PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1239, 1402, 2239, PRINTER'S NO. 2925
2557
No. 1063 Session of 1977
INTRODUCED BY MESSRS. SWEET, B. F. O'BRIEN, TAYLOR, D.M. FISHER,
LEHR, BURNS, GAMBLE, TRELLO, McCALL, DeMEDIO, YAHNER,
GOODMAN, MISCEVICH, ABRAHAM, GATSKI AND LAUGHLIN, MAY 2, 1977
AS AMENDED ON THIRD CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
APRIL 5, 1978
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of November 30, 1955 (P.L.756, No.225),
2 entitled, as amended, "An act relating to coal mining, well
3 operations and the underground storage of gas, except in
4 storage reservoirs excavated in rock formations specifically
5 for storage purposes, the safety of personnel and facilities
6 employed therein, and the protection of the people residing
7 in the area and their property rights; prescribing the rights
8 and duties of well operators, before, during, and after the
9 drilling of wells for the production, extraction or storage
10 of any gas, petroleum or other liquid; regulating the
11 underground storage of gas under workable coal seams;
12 prescribing the rights and duties of owners and operators of
13 coal mines in relation to wells and underground storage
14 areas; granting certain corporations a limited right of
15 eminent domain to appropriate interests in real property for
16 surface and sub-surface operations in connection with the
17 underground storage of gas; creating the Oil and Gas Division
18 of the Department of Mines and defining its personnel, powers
19 and duties; providing for hearings and the procedures to be
20 followed therein and imposing duties upon the courts and
21 providing methods for the enforcement of the provisions of
22 this act and imposing penalties," changing definitions,
23 adding definitions, providing for registration fees, permit
24 fees, registration and notice to the department of engaging
25 in certain operations; requiring safety devices, providing
26 for capping, well casing, shutting in, abandoning, deserting
27 and inactivating of wells and reporting of production data,
28 further providing for enforcement, providing civil penalties,
29 creating an Oil and Gas Fund and providing for annual
30 appropriations.
31 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
1 hereby enacts as follows:
2 Section 1. Clauses (2), (6), (7), (10), (15), (17), (18) and
3 (24) of section 102 and section 104, act of November 30, 1955
4 (P.L.756, No.225), known as the "Gas Operations Well-Drilling
5 Petroleum and Coal Mining Act," clause (24) added July 31, 1968
6 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended and section 102 is amended by
7 adding clauses to read:
8 Section 102. Definitions.--As used in this act:
9 * * *
10 (2) "Operating coal mine" means (i) a coal mine which is
11 producing coal or has been in production of coal at any time
12 during the twelve months immediately preceding the date its
13 status is put in question under this act and any worked out or
14 abandoned coal mine connected underground with or contiguous to
15 such operating coal mine as herein defined [and] or (ii) any
16 coal mine to be established or reestablished as an operating
17 coal mine in the future pursuant to subsection (c) of section
18 303 of this act.
19 * * *
20 (6) "Well" when used in this act means a bore hole or core <--
21 hole drilled or being drilled for the purpose of or to be used
22 for locating, preparing, producing, extracting or injecting any <--
23 gas, mineral, petroleum or other liquid but excluding bore holes <--
24 drilled to produce potable water to be used as such.
25 (7) "Division" means the [Oil and Gas Division of the
26 Department of Mines] Department of Environmental Resources.
27 * * *
28 (10) "Gas" means any [natural, manufactured or by-product
29 gas or any mixture thereof] fluid, either combustible or
30 noncombustible which is produced in a natural state from the
19770H1063B2925 - 2 -
1 earth and which maintains a gaseous or rarefied state at
2 ordinary temperature and pressure, ANY MANUFACTURED GAS, ANY BY- <--
3 PRODUCT GAS OR ANY MIXTURE OF GASES.
4 * * *
5 (15) "Cement" or "cement grout" means hydraulic cement
6 properly mixed with water only or any mixture of hydraulic
7 cement with such other materials adequate for bonding or sealing
8 of well bores as the department shall prescribe.
9 * * *
10 (17) "Oil" means [the same as the word "petroleum."]
11 hydrocarbons regardless of gravity which are produced at the
12 wellhead in liquid form.
13 (18) "Person" means any individual, association, partnership
14 [or] corporation, political subdivision or agency of the State
15 or Federal Government.
16 * * *
17 (24) "Completion of a well" shall mean the date [after
18 treatment, if any, that the well is properly equipped for
19 production of oil or gas; or if the well is dry, the date the
20 well is abandoned] on which drilling ceases on a well, unless
21 the operator informs the department that the drilling will
22 recommence within thirty days and drilling does in fact
23 recommence: Provided, however, That a temporary cessation in
24 drilling for a period not to exceed seven consecutive days shall
25 not be considered completion of a well.
26 (25) "Capping" means the shutting off of the flow of the gas
27 or oil from a well after it has been completed but prior to
28 connection to a pipeline or other product gathering system.
29 (26) "Shutting in" means ceasing production from a well any
30 time after it has been connected to a pipeline or other product
19770H1063B2925 - 3 -
1 gathering system.
2 (27) "Department" means the Department of Environmental
3 Resources.
4 (28) "Drilling" shall include drilling, redrilling or
5 drilling deeper.
6 (29) "Alteration" means any operation which changes the
7 physical characteristics of the well bore, including stimulation
8 or removing, repairing or changing the casing: Provided,
9 however, That "alteration" shall not include repairing of casing
10 or replacing of casing with casing of the same size and length
11 in non-coal areas.
12 Section 104. Declaration of Public Policy.--The provisions
13 of this act shall be liberally construed to effect the safety of
14 personnel and facilities employed in the underground storage of
15 gas and the protection of the people residing in the area where
16 such gas is stored and their property rights, and the safety of
17 persons and facilities employed in the mining of coal.
18 Section 2. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
19 Section 105. Registration.--Every well operator shall be
20 required to register with the department within thirty days of
21 becoming engaged in such operation and shall renew said
22 registration annually. Any person operating a well on the
23 effective date of this act, shall be required to register with
24 the department within six months of the effective date of this
25 act. An annual registration fee of fifty dollars ($50) shall be
26 paid to the department on the initial registration and upon each
27 annual renewal thereof.
28 Section 106. Notification of Transfer.--The well operator of
29 any well shall notify the department, in writing, in such form
30 as the department may direct of the sale, assignment, transfer,
19770H1063B2925 - 4 -
1 conveyance, or exchange by the well operator or to the well
2 operator of such well within thirty days after such sale,
3 assignment, conveyance, or exchange. The notice shall contain
4 the following:
5 (1) The name and address of the person to whom such well was
6 sold, assigned, transferred, conveyed, or exchanged.
7 (2) The identification number and location, by county and
8 township, of the well.
9 (3) The date of the sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance
10 or exchange.
11 (4) The date when possession was relinquished by the owner
12 or operator.
13 (5) And such other information as may be required by the
14 department.
15 Section 3. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 201 of the
16 act, amended July 31, 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended and
17 the section is amended by adding subsections to read:
18 Section 201. Well Operator's Responsibility Before and
19 During Drilling.--(a) Before drilling any well or altering any
20 unpermitted well, the well operator shall submit an application
21 to the department and have a plat prepared by a competent
22 engineer or surveyor (on a form to be furnished by the
23 [division] department) showing the political subdivision and
24 county in which the tract of land upon which the well to be
25 drilled is located, the name of the lessor or landowner, the
26 name of the owner or operator of all known underlying workable
27 coal seams, if any, the acreage in the tract to be drilled, the
28 proposed location of the well determined by survey, the courses
29 and distances of such location from two or more permanent points
30 or landmarks on said tract, the proposed angle and direction of
19770H1063B2925 - 5 -
1 such well, if the well is to be deviated substantially from a
2 vertical course and the number or other identification to be
3 given the well, indicating the workable coal seams, if any,
4 underlying said tract which are to be cased off in accordance
5 with section 204 of this act and shall [forward, by registered
6 mail, copies of the plat to the division] file the plat with the
7 department and the [division] department shall in turn forward,
8 by [registered] certified mail, a copy of said plat to the owner
9 and lessee, if any, of such coal who has filed notice of
10 ownership or tenancy rights in workable coal with the department
11 and every coal operator, operating in any of said seams of coal,
12 who has the right to file objections under section 202 and who
13 has mapped the same and filed his maps with the [Department of
14 Mines] department as required by law. If the well operator
15 submits to the [division] department written approval of the
16 proposed well location by the coal operator, lessee or owner, if
17 any, of the coal underlying the proposed well location and no
18 objections are raised by the [division] department within [ten]
19 fifteen days of filing or if no such approval has been submitted
20 and no objections are made to such proposed well location within
21 [ten] fifteen days from receipt of such notice by the coal
22 operator or owner, if any, or by the [division] department, the
23 same shall be filed and become a permanent record of such
24 location, subject to inspection at any time by any interested
25 person, and the [division] department shall forthwith issue a
26 drilling permit to the well operator and the well operator may
27 proceed with the drilling of the well at the exact location
28 shown on the plat: Provided, however, That in non-coal areas
29 where more than one well is to be drilled as part of the same
30 development project, only the first well of the project need be
19770H1063B2925 - 6 -
1 located by survey. The remaining wells of the project shall be
2 shown on the plat with courses and distances from the first well
3 plainly marked. Prior to drilling each of the additional project
4 wells, the well operator shall notify the [division] department
5 of his intention, and a permit will be issued forthwith.
6 Whenever during the drilling of any well which is not underlain
7 by an operating coal mine, the well operator shall encounter
8 conditions of such a nature as to render continued drilling in
9 the same bore hole more hazardous than usual, or otherwise
10 impossible, then the well operator shall have the right, upon
11 verbal notice to the appropriate oil and gas inspector, to plug
12 immediately such bore hole and to commence a new bore hole not
13 more than twenty feet distant. Within ten days of commencement
14 of such new bore hole, the well operator shall file an amended
15 plat with the division by certified mail.
16 (b) It shall be the duty of the well operator to keep a
17 driller's log of [such well] any well drilled. Such log shall
18 show the character, thickness and depth of the formations passed
19 through or encountered in the drilling of such well and show the
20 depth at which all gas, oil and water were encountered. The log
21 shall show whether the well is productive of gas, oil or water,
22 the volume or quantity thereof and the initial rock pressure of
23 such well which has been taken for a period of not less than
24 forty-eight hours. A copy of this log shall be furnished to the
25 [division] department within thirty days after the completion of
26 the well and it shall be kept on file by the [division]
27 department. Within ninety days after the completion of drilling
28 or recompletion of a well if requested by the department, the
29 operator shall submit a copy of the well log and the electrical,
30 radioactive or other similar conventional log if they have been
19770H1063B2925 - 7 -
1 run. In addition, if requested by the department, as soon as
2 practicable, operators shall file a copy of drill stem test
3 charts, formation water analysis, porosity, permeability or
4 fluid saturation measurements, core analysis and lithologic log
5 or sample description as compiled: Provided, That no such
6 information shall be required unless the operator has compiled
7 such information in the ordinary course of business. No
8 interpretation of the data is to be filed.
9 * * *
10 (d) Within thirty days after the completion of any well,
11 drill cuttings, if requested, shall be submitted to the
12 department. The department shall notify, prior to commencement
13 of drilling, the operator or operators to collect, for the
14 department, drill cuttings representing each run drilled in
15 cable tool wells and each ten feet of distance drilled in rotary
16 wells. The samples must be washed unless the well is drilled
17 with rotary tools using air or gas as a drilling fluid.
18 Containers for such cuttings will be furnished by the
19 department. Cores taken when drilling wells for oil and gas
20 shall be available in their entirety as recovered, to authorized
21 representatives of the department for inspection and sampling,
22 provided such sampling shall not involve the removal of any
23 complete section of such core, except as such removal is
24 authorized by the operator or operators controlling the well.
25 (e) All information furnished under subsection (b) or (d)
26 hereof shall be kept confidential for one year after the date
27 the information is required to be filed hereunder, if the
28 operator requests such confidential treatment at the time the
29 information is submitted to the department. For good cause shown
30 by the operator, the department may extend the period of
19770H1063B2925 - 8 -
1 confidentiality for one year. The total period of
2 confidentiality shall not exceed three years.
3 Section 4. Subsections (a), (c) and (d) of section 202,
4 subsection (d) amended July 31, 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are
5 amended to read:
6 Section 202. Drilling Permit, Agreed Location of Wells,
7 Docket of Proceedings.--(a) In case any well location referred
8 to in subsection (a) of section 201 is made so that the well
9 when drilled will penetrate anywhere within the outside coal
10 boundaries of any operating coal mine or coal mine already
11 projected and platted but not yet being operated or within one
12 thousand linear feet beyond such boundaries and the well when
13 drilled or the pillar of coal about the well will, in the
14 opinion of the coal owner or operator, unduly interfere with or
15 endanger such mine, then the coal owner or operator affected
16 shall have the right to file objections in accordance with
17 subsection (h) of section 501 to such proposed location within
18 [ten] fifteen days of [the receipt by the coal operator] filing
19 of the plat provided for in subsection (a) of section 201 by the
20 well operator. An alternative location at which the proposed
21 well could be drilled to overcome such objections shall, if
22 possible, be indicated. If no such objections to the proposed
23 location are filed or if none are raised by the [division]
24 department within [ten] fifteen days after [receipt] filing of
25 the plat [by the coal operator or owner], or if written approval <--
26 by the coal operator or owner of the location is filed with the
27 [division] department and no objections are raised by the
28 [division] department within [ten] fifteen days of filing, the
29 [division] department shall forthwith issue to the well operator
30 a drilling permit authorizing the well operator to drill at such
19770H1063B2925 - 9 -
1 location.
2 * * *
3 (c) Within one hundred and twenty days after the
4 commencement of drilling operations, the coal operator shall
5 accurately locate the well by a closed survey on the same datum
6 as the mine workings or coal boundaries are mapped and file the
7 results of the survey with the [division] department and
8 forward, by registered mail, a copy to the well operator. The
9 coal operator shall file with the department such proof of
10 service as it may require.
11 (d) No well shall be drilled except in accordance with a
12 permit issued under this section, nor shall an unpermitted well
13 be altered in any manner without a permit issued under this
14 section.
15 Section 5. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
16 Section 202.1. Permits.--(a) Every application for a gas or
17 oil well permit shall be accompanied by a one hundred dollars
18 ($100) permit fee. Said fees shall be payable to the Oil and Gas
19 Fund created by this act.
20 (b) If the well operator in an application for a permit is a
21 corporation, partnership or a nonresident of the Commonwealth,
22 then there shall be designated the name and address of an agent
23 for such operator who shall be the attorney in fact for the
24 operator and who shall be a resident of the Commonwealth upon
25 whom notices, orders or other communications issued pursuant to
26 this act or the regulations adopted hereunder may be served, and
27 upon whom process may be served. Every well operator required to
28 designate an agent under this section shall within five days
29 after the termination of such designation notify the department
30 of such termination and designate a new agent.
19770H1063B2925 - 10 -
1 (c) The department shall have the right to deny a permit to
2 any well operator who is in violation of any of the provisions
3 of the act with respect to any other well or wells of which he
4 is the operator. The department's right to deny a permit under
5 this section shall not be effective until a final administrative
6 determination has been made of any alleged violation.
7 Section 6. Section 204 and section 205 of the act amended
8 July 31, 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended to read:
9 Section 204. Method of Casing Through Coal Seams.--(a) When
10 a well is drilled at a location where the coal has been removed
11 from only one seam, the hole shall be drilled at least thirty
12 feet below the coal seam and of a sufficient size to permit the
13 placing of a steel pipe liner not less than ten inches in
14 diameter and of at least one-quarter inch wall thickness. The
15 liner shall extend from a point not less than twenty-five feet
16 below the coal seam to a point not less than twenty-five feet
17 above it. The bottom end of the liner shall be fastened and
18 sealed to the casing and the casing shall be centrally located
19 within the liner, the casing and liner to be run and cemented
20 when the well is drilled at least thirty feet but not more than
21 fifty feet below the coal seam. The annular space between said
22 casing and liner shall be filled with bentonitic mud, cement or
23 such nonporous material as the [division] department may approve
24 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. The casing
25 shall be raised at least ten feet off the bottom of the hole and
26 cement shall be placed in the well through the casing to a depth
27 of at least twenty feet. After the cement has been placed, the
28 casing shall be lowered to the bottom of the hole. In each case,
29 where cement is used to set such liners or casing strings,
30 sufficient time shall be allowed for the proper setting of the
19770H1063B2925 - 11 -
1 cement before drilling is resumed. The casing string shall be
2 equipped with either an approved packer or casing shoe. A liner
3 may be run and cemented as a separate string of pipe: Provided,
4 however, That the liner is run and cemented when the well is
5 drilled at least thirty feet but not more than fifty feet below
6 the coal seam; or such alternate method of protecting the coal
7 seam may be employed as the [division] department may approve
8 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. [Such
9 representative of the division as the deputy secretary shall
10 have designated] The department and the coal operator shall be
11 given at least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator
12 when the work described above is to be done.
13 (b) When a well is drilled at a location where the coal has
14 been removed from two or more seams, such liner shall extend not
15 less than twenty-five feet below the lowest seam penetrated and
16 shall extend to a point not less than twenty-five feet above the
17 highest such seam. In such multiple coal seams in a location
18 from which the coal has been removed, the liner may be run and
19 cemented as a separate string of pipe: Provided, however, That
20 the liner shall be run and cemented when the well is drilled at
21 least thirty feet and not more than fifty feet below the lowest
22 coal seam; or such alternate method of protecting the coal seams
23 may be employed as the [division] department may approve
24 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. [Such
25 representative of the division as the deputy secretary shall
26 have designated] The department and the coal operator shall be
27 given at least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator
28 when the casing is to be cemented through the coal seam.
29 (c) A well penetrating one or more workable coal seams in a
30 location from which the coal has not been removed shall be
19770H1063B2925 - 12 -
1 drilled to such depth and of such size as will permit the
2 placing of casing and packers in the hole at such points and in
3 such manner as will exclude all oil or gas from the coal seam,
4 except such as may be found naturally in the coal seam itself.
5 Each string of casing run in the hole shall be provided with a
6 steel casing, shoe collar, packer or other suitable device
7 firmly fixed on the bottom of such string of casing. The outer
8 string of casing run through any workable coal seam shall be of
9 at least one-quarter inch wall thickness and shall be seated at
10 least thirty feet below such coal seam or, if run through more
11 than one workable coal seam, then at least thirty feet below the
12 lowest of such coal seams, in at least twenty feet of cement,
13 bentonitic mud or nonporous material or by such alternate method
14 as the [division] department may approve pursuant to an
15 application filed under section 207 and such casing string shall
16 extend to the surface. The space behind the largest diameter
17 casing extending through a workable coal seam or seams shall be
18 filled to the extent possible to the surface with cement,
19 bentonitic mud or such nonporous material or by such alternate
20 method as the [division] department may approve pursuant to an
21 application filed under section 207. [Such representative of the
22 division as the deputy secretary shall have designated] The
23 department and the coal operator or owner shall be given at
24 least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator when the
25 well is to be cased through such coal seam.
26 * * *
27 Section 205. Notice of Intention to Plug a Well and Filing
28 of Plugging Certificate.--(a) Prior to the abandonment of any
29 well in an area underlain by a workable coal seam, the well
30 operator shall notify the coal operator and the owner of all
19770H1063B2925 - 13 -
1 known workable coal seams to whom notices are required to be
2 given under section 201 and [such representative of the division
3 as the deputy secretary shall have designated,] the department
4 of his intention to plug and abandon any such well and submit a
5 plat (on a form to be furnished by the [division] department)
6 showing the location of the well and fixing the time at which
7 the work of plugging will be commenced, which time shall be not
8 less than seventy-two hours after the time when such notice is
9 received, in order that their representatives may be present at
10 the plugging of the well. Such notice may be waived by the
11 [division] department and said coal operator or owner and either
12 of them may likewise waive his right to be present but such
13 waiver shall be in writing and a copy thereof attached to notice
14 of abandonment, filed with the [division] department under this
15 section. Whether or not such representatives appear, the well
16 operator may, if he has fully complied with the requirements of
17 this section, proceed, at the time fixed, to plug the well in
18 the manner hereinafter described. When such plugging has been
19 completed, a certificate shall be prepared (on a form to be
20 furnished by the [division] department) by two experienced and
21 qualified men who participated in the work setting forth the
22 time and manner in which the well was plugged. One copy of this
23 certificate shall be mailed to each coal operator or owner to
24 whom notice was given by [registered] certified mail and another
25 copy shall be mailed to the [division] department.
26 (b) Prior to the abandonment of any well, except an
27 uncompleted bore hole plugged immediately upon suspension of
28 drilling under provisons of section 201(a), in an area not
29 underlain by a workable coal seam, the well operator shall
30 notify the [division or such representative of the division as
19770H1063B2925 - 14 -
1 the deputy secretary shall have designated] department of his
2 intention to plug and abandon any such well and submit a plat
3 (on a form to be furnished by the [division] department) showing
4 the location of the well and fixing the time at which the work
5 of plugging will be commenced, which time shall not be less than
6 seventy-two hours nor more than thirty days after the time of
7 mailing such notice, in order that the [division] department
8 representative may be present at the plugging of the well. Such
9 notice or waiting period may be verbally waived by the [division
10 or its representative] department: Provided, however, That in
11 non-coal areas where more than one well has been drilled as part
12 of the same development project, and these wells are now to be
13 plugged, it is required that the district oil and gas
14 representative be given seventy-two hours notice prior to
15 plugging the first well of such project subject to waiver of
16 notice described herein. [In the plugging of subsequent wells on
17 this project it shall be the responsibility of the division
18 representative to learn when this work is to be continued.] In
19 the plugging of subsequent wells no additional notice shall be
20 required if the plugging on the project is continuous. If the
21 plugging of subsequent wells is delayed for any reason, notice
22 shall be given to the department of the continuation of such
23 project. Whether or not such [division] department
24 representative appears, the well operator may, if he has fully
25 complied with the requirements of this section, proceed at the
26 time fixed to plug the well in the manner hereinafter described.
27 When such plugging has been completed a certificate shall be
28 prepared, (on a form to be furnished by the [division]
29 department) by two experienced and qualified men who
30 participated in the work, setting forth the time and manner in
19770H1063B2925 - 15 -
1 which the well was plugged. A copy of this certificate shall be
2 mailed to the [division] department.
3 (c) Whenever any well is to be abandoned immediately after
4 completion of drilling, the well operator, if he has informed
5 the coal operator and the department of the time when drilling
6 commenced, shall give at least thirty-six hours notice by
7 telephone, confirmed by certified mail, to the department and to
8 the coal operator, if any, fixing the time at which the work of
9 plugging will be commenced. Such notice may be waived in writing
10 by the department and said coal operator or owner, and either of
11 them may likewise waive his right to be present. Whether or not
12 any representative of the department or of the coal operator, if
13 any, appear, the well operator may, if he has fully complied
14 with the requirements of this section, and no objections have
15 been raised, proceed, at the time fixed, to plug the well in the
16 manner provided by law. The well operator shall prepare the
17 certificate of plugging and mail copies of the same as provided
18 in subsections (a) and (b).
19 Section 7. Section 207 of the act is amended by adding a
20 subsection to read:
21 Section 207. Alternative Method.--* * *
22 (c) The department shall have the authority to adopt
23 regulations which require the use of alternative methods of
24 plugging wells, pulling casing, and protecting coal seams from
25 intrusion by gas, which shall take account of changes in
26 technology, but which will have as their purpose the protection
27 of people working underground, the protection of potable water
28 supplies and the health and safety of the public.
29 Section 8. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
30 Section 209. Use of Safety Devices to Prevent Blowouts,
19770H1063B2925 - 16 -
1 Explosions, and Fires.--Any person engaged in operating any oil
2 or gas well wherein high pressure gas is known to exist, and any
3 person drilling for oil or gas in any district where the
4 pressure of oil or gas is unknown shall equip the well with
5 casings of sufficient strength, and with such other safety
6 devices as may be necessary, in accordance with methods approved
7 by the department, and shall use every effort and endeavor
8 effectually to prevent blowouts, explosions, and fires.
9 Section 210. Use of Well Casing to Prevent Water
10 Pollution.--The owner or operator of any well on lands producing
11 or reasonably presumed to contain oil or gas shall properly case
12 it with watertight and adequate metal casing, in accordance with
13 methods approved by the department, and shall, under its
14 direction, shut off all water overlying and underlying oil-
15 bearing or gas-bearing strata and prevent any water from
16 penetrating such strata. The owner or operator shall also use
17 every effort and endeavor to prevent damage to life, health,
18 property, and natural resources and prevent pollution of water
19 bearing strata and waters of the Commonwealth as defined by the
20 act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as "The Clean
21 Streams Law."
22 Section 211. Production Data.--(a) Every well operator
23 shall notify the department within thirty days of any well being
24 placed into production for the first time.
25 (b) Every gas utility company subject to the act of May 28,
26 1937 (P.L.1053, No.286), known as the "Public Utility Law,"
27 shall file an annual report with the Pennsylvania Public Utility
28 Commission listing certain data, as specified in subsection (g),
29 on its purchases of gas from each well within the Commonwealth.
30 (c) Every oil pipeline company operating within the
19770H1063B2925 - 17 -
1 Commonwealth shall file an annual report with the Pennsylvania
2 Department of Commerce listing certain data, as specified in
3 subsection (g), on its purchases of oil from each well within
4 the Commonwealth.
5 (d) All other initial purchasers of gas or oil shall file an
6 annual report with the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce
7 listing certain data, as specified in subsection (g), on their
8 purchases of gas or oil from each well within the Commonwealth.
9 (e) If the information required by this section is not
10 available on an individual well basis in the ordinary course of
11 business, then such data may be provided on a tank, meter or
12 lease basis.
13 (f) Every person required to file a report in accordance
14 with subsections (b), (c) and (d) shall forward a copy of such
15 report by certified mail to each well operator included in such
16 report and shall indicate therein any information required by
17 this section which it is unable to report in the ordinary course
18 of business. Within sixty days of receipt of the same the well
19 operator shall report any information so specified to the
20 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources.
21 (g) The annual report required by this section shall
22 include, but not be limited to, the following:
23 (1) Operator's name.
24 (2) Operator's address.
25 (3) Producing formation where the well is located.
26 (4) Identification of the well.
27 (5) Number and identification of wells producing.
28 (6) Number and identification of inactive wells.
29 (7) Number and identification of wells capped during the
30 reporting period together with the time period each well was
19770H1063B2925 - 18 -
1 capped and the reason therefore.
2 (8) Number and identification of wells shut-in for more than
3 ninety consecutive days during the reporting period together
4 with the time period each well was shut-in and the reason
5 therefore.
6 (9) The amount of oil or gas produced from each well during
7 the reporting period.
8 (h) The Department of Environmental Resources shall act as
9 the central repository for the information required to be
10 reported under this section and the Public Utility Commission
11 and the Department of Commerce shall transfer the reports,
12 together with a compilation thereof, to the Department of
13 Environmental Resources in such manner as the three bodies shall
14 determine.
15 Section 212. Department Staffing.--The department is hereby
16 authorized adequate staffing to effectively carry out its duties
17 under this act.
18 Section 9. Section 301 of the act is amended by adding a
19 subsection to read:
20 Section 301. Filing of Maps and Data by Persons Operating or
21 Proposing to Operate Gas Storage Reservoirs.--* * *
22 (a.1) All persons operating gas storage reservoirs within
23 this State, shall file with the department, within sixty days of
24 the end of each storage year, an annual report showing the
25 operating history of said reservoir including withdrawals and
26 injections of gas, monthly rates and amounts of withdrawal and
27 injection, withdrawals and injection pressure data and amounts
28 of cushion and working gas at the end of that operating year and
29 other data as the department shall, by regulation, require.
30 * * *
19770H1063B2925 - 19 -
1 Section 10. Section 503 of the act is amended by adding a
2 subsection to read:
3 Section 503. Enforcement.--* * *
4 (e) All oil and gas inspectors shall have the power under
5 this act to issue orders in connection with an inspection under
6 this act, which shall become immediately effective. Such an
7 order shall be followed by a written memorandum of the order
8 from the department.
9 Section 11. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
10 Section 504.1. Civil Penalties.--In addition to proceeding
11 under any other remedy available at law or in equity for a
12 violation of a provision of this act or a rule or regulation of
13 the department or any order of the department, the Environmental
14 Hearing Board, after hearing, may assess a civil penalty upon a
15 person for such violation. Such a penalty may be assessed
16 whether or not the violation was willful. The civil penalty so
17 assessed shall not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000), plus
18 five hundred dollars ($500) for each day of continued violation.
19 In determining the amount of the civil penalty the board shall
20 consider the willfullness of the violation, damage or injury to
21 the waters of the Commonwealth or their uses, endangerment of
22 the safety of others, costs of remedying the harm, and other
23 relevant factors. It shall be payable to the Commonwealth of
24 Pennsylvania and shall be collectible in any manner provided at
25 law for the collection of debts. If any person liable to pay any
26 such penalty neglects or refuses to pay the same after demand,
27 the amount, together with interest and any costs that may
28 accrue, shall be a lien in favor of the Commonwealth upon the
29 property, both real and personal, of such person but only after
30 same has been entered and docketed of record by the prothonotary
19770H1063B2925 - 20 -
1 of the county where such is situated. The board may, at any
2 time, transmit to the prothonotaries of the respective counties
3 certified copies of all such liens, and it shall be the duty of
4 each prothonotary to enter and docket the same of record in his
5 office, and to index the same as judgments are indexed, without
6 requiring the payment of costs as a condition precedent to the
7 entry thereof.
8 Section 504.2. Oil and Gas Fund.--All fines, civil penalties
9 and permit fees collected under this act shall be paid into the
10 Treasury of the Commonwealth into a special fund to be known as
11 the "Oil and Gas Fund," hereby established, which shall be
12 administered by the department for the plugging and sealing of
13 abandoned oil and gas wells and to cover the purposes of
14 administering this act, and for said purposes the moneys in the
15 fund shall be appropriated annually by the General Assembly.
16 Section 12. This act shall take effect in 90 days.
D25L42JLW/19770H1063B2925 - 21 -