Florida Administrative Code › 62 - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › 62C - Division of Resource Management › Chapter 62C-28 - CONSERVATION OF OIL AND GAS: PRODUCTION AND FLOWLINES › Section 62C-28.004 - Production and Production Facilities

Current through Reg. 50, No. 138; July 16, 2024
(1)
				Production Measurement. All production, prior to sales or commingling with
				another production, shall be measured in accordance with generally accepted
				industry standards and practices. Casinghead gas, when produced in quantities
				insufficient for sale, may be estimated by using gas/oil ratios obtained from
				periodic well tests or other suitable means. Saltwater may be measured anytime
				prior to disposal or injection. See Rule
				 62C-25.008, F.A.C., for
				reporting requirements.
(2) Spill
				Prevention and Clean Up Plan (SPCP). Every person operating a well or field in
				Florida shall devise and submit to the Department a plan designed to prevent
				spills of crude oil and associated fluids and to expeditiously remove these
				fluids from the environment should a spill occur. These plans must be field
				specific and, where more than one operator exists in a field, must be
				coordinated with each of the other operators. In such cases, one plan shall be
				devised and submitted to the Department on behalf of each operator involved.
				These plans shall be kept current and shall at a minimum identify each
				potential spill source, outline protective measures taken to avoid a spill at
				that point, list and show location of equipment to be used in an emergency, and
				specify what action has been planned to remove each such spill that might
				occur. Field maps showing wells, flowlines, tank batteries, access roads,
				treating facilities, gathering lines, and associated facilities must be
				included and updated as changes occur. Equipment necessary to rapidly control
				spills and to comply with SPCP's shall be maintained readily available at all
				times. See paragraph  62C-26.008(3)(d),
				and subsection  62C-28.004(7),
				F.A.C.
(3) Production Facilities
				and Equipment. All production facilities and related equipment shall be
				designed and maintained as necessary to prevent pollution. Each piece of
				equipment, including flowlines, valves, fittings, separators, heater treaters,
				pumps, coolers, storage tanks, etc., shall be properly maintained to perform
				its design function and shall be removed from the location when no longer used
				or useful. High-low pressure and level sensors and shut down devices, pressure
				relief valves, check valves, gas detection systems, testing schedules and
				procedures, etc. shall all be designed, tested and operated in accordance with
				generally accepted industry standards and practices. Housekeeping shall be
				sufficient to maintain human health, safety, and environmental protection.
				Bonds and securities required under Rule
				 62C-26.002, F.A.C., cover
				production facilities and tank batteries associated with the covered well and
				cannot be released until these facilities are removed and the sites restored
				unless the facilities are also covered under a different well
				security.
(4) Secondary Containment
				Facilities. All new tank batteries and those renovated subsequent to this rule
				shall be constructed upon pads certified by a registered professional engineer
				to be relatively impermeable to hydrocarbon and saltwater spills. These pads
				shall be surrounded by dikes or fire walls of sufficient size and strength to
				contain twice the volume of the largest storage tank within the diked area. The
				containment pads shall be sloped so as to drain surface fluids away from
				storage tanks and shall be kept clean and free of liquids. Drain lines with
				locked valves shall be installed through the fire walls at the lowest point of
				the containment facility but fluids may be drained only in accordance with
				NPDES and other permits and these rules.
(5) Storage Tanks. Crude oil storage tanks
				shall be equipped with equalizing overflow lines. Such tanks, when constructed
				or refurbished subsequent to this rule shall be, unless an exception is granted
				pursuant to Rule  62C-25.001, F.A.C., installed on
				foundations above the floor of the containment area so that any leaks can be
				readily seen immediately around the tanks. Tanks containing sour fluids shall
				be equipped so that they can be gauged, sampled, and the temperature measured
				at ground level. All tanks shall be installed, maintained, pressure tested, and
				protected against corrosion in accordance with generally accepted petroleum
				industry standards and practices.
(6) Inspections and Reports. The operator
				shall monitor all equipment and facilities so as to immediately detect any leak
				which might cause pollution. All unattended facilities equipped with remote
				controlled and automatic monitoring systems shall be inspected at least every
				third day; all other facilities shall be inspected daily. All spills shall be
				reported as required in Rule
				 62C-28.005, F.A.C.
(7) Control and Removal. Immediate corrective
				action shall be taken in accordance with the operator's SPCP to rapidly bring
				any spill under control and to clean up the site without delay. If a relatively
				minor spill or a spill of undetermined size occurs adjacent to or beneath
				permanent structures such as storage tanks, pump foundations, pipelines, etc.,
				and complete excavation is not practical, the Department shall require that the
				site be monitored for possible ground water contamination. Monitoring includes
				installation and periodic sampling of monitor wells and/or surface water
				bodies. If levels of hydrocarbons or dissolved chlorides occur above background
				levels, continued monitoring or site clean up will be required in accordance
				with Chapter 62C-770, F.A.C.
(8)
				Safety and Pollution Control Equipment Testing. All safety, fire, and pollution
				prevention programs and equipment, facilities, and procedures shall conform to
				generally accepted industry standards and practices. Diagrams of the gas
				detection and fire fighting systems together with schedules and procedures for
				testing safety equipment shall be posted in a prominent
				place.
Rulemaking Authority
					 377.22 FS. Law Implemented
					 377.22
					 FS.
New 11-26-81, Formerly 16C-28.04, Amended 6-4-89, 5-12-93,
					 Formerly 16C-28.004, Amended 3-24-96.