PRINTER'S NO. 633
No. 565 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY SWEET, ITKIN, F. E. TAYLOR, COLAFELLA, KUKOVICH,
SHOWERS, MORRIS, RAPPAPORT, LAUGHLIN, JAROLIN, ALDERETTE AND
HALUSKA, MARCH 23, 1983
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSERVATION, MARCH 23, 1983
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. Section 102(2), (7), (10), (15), (17), (18) and
3 (24) of the act of November 30, 1955 (P.L.756, No.225), known as
4 the Gas Operations Well-Drilling Petroleum and Coal Mining Act,
5 clause (24) added July 31, 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended
6 and clauses are added to read:
7 Section 102. Definitions.--As used in this act:
8 * * *
9 (2) "Operating coal mine" means (i) a coal mine which is
10 producing coal or has been in production of coal at any time
11 during the twelve months immediately preceding the date its
12 status is put in question under this act and any worked out or
13 abandoned coal mine connected underground with or contiguous to
14 such operating coal mine as herein defined [and] or (ii) any
15 coal mine to be established or reestablished as an operating
16 coal mine in the future pursuant to subsection (c) of section
17 303 of this act.
18 * * *
19 (7) "Division" means the [Oil and Gas Division of the
20 Department of Mines] Department of Environmental Resources.
21 * * *
22 (10) "Gas" means any [natural, manufactured or by-product
23 gas or any mixture thereof] fluid, either combustible or
24 noncombustible which is produced in a natural state from the
25 earth and which maintains a gaseous or rarefied state at
26 ordinary temperature and pressure, any manufactured gas, any by-
27 product gas or any mixture of gases.
28 * * *
29 (15) "Cement" or "cement grout" means hydraulic cement
30 properly mixed with water only or any mixture of hydraulic
19830H0565B0633 - 2 -
1 cement with such other materials adequate for bonding or sealing
2 of well bores as the department shall prescribe.
3 * * *
4 (17) "Oil" means [the same as the word "petroleum."]
5 hydrocarbons, regardless of gravity, which are produced at the
6 wellhead in liquid form.
7 (18) "Person" means any individual, association, partnership
8 [or] corporation, political subdivision or agency of the State
9 or Federal Government.
10 * * *
11 (24) "Completion of a well" shall mean the date [after
12 treatment, if any, that the well is properly equipped for
13 production of oil or gas; or if the well is dry, the date the
14 well is abandoned] on which drilling ceases on a well, unless
15 the operator informs the department that the drilling will
16 recommence within thirty days and drilling does in fact
17 recommence: Provided, however, That a temporary cessation in
18 drilling for a period not to exceed seven consecutive days shall
19 not be considered completion of a well.
20 (25) "Capping" means the shutting off of the flow of the gas
21 or oil from a well after it has been completed but prior to
22 connection to a pipeline or other product gathering system.
23 (26) "Shutting in" means ceasing production from a well any
24 time after it has been connected to a pipeline or other product
25 gathering system.
26 (27) "Department" means the Department of Environmental
27 Resources.
28 (28) "Drilling" shall include drilling, redrilling or
29 drilling deeper.
30 (29) "Alteration" means any operation which changes the
19830H0565B0633 - 3 -
1 physical characteristics of the well bore, including stimulation
2 or removing, repairing or changing the casing: Provided,
3 however, That "alteration" shall not include repairing of casing
4 or replacing of casing with casing of the same size and length
5 in non-coal areas.
6 Section 2. Section 104 of the act, added March 3, 1970
7 (P.L.81, No.38), is amended to read:
8 Section 104. Declaration of Public Policy.--The provisions
9 of this act shall be liberally construed to effect the safety of
10 personnel and facilities employed in the underground storage of
11 gas and the protection of the people residing in the area where
12 such gas is stored and their property rights, and the safety of
13 persons and facilities employed in the mining of coal.
14 Section 3. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
15 Section 105. Registration.--Every well operator shall be
16 required to register with the department within thirty days of
17 becoming engaged in such operation and shall renew said
18 registration annually. Any person operating a well on the
19 effective date of this act shall be required to register with
20 the department within six months of the effective date of this
21 act. An annual registration fee of fifty dollars ($50) shall be
22 paid to the department on the initial registration and upon each
23 annual renewal thereof.
24 Section 106. Notification of Transfer.--The well operator of
25 any well shall notify the department, in writing, in such form
26 as the department may direct of the sale, assignment, transfer,
27 conveyance or exchange by the well operator or to the well
28 operator of such well within thirty days after such sale,
29 assignment, conveyance or exchange. The notice shall contain the
30 following:
19830H0565B0633 - 4 -
1 (1) The name and address of the person to whom such well was
2 sold, assigned, transferred, conveyed or exchanged.
3 (2) The identification number and location, by county and
4 township, of the well.
5 (3) The date of the sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance
6 or exchange.
7 (4) The date when possession was relinquished by the owner
8 or operator.
9 (5) And such other information as may be required by the
10 department.
11 Section 4. Sections 201 and 202 of the act, amended July 31,
12 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended to read:
13 Section 201. Well Operator's Responsibility Before and
14 During Drilling.--(a) Before drilling any well or altering any
15 unpermitted well, the well operator shall submit an application
16 to the department and have a plat prepared by a competent
17 engineer or surveyor (on a form to be furnished by the
18 [division] department) showing the political subdivision and
19 county in which the tract of land upon which the well to be
20 drilled is located, the name of the lessor or landowner, the
21 name of the owner or operator of all known underlying workable
22 coal seams, if any, the acreage in the tract to be drilled, the
23 proposed location of the well determined by survey, the courses
24 and distances of such location from two or more permanent points
25 or landmarks on said tract, the proposed angle and direction of
26 such well, if the well is to be deviated substantially from a
27 vertical course and the number or other identification to be
28 given the well, indicating the workable coal seams, if any,
29 underlying said tract which are to be cased off in accordance
30 with section 204 of this act and shall [forward, by registered
19830H0565B0633 - 5 -
1 mail, copies of the plat to the division] file the plat with the
2 department and the [division] department shall in turn forward,
3 by [registered] certified mail, a copy of said plat to the owner
4 and lessee, if any, of such coal, who has filed notice of
5 ownership or tenancy rights in workable coal with the department
6 and every coal operator, operating in any of said seams of coal,
7 who has the right to file objections under section 202 and who
8 has mapped the same and filed his maps with the [Department of
9 Mines] department as required by law. If the well operator
10 submits to the [division] department written approval of the
11 proposed well location by the coal operator, lessee or owner, if
12 any, of the coal underlying the proposed well location and no
13 objections are raised by the [division] department within [ten]
14 fifteen days of filing or if no such approval has been submitted
15 and no objections are made to such proposed well location within
16 [ten] fifteen days from receipt of such notice by the coal
17 operator or owner, if any, or by the [division] department, the
18 same shall be filed and become a permanent record of such
19 location, subject to inspection at any time by any interested
20 person, and the [division] department shall forthwith issue a
21 drilling permit to the well operator and the well operator may
22 proceed with the drilling of the well at the exact location
23 shown on the plat: Provided, however, That in non-coal areas
24 where more than one well is to be drilled as part of the same
25 development project, only the first well of the project need be
26 located by survey. The remaining wells of the project shall be
27 shown on the plat with courses and distances from the first well
28 plainly marked. Prior to drilling each of the additional project
29 wells, the well operator shall notify the [division] department
30 of his intention, and a permit will be issued forthwith.
19830H0565B0633 - 6 -
1 Whenever during the drilling of any well which is not underlain
2 by an operating coal mine, the well operator shall encounter
3 conditions of such a nature as to render continued drilling in
4 the same bore hole more hazardous than usual, or otherwise
5 impossible, then the well operator shall have the right, upon
6 verbal notice to the appropriate oil and gas inspector, to plug
7 immediately such bore hole and to commence a new bore hole not
8 more than twenty feet distant. Within ten days of commencement
9 of such new bore hole, the well operator shall file an amended
10 plat with the department by certified mail.
11 (b) It shall be the duty of the well operator to keep a
12 driller's log of [such well] any well drilled. Such log shall
13 show the character, thickness and depth of the formations passed
14 through or encountered in the drilling of such well and show the
15 depth at which all gas, oil and water were encountered. The log
16 shall show whether the well is productive of gas, oil or water,
17 the volume or quantity thereof and the initial rock pressure of
18 such well which has been taken for a period of not less than
19 forty-eight hours. A copy of this log shall be furnished to the
20 [division] department within thirty days after the completion of
21 the well and it shall be kept on file by the [division]
22 department. Within ninety days after the completion of drilling
23 or recompletion of a well if requested by the department, the
24 operator shall submit a copy of the well log and the electrical,
25 radioactive or other similar conventional log if they have been
26 run. In addition, if requested by the department, as soon as
27 practicable, operators shall file a copy of drill stem test
28 charts, formation water analysis, porosity, permeability or
29 fluid saturation measurements, core analysis and lithologic log
30 or sample description as compiled: Provided, That no such
19830H0565B0633 - 7 -
1 information shall be required unless the operator has compiled
2 such information in the ordinary course of business. No
3 interpretation of the data is to be filed.
4 (c) Drilling permits issued for wells covered by this act
5 shall expire one year after issuance unless operations for
6 drilling the well are commenced within such period and
7 prosecuted with due diligence. Nothing in this subsection shall
8 be construed to rescind the provisions pertaining to drilling
9 permits contained in the act of July 25, 1961 (P.L.825, No.359),
10 known as the "Oil and Gas Conservation Law."
11 (d) Within thirty days after the completion of any well,
12 drill cuttings, if requested, shall be submitted to the
13 department. The department shall notify, prior to commencement
14 of drilling, the operator or operators to collect, for the
15 department, drill cuttings representing each run drilled in
16 cable tool wells and each ten feet of distance drilled in rotary
17 wells. The samples must be washed unless the well is drilled
18 with rotary tools using air or gas as a drilling fluid.
19 Containers for such cuttings will be furnished by the
20 department. Cores taken when drilling wells for oil and gas
21 shall be available in their entirety as recovered, to authorized
22 representatives of the department for inspection and sampling,
23 provided such sampling shall not involve the removal of any
24 complete section of such core, except as such removal is
25 authorized by the operator or operators controlling the well.
26 (e) All information furnished under subsection (b) or (d)
27 shall be kept confidential for one year after the date the
28 information is required to be filed hereunder, if the operator
29 requests such confidential treatment at the time the information
30 is submitted to the department. For good cause shown by the
19830H0565B0633 - 8 -
1 operator, the department may extend the period of
2 confidentiality for one year. The total period of
3 confidentiality shall not exceed three years.
4 Section 202. Drilling Permit, Agreed Location of Wells,
5 Docket of Proceedings.--(a) In case any well location referred
6 to in subsection (a) of section 201 is made so that the well
7 when drilled will penetrate anywhere within the outside coal
8 boundaries of any operating coal mine or coal mine already
9 projected and platted but not yet being operated or within one
10 thousand linear feet beyond such boundaries and the well when
11 drilled or the pillar of coal about the well will, in the
12 opinion of the coal owner or operator, unduly interfere with or
13 endanger such mine, then the coal owner or operator affected
14 shall have the right to file objections in accordance with
15 subsection (h) of section 501 to such proposed location within
16 [ten] fifteen days of [the receipt by the coal operator] filing
17 of the plat provided for in subsection (a) of section 201 by the
18 well operator. An alternative location at which the proposed
19 well could be drilled to overcome such objections shall, if
20 possible, be indicated. If no such objections to the proposed
21 location are filed or if none are raised by the [division]
22 department within [ten] fifteen days after [receipt] filing of
23 the plat [by the coal operator or owner], or if written approval
24 by the coal operator or owner of the location is filed with the
25 [division] department and no objections are raised by the
26 [division] department within [ten] fifteen days of filing, the
27 [division] department shall forthwith issue to the well operator
28 a drilling permit authorizing the well operator to drill at such
29 location.
30 (b) If any objections are filed by any coal operator or
19830H0565B0633 - 9 -
1 owner or are made by the [division] department, the [division]
2 department shall fix a time and place for a conference in
3 accordance with section 502 not more than ten days from the date
4 of the service of such objections on the well operator at which
5 conference the well operator and such coal operators or owners
6 as are present or represented shall consider the objections and
7 attempt to agree upon a location. If they fail to agree upon a
8 location, the [division] department shall direct that a hearing
9 be held within five days of such conference in accordance with
10 section 502 and, after such hearing, shall, by an appropriate
11 order, determine a location on such tract of land as near to the
12 original location as possible where, in the judgment of the
13 [division] department, the well can be safely drilled without
14 unduly interfering with or endangering such mine. Such new
15 location as agreed upon by said parties or as determined by the
16 [division] department shall be indicated on the plat on file
17 with the [division] department and shall become a permanent
18 record, whereupon the [division] department shall promptly issue
19 a drilling permit authorizing the well operator to drill at the
20 location agreed upon by the parties or as determined by the
21 [division] department.
22 (c) Within one hundred and twenty days after the
23 commencement of drilling operations, the coal operator shall
24 accurately locate the well by a closed survey on the same datum
25 as the mine workings or coal boundaries are mapped and file the
26 results of the survey with the [division] department and
27 forward, by registered mail, a copy to the well operator. The
28 coal operator shall file with the department such proof of
29 service as it may require.
30 (d) No well shall be drilled except in accordance with a
19830H0565B0633 - 10 -
1 permit issued under this section, nor shall an unpermitted well
2 be altered in any manner without a permit issued under this
3 section.
4 Section 5. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
5 Section 202.1. Permits.--(a) Every application for a gas or
6 oil well permit shall be accompanied by a one hundred dollar
7 ($100) permit fee. Said fees shall be payable to the Oil and Gas
8 Fund created by this act.
9 (b) If the well operator in an application for a permit is a
10 corporation, partnership or a nonresident of the Commonwealth,
11 then there shall be designated the name and address of an agent
12 for such operator who shall be the attorney-in-fact for the
13 operator and who shall be a resident of the Commonwealth upon
14 whom notices, orders or other communications issued pursuant to
15 this act or the regulations adopted hereunder may be served, and
16 upon whom process may be served. Every well operator required to
17 designate an agent under this section shall within five days
18 after the termination of such designation notify the department
19 of such termination and designate a new agent.
20 (c) The department shall have the right to deny a permit to
21 any well operator who is in violation of any of the provisions
22 of the act with respect to any other well or wells of which he
23 is the operator. The department's right to deny a permit under
24 this section shall not be effective until a final administrative
25 determination has been made of any alleged violation.
26 Section 6. Sections 204(a), (b) and (c) and 205 of the act,
27 amended July 31, 1968 (P.L.881, No.265), are amended to read:
28 Section 204. Method of Casing Through Coal Seams.--(a) When
29 a well is drilled at a location where the coal has been removed
30 from only one seam, the hole shall be drilled at least thirty
19830H0565B0633 - 11 -
1 feet below the coal seam and of a sufficient size to permit the
2 placing of a steel pipe liner not less than ten inches in
3 diameter and of at least one-quarter inch wall thickness. The
4 liner shall extend from a point not less than twenty-five feet
5 below the coal seam to a point not less than twenty-five feet
6 above it. The bottom end of the liner shall be fastened and
7 sealed to the casing and the casing shall be centrally located
8 within the liner, the casing and liner to be run and cemented
9 when the well is drilled at least thirty feet but not more than
10 fifty feet below the coal seam. The annular space between said
11 casing and liner shall be filled with bentonitic mud, cement or
12 such nonporous material as the [division] department may approve
13 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. The casing
14 shall be raised at least ten feet off the bottom of the hole and
15 cement shall be placed in the well through the casing to a depth
16 of at least twenty feet. After the cement has been placed, the
17 casing shall be lowered to the bottom of the hole. In each case,
18 where cement is used to set such liners or casing strings,
19 sufficient time shall be allowed for the proper setting of the
20 cement before drilling is resumed. The casing string shall be
21 equipped with either an approved packer or casing shoe. A liner
22 may be run and cemented as a separate string of pipe: Provided,
23 however, That the liner is run and cemented when the well is
24 drilled at least thirty feet but not more than fifty feet below
25 the coal seam; or such alternate method of protecting the coal
26 seam may be employed as the [division] department may approve
27 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. [Such
28 representative of the division as the deputy secretary shall
29 have designated] The department and the coal operator shall be
30 given at least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator
19830H0565B0633 - 12 -
1 when the work described above is to be done.
2 (b) When a well is drilled at a location where the coal has
3 been removed from two or more seams, such liner shall extend not
4 less than twenty-five feet below the lowest seam penetrated and
5 shall extend to a point not less than twenty-five feet above the
6 highest such seam. In such multiple coal seams in a location
7 from which the coal has been removed, the liner may be run and
8 cemented as a separate string of pipe: Provided, however, That
9 the liner shall be run and cemented when the well is drilled at
10 least thirty feet and not more than fifty feet below the lowest
11 coal seam; or such alternate method of protecting the coal seams
12 may be employed as the [division] department may approve
13 pursuant to an application filed under section 207. [Such
14 representative of the division as the deputy secretary shall
15 have designated] The department and the coal operator shall be
16 given at least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator
17 when the casing is to be cemented through the coal seam.
18 (c) A well penetrating one or more workable coal seams in a
19 location from which the coal has not been removed shall be
20 drilled to such depth and of such size as will permit the
21 placing of casing and packers in the hole at such points and in
22 such manner as will exclude all oil or gas from the coal seam,
23 except such as may be found naturally in the coal seam itself.
24 Each string of casing run in the hole shall be provided with a
25 steel casing, shoe collar, packer or other suitable device
26 firmly fixed on the bottom of such string of casing. The outer
27 string of casing run through any workable coal seam shall be of
28 at least one-quarter inch wall thickness and shall be seated at
29 least thirty feet below such coal seam or, if run through more
30 than one workable coal seam, then at least thirty feet below the
19830H0565B0633 - 13 -
1 lowest of such coal seams, in at least twenty feet of cement,
2 bentonitic mud or nonporous material or by such alternate method
3 as the [division] department may approve pursuant to an
4 application filed under section 207 and such casing string shall
5 extend to the surface. The space behind the largest diameter
6 casing extending through a workable coal seam or seams shall be
7 filled to the extent possible to the surface with cement,
8 bentonitic mud or such nonporous material or by such alternate
9 method as the [division] department may approve pursuant to an
10 application filed under section 207. [Such representative of the
11 division as the deputy secretary shall have designated] The
12 department and the coal operator or owner shall be given at
13 least seventy-two hours notice by the well operator when the
14 well is to be cased through such coal seam.
15 * * *
16 Section 205. Notice of Intention to Plug a Well and Filing
17 of Plugging Certificate.--(a) Prior to the abandonment of any
18 well in an area underlain by a workable coal seam, the well
19 operator shall notify the coal operator and the owner of all
20 known workable coal seams to whom notices are required to be
21 given under section 201 and [such representative of the division
22 as the deputy secretary shall have designated,] the department
23 of his intention to plug and abandon any such well and submit a
24 plat (on a form to be furnished by the [division] department)
25 showing the location of the well and fixing the time at which
26 the work of plugging will be commenced, which time shall be not
27 less than seventy-two hours after the time when such notice is
28 received, in order that their representatives may be present at
29 the plugging of the well. Such notice may be waived by the
30 [division] department and said coal operator or owner and either
19830H0565B0633 - 14 -
1 of them may likewise waive his right to be present but such
2 waiver shall be in writing and a copy thereof attached to notice
3 of abandonment, filed with the [division] department under this
4 section. Whether or not such representatives appear, the well
5 operator may, if he has fully complied with the requirements of
6 this section, proceed, at the time fixed, to plug the well in
7 the manner hereinafter described. When such plugging has been
8 completed, a certificate shall be prepared (on a form to be
9 furnished by the [division] department) by two experienced and
10 qualified men who participated in the work setting forth the
11 time and manner in which the well was plugged. One copy of this
12 certificate shall be mailed to each coal operator or owner to
13 whom notice was given by [registered] certified mail and another
14 copy shall be mailed to the [division] department.
15 (b) Prior to the abandonment of any well, except an
16 uncompleted bore hole plugged immediately upon suspension of
17 drilling under the provisions of section 201(a), in an area not
18 underlain by a workable coal seam, the well operator shall
19 notify the [division or such representative of the division as
20 the deputy secretary shall have designated] department of his
21 intention to plug and abandon any such well and submit a plat
22 (on a form to be furnished by the [division] department) showing
23 the location of the well and fixing the time at which the work
24 of plugging will be commenced, which time shall not be less than
25 seventy-two hours nor more than thirty days after the time of
26 mailing such notice, in order that the [division] department
27 representative may be present at the plugging of the well. Such
28 notice or waiting period may be verbally waived by the [division
29 or its representative] department: Provided, however, That in
30 non-coal areas where more than one well has been drilled as part
19830H0565B0633 - 15 -
1 of the same development project, and these wells are now to be
2 plugged, it is required that the district oil and gas
3 representative be given seventy-two hours notice prior to
4 plugging the first well of such project subject to waiver of
5 notice described herein. [In the plugging of subsequent wells on
6 this project it shall be the responsibility of the division
7 representative to learn when this work is to be continued.] In
8 the plugging of subsequent wells no additional notice shall be
9 required if the plugging on the project is continuous. If the
10 plugging of subsequent wells is delayed for any reason, notice
11 shall be given to the department of the continuation of such
12 project. Whether or not such [division] department
13 representative appears, the well operator may, if he has fully
14 complied with the requirements of this section, proceed at the
15 time fixed to plug the well in the manner hereinafter described.
16 When such plugging has been completed a certificate shall be
17 prepared, (on a form to be furnished by the [division]
18 department) by two experienced and qualified men who
19 participated in the work, setting forth the time and manner in
20 which the well was plugged. A copy of this certificate shall be
21 mailed to the [division] department.
22 (c) Whenever any well is to be abandoned immediately after
23 completion of drilling, the well operator, if he has informed
24 the coal operator and the department of the time when drilling
25 commenced, shall give at least thirty-six hours notice by
26 telephone, confirmed by certified mail, to the department and to
27 the coal operator, if any, fixing the time at which the work of
28 plugging will be commenced. Such notice may be waived in writing
29 by the department and said coal operator or owner, and either of
30 them may likewise waive his right to be present. Whether or not
19830H0565B0633 - 16 -
1 any representative of the department or of the coal operator, if
2 any, appear, the well operator may, if he has fully complied
3 with the requirements of this section, and no objections have
4 been raised, proceed, at the time fixed, to plug the well in the
5 manner provided by law. The well operator shall prepare the
6 certificate of plugging and mail copies of the same as provided
7 in subsections (a) and (b).
8 Section 7. Section 207 of the act is amended by adding a
9 subsection to read:
10 Section 207. Alternative Method.--* * *
11 (c) The department shall have the authority to adopt
12 regulations which require the use of alternative methods of
13 plugging wells, pulling casing and protecting coal seams from
14 intrusion by gas, which shall take account of changes in
15 technology, but which will have as their purpose the protection
16 of people working underground, the protection of potable water
17 supplies and the health and safety of the public.
18 Section 8. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
19 Section 209. Use of Safety Devices to Prevent Blowouts,
20 Explosions and Fires.--Any person engaged in operating any oil
21 or gas well wherein high pressure gas is known to exist, and any
22 person drilling for oil or gas in any district where the
23 pressure of oil or gas is unknown shall equip the well with
24 casings of sufficient strength, and with such other safety
25 devices as may be necessary, in accordance with methods approved
26 by the department, and shall use every effort and endeavor
27 effectually to prevent blowouts, explosions and fires.
28 Section 210. Use of Well Casing to Prevent Water
29 Pollution.--The owner or operator of any well on lands producing
30 or reasonably presumed to contain oil or gas shall properly case
19830H0565B0633 - 17 -
1 it with watertight and adequate metal casing, in accordance with
2 methods approved by the department, and shall, under its
3 direction, shut off all water overlying and underlying oil-
4 bearing or gas-bearing strata and prevent any water from
5 penetrating such strata. The owner or operator shall also use
6 every effort and endeavor to prevent damage to life, health,
7 property, and natural resources and prevent pollution of water
8 bearing strata and waters of the Commonwealth as defined by the
9 act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as "The Clean
10 Streams Law."
11 Section 211. Production Data.--(a) Every well operator
12 shall notify the department within thirty days of any well being
13 placed into production for the first time.
14 (b) Every gas utility company subject to 66 Pa.C.S. § 101,
15 et seq. (relating to public utilities), shall file an annual
16 report with the Public Utility Commission listing certain data,
17 as specified in subsection (g), on its purchases of gas from
18 each well within the Commonwealth.
19 (c) Every oil pipeline company operating within the
20 Commonwealth shall file an annual report with the Pennsylvania
21 Department of Commerce listing certain data, as specified in
22 subsection (g), on its purchases of oil from each well within
23 the Commonwealth.
24 (d) All other initial purchasers of gas or oil shall file an
25 annual report with the Department of Commerce listing certain
26 data, as specified in subsection (g), on their purchases of gas
27 or oil from each well within the Commonwealth.
28 (e) If the information required by this section is not
29 available on an individual well basis in the ordinary course of
30 business, then such data may be provided on a tank, meter or
19830H0565B0633 - 18 -
1 lease basis.
2 (f) Every person required to file a report in accordance
3 with subsections (b), (c) and (d) shall forward a copy of such
4 report by certified mail to each well operator included in such
5 report and shall indicate therein any information required by
6 this section which it is unable to report in the ordinary course
7 of business. Within sixty days of receipt of the same, the well
8 operator shall report any information so specified to the
9 Department of Environmental Resources.
10 (g) The annual report required by this section shall
11 include, but not be limited to, the following:
12 (1) Operator's name.
13 (2) Operator's address.
14 (3) Producing formation where the well is located.
15 (4) Identification of the well.
16 (5) Number and identification of wells producing.
17 (6) Number and identification of inactive wells.
18 (7) Number and identification of wells capped during the
19 reporting period, together with the time period each well was
20 capped and the reason therefor.
21 (8) Number and identification of wells shut-in for more than
22 ninety consecutive days during the reporting period together
23 with the time period each well was shut-in and the reason
24 therefor.
25 (9) The amount of oil or gas produced from each well during
26 the reporting period.
27 (h) The Department of Environmental Resources shall act as
28 the central repository for the information required to be
29 reported under this section and the Public Utility Commission
30 and the Department of Commerce shall transfer the reports,
19830H0565B0633 - 19 -
1 together with a compilation thereof, to the Department of
2 Environmental Resources in such manner as the three bodies shall
3 determine.
4 Section 212. Department Staffing.--The department is hereby
5 authorized adequate staffing to effectively carry out its duties
6 under this act.
7 Section 9. Section 301 of the act is amended by adding a
8 subsection to read:
9 Section 301. Filing of Maps and Data by Persons Operating or
10 Proposing to Operate Gas Storage Reservoirs.--* * *
11 (a.1) All persons operating gas storage reservoirs within
12 this State shall file with the department, within sixty days of
13 the end of each storage year, an annual report showing the
14 operating history of said reservoir including withdrawals and
15 injections of gas, monthly rates and amounts of withdrawal and
16 injection, withdrawals and injection pressure data and amounts
17 of cushion and working gas at the end of that operating year and
18 other data as the department shall, by regulation, require.
19 * * *
20 Section 10. Section 503 of the act is amended by adding a
21 subsection to read:
22 Section 503. Enforcement.--* * *
23 (e) All oil and gas inspectors shall have the power under
24 this act to issue orders in connection with an inspection under
25 this act, which shall become immediately effective. Such an
26 order shall be followed by a written memorandum of the order
27 from the department.
28 Section 11. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
29 Section 504.1. Civil Penalties.--In addition to proceeding
30 under any other remedy available at law or in equity for a
19830H0565B0633 - 20 -
1 violation of a provision of this act or a rule or regulation of
2 the department or any order of the department, the Environmental
3 Hearing Board, after hearing, may assess a civil penalty upon a
4 person for such violation. Such a penalty may be assessed
5 whether or not the violation was willful. The civil penalty so
6 assessed shall not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000), plus
7 five hundred dollars ($500) for each day of continued violation.
8 In determining the amount of the civil penalty, the board shall
9 consider the willfullness of the violation, damage or injury to
10 the waters of the Commonwealth or their uses, endangerment of
11 the safety of others, costs of remedying the harm, and other
12 relevant factors. It shall be payable to the Commonwealth and
13 shall be collectible in any manner provided at law for the
14 collection of debts. If any person liable to pay any such
15 penalty neglects or refuses to pay the same after demand, the
16 amount, together with interest and any costs that may accrue,
17 shall be a lien in favor of the Commonwealth upon the property,
18 both real and personal, of such person but only after same has
19 been entered and docketed of record by the prothonotary of the
20 county where such is situated. The board may, at any time,
21 transmit to the prothonotaries of the respective counties
22 certified copies of all such liens, and it shall be the duty of
23 each prothonotary to enter and docket the same of record in his
24 office, and to index the same as judgments are indexed, without
25 requiring the payment of costs as a condition precedent to the
26 entry thereof.
27 Section 504.2. Oil and Gas Fund.--All fines, civil penalties
28 and permit fees collected under this act shall be paid into the
29 Treasury of the Commonwealth into a special fund to be known as
30 the Oil and Gas Fund, hereby established, which shall be
19830H0565B0633 - 21 -
1 administered by the department for the plugging and sealing of
2 abandoned oil and gas wells and to cover the purposes of
3 administering this act, and for said purposes the moneys in the
4 fund shall be appropriated annually by the General Assembly.
5 Section 12. This act shall take effect in 90 days.
A24L52JLW/19830H0565B0633 - 22 -