Alaska Administrative Code › Title 20 - Miscellaneous Boards and Commissions › Chapter 25 - Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission › Article 1 - Drilling › 20 AAC 25.080 - Annular disposal of drilling waste

Current through May 31, 2024
(a) A person may not
				dispose of drilling waste through the annular space of a well unless authorized
				by the commission under this section. The operator of a well permitted under
				AS
				31.05.090 may request authorization for the
				disposal of drilling waste through the well's annular space by filing with the
				commission an Application for Sundry Approvals (Form 10-403) supplemented with
				additional information as required under this section.
(b) A request for authorization under this
				section must include the following information or refer to that information if
				that information is already on file with the commission:
(1) the annulus to be used for
				disposal;
(2) the depth to the base
				of freshwater aquifers and permafrost, if present;
(3) a stratigraphic description of the interval
				exposed to the open annulus and other information sufficient to support a
				commission finding that the waste will be confined and will not come to the
				surface or, except to the extent allowed under (e)(1) of this section,
				contaminate freshwater;
(4) a list of
				all publicly recorded wells within one-quarter mile, and all publicly recorded
				water wells within one mile, of the well that will receive drilling
				waste;
(5) the types and maximum
				volume of waste to be disposed of and the estimated density of the waste
				slurry;
(6) a description of any
				waste sought to be determined as drilling waste under (h)(3) of this
				section;
(7) an estimate of the
				maximum anticipated pressure at the outer casing shoe during disposal operations
				and calculations showing how this value was determined;
(8) details that show that the shoe of the
				outer casing is set below the base of permafrost, if present, and any freshwater
				aquifer, other than freshwater excepted under (e)(1) of this section, and is
				adequately cemented to provide zone isolation; the information relied upon and
				submitted must include
(A) cementing records;
				and
(B) a cement quality log or
				formation integrity test records;
(9) details that show that the inner and outer
				casing strings have sufficient strength in collapse and burst to withstand the
				anticipated pressure of disposal operations;
(10) the downhole pressure obtained during a
				formation integrity test conducted below the outer casing shoe;
(11) identification of the hydrocarbon zones,
				if any, above the depth to which the inner casing is cemented;
(12) the duration of the disposal operation,
				not to exceed 90 days;
(13) whether
				drilling waste has previously been disposed of in the annular space of the well
				and, if so, a summary of the dates of the disposal operations, the volumes of
				waste disposed of, and the wells where the drilling waste was
				generated;
(14) the well where the
				drilling waste to be disposed of was or will be generated;
(15) if the operator proposes not to comply
				with a limitation established in (d) of this section, an explanation of why
				compliance would be imprudent;
(16)
				any additional data required by the commission to confirm containment of drilling
				waste.