storage and the injection of water into any formation for the purpose of water disposal shall be permitted only by order of the board after notice and hearing.

3.4.2. A petition for authority for the injection of gas, liquefied petroleum gas, air, water, or any other medium into any formation for any reason, including but not necessarily limited to the establishment of or the expansion of waterflood projects, enhanced recovery projects, and pressure maintenance projects shall contain:

3.4.3. Applications as required by R649-5-2 for injection wells that are located within the project area, may be submitted for board consideration and approval with the request for authorization of the recovery project.

3.4.4. Established recovery projects may be expanded and additional wells placed on injection only upon authority from the board after notice and hearing or by administrative approval.

3.4.5. If the proposed injection interval can be classified as an USDW, approval of the project is subject to the requirements of R649-5-4.

3.5.1. Injection wells shall be completed, equipped, operated, and maintained in a manner that will prevent pollution and damage to any USDW, or other resources and will confine injected fluids to the interval approved.

3.5.2. The application for an injection well shall include a properly completed UIC Form 1 and the following:

3.5.3. Applications for injection wells that are within a recovery project area will be considered for approval:

3.5.4. Approval of an injection well is subject to the requirements of R649-5-4, if the proposed injection interval can be classified as an USDW.

3.5.5. In addition to the requirements of this section, the provisions of R649-3-1, R649-3-4, R649-3-24, R649-3-32, and R649-8-1 and R649-10 shall apply to any Class II injection wells.

3.6.1. Applications for injection wells submitted pursuant to R649-5-1-3 shall be noticed in conformance with the procedural rules of the board as part of the hearing for the recovery project. Any person desiring to object to approval of such an application for an injection well shall file the objection in conformance with the procedural rules of the board.

3.6.2. The receipt of a complete and technically adequate application, other than an application submitted pursuant to R649-5-3-1, shall be considered as a request for agency action by the Division and shall be published in a daily newspaper of general circulation in the city and county of Salt Lake and in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the proposed well is located. A copy of the notice of agency action shall also be sent to any parties including government agencies. The notice of agency action shall contain at least the following information:

3.6.3. If no written objection to the application for administrative approval of an injection well is received by the division within 15 days after publication of the notice of agency action, or an aquifer exemption is not required in accordance with R649-5-4, and a board hearing is not otherwise required, the application may be considered and approved administratively.

3.6.4. If a written objection to an application for administrative approval of an injection well is received by the division within 15 days after publication of the notice of application, or if a hearing is required by these rules or deemed advisable by the director, the application shall be set for notice and hearing by the board.

3.6.5. The director shall have the authority to grant an exception to the hearing requirements of R649-5-1.1 for conversion to injection of additional wells that constitute a modification or expansion of an authorized project provided that any such well is necessary to develop or maintain thorough and efficient recovery operations for any authorized project and provided that no objection is received pursuant to R649-5-3-3.

3.6.6. The director shall have authority to grant an exception to the hearing requirements of R649-5-1-1 for water disposal wells provided disposal is into a formation or interval that is not currently nor anticipated to be an underground source of drinking water and provided that no objection is received pursuant to R649-5-3-3.

3.7.1. The board may, after notice and hearing and subject to the EPA approval, authorize the exemption of certain aquifers from classification as an USDW based upon the following findings:

3.7.2. Interested parties desiring to have an aquifer exempted from classification as a USDW, shall submit to the division an application that includes sufficient data to justify the proposal. The division shall consider the application and if appropriate, will advise the applicant to submit a request to the board for an aquifer exemption.

3.8.1. Before operating a new injection well, the casing shall be tested to a pressure not less than the maximum authorized injection pressure, or to a pressure of 300 psi, whichever is greater.

3.8.2. Before operating an existing well newly converted to an injection well, the casing outside the tubing shall be tested to a pressure not less than the maximum authorized injection pressure, or to a pressure of 1,000 psi, whichever is lesser, provided that each well shall be tested to a minimum pressure of 300 psi.

3.8.3. In order to demonstrate continuing mechanical integrity after commencement of injection operations, any injection wells shall be pressure tested or monitored as follows:

3.9.1. Approvals or orders authorizing injection wells shall be valid for the life of the well, unless revoked by the board for just cause, after notice and hearing.

3.9.2. An approval may be administratively amended if: