Pennsylvania Code › Title 25 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Part I - Department of Environmental Protection › Subpart C - Protection of Natural Resources › Article III - Air Resources › Chapter 129 - STANDARDS FOR SOURCES › CONTROL OF VOC EMISSIONS FROM UNCONVENTIONAL OIL AND NATURAL GAS SOURCES › Section 129.132 - Definitions, acronyms and EPA methods

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
(a)
Definitions and
						acronyms.
The following words and terms, when used in this section,
						§§
												129.131 (relating to general
						provisions and applicability) and 129.133- 129.140, have the following
						meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
AVO
-Audible, visual and
						  olfactory.
Bleed rate
-The rate in standard cubic
						  feet per hour at which natural gas is continuously vented from a natural
						  gas-driven continuous bleed pneumatic controller.
Centrifugal compressor
-
(i) A machine for raising the pressure of
						natural gas by drawing in low-pressure natural gas and discharging
						significantly higher-pressure natural gas by means of mechanical rotating vanes
						or impellers.
(ii) The term does
						not include a screw compressor, sliding vane compressor or liquid ring
						compressor.
Closed vent system
-A system that is
						  not open to the atmosphere and that is composed of hard-piping, ductwork,
						  connections and, if necessary, flow-inducing devices that transport gas or
						  vapor from a piece or pieces of equipment to a control device or back to a
						  process.
Condensate
-Hydrocarbon liquid
						  separated from natural gas that condenses due to changes in the temperature or
						  pressure, or both, and remains liquid at standard conditions.
Connector
-
(i) A flanged fitting, screwed fitting or
						other joined fitting used to connect two pipes or a pipe and a piece of process
						equipment or that closes an opening in a pipe that could be connected to
						another pipe.
(ii) The term does
						not include a joined fitting welded completely around the circumference of the
						interface.
Control device
-An enclosed combustion
						  device, vapor recovery system or flare.
Conventional well
-
(i) A bore hole drilled or being drilled for
						the purpose of or to be used for construction of a well regulated under
						58 Pa.C.S. §§
														3201-3274 (relating to development) that is
						not an unconventional well, irrespective of technology or design.
(ii) The term includes, but is not limited
						to:
(A) Wells drilled to produce
						oil.
(B) Wells drilled to produce
						natural gas from formations other than shale formations.
(C) Wells drilled to produce natural gas from
						shale formations located above the base of the Elk Group or its stratigraphic
						equivalent.
(D) Wells drilled to
						produce natural gas from shale formations located below the base of the Elk
						Group where natural gas can be produced at economic flow rates or in economic
						volumes without the use of vertical or nonvertical well bores stimulated by
						hydraulic fracture treatments or multilateral well bores or other techniques to
						expose more of the formation to the well bore.
(E) Irrespective of formation, wells drilled
						for collateral purposes, such as monitoring, geologic logging, secondary and
						tertiary recovery or disposal injection.
Conventional well site
- A location
						  with exclusively one or more conventional wells. A location with both
						  unconventional and conventional wells is considered to be an unconventional
						  well site.
Custody transfer
- The transfer of
						  natural gas after processing or treatment, or both, in the producing operation
						  or from a storage vessel or an automatic transfer facility or other equipment,
						  including a product loading rack, to a pipeline or another form of
						  transportation.
Deviation
- An instance in which the
						  owner or operator of a source subject to this section, §§
													129.131 and
						  129.133 -
						  129.140 fails to meet one or more
						  of the following:
(i) A requirement or
						an obligation established in this section, §
													129.131 or §§
													129.133 -
						129.140, including an emission
						limit, operating limit or work practice standard.
(ii) A term or condition that is adopted to
						implement an applicable requirement in this section, §
													129.131 or §§
													129.133 -
						129.140 and which is included in
						the operating permit for the affected source.
(iii) An emission limit, operating limit or
						work practice standard in this section, §
													129.131 or §§
													129.133 -
						129.140 during startup, shutdown
						or malfunction, regardless of whether a failure is permitted by this section,
						§
													129.131 or §§ 129.133 -
						129.140.
FID
- Flame ionization detector.
First attempt at repair
- For purposes
						  of § 129.137 (relating to fugitive emissions components):
(i) An action using best practices taken to
						stop or reduce fugitive emissions to the atmosphere.
(ii) The term includes:
(A) Tightening bonnet bolts.
(B) Replacing bonnet bolts.
(C) Tightening packing gland nuts.
(D) Injecting lubricant into lubricated
						packing.
Flare
-
(i) A thermal oxidation system using an open
						flame without an enclosure.
(ii)
						The term does not include a horizontally or vertically installed ignition
						device or pit flare used to combust otherwise vented emissions from
						completions.
Flow line
- A pipeline used to
						  transport oil or gas, or both, to processing equipment, compression equipment,
						  storage vessel or other collection system for further handling or to a mainline
						  pipeline.
Fugitive emissions component
-
(i) A piece of equipment that has the
						potential to emit fugitive emissions of VOC at a well site, including the
						following:
(A) A valve.
(B) A connector.
(C) A pressure relief device.
(D) An open-ended line.
(E) A flange.
(F) A compressor.
(G) An instrument.
(H) A meter.
(I) A cover or closed vent system not subject
						to §
														129.138 (relating to covers and
						closed vent systems).
(J) A thief
						hatch or other opening on a controlled storage vessel not subject to §
														129.133 (relating to storage
						vessels).
(ii) The term
						does not include a device, such as a natural gas-driven continuous bleed
						pneumatic controller or a natural gas-driven diaphragm pump, that vents as part
						of normal operations if the gas is discharged from the device's vent.
GOR- gas-to-oil ratio
-The ratio of the
						  volume of gas at standard temperature and pressure that is produced from a
						  volume of oil when depressurized to standard temperature and pressure.
Gathering and boosting station
.
(i) A permanent combination of one or more
						compressors that collects natural gas from one or more well sites and moves the
						natural gas at increased pressure into a gathering pipeline to the natural gas
						processing plant or into the pipeline.
(ii) The term does not include the
						combination of one or more compressors located at a well site or located at an
						onshore natural gas processing plant.
Hard-piping
-Pipe or tubing that is
						  manufactured and properly installed using good engineering judgment and
						  standards.
Hydraulic fracturing
-The process of
						  directing pressurized fluids containing a combination of water, proppant and
						  added chemicals to penetrate tight formations, such as shale or coal
						  formations, that subsequently require high rate, extended flowback to expel
						  fracture fluids and solids during a completion.
Hydraulic refracturing
-Conducting a
						  subsequent hydraulic fracturing operation at a well that has previously
						  undergone a hydraulic fracturing operation.
In-house engineer
-An individual who is
						  both of the following:
(i) Employed by
						the same owner or operator as the responsible official that signs the
						certification required under §
													129.140(k)
						(relating to recordkeeping and reporting).
(ii) Qualified by education, technical
						knowledge and expertise in the design and operation of a natural gas-driven
						diaphragm pump or closed vent system to make the technical certification
						required under §
													129.135(c)(3)(ii)
						(relating to natural gas driven diaphragm pumps) or §
													129.138(c)(3), or
						both, as applicable.
Intermediate hydrocarbon liquid
-A
						  naturally occurring, unrefined petroleum liquid.
LDAR
-Leak detection and repair.
Leak
-An emission detected using one or
						  more of the following methods:
(i)
						Through audible, visual or odorous evidence during an AVO inspection.
(ii) By OGI equipment calibrated according to
						§ 129.137(h).
(iii) With a
						concentration of 500 ppm or greater as methane or equivalent by a gas leak
						detector calibrated according to § 129.137(i).
(iv) Using an alternative leak detection
						method approved by the Department in § 129.137(c)(2)(ii)(C), (c)(3)(ii)(C)
						or (e)(2)(iii).
Maximum average daily throughput
-The
						  single highest daily average throughput during the 30-day potential to emit
						  evaluation period employing generally accepted methods.
Monitoring system malfunction
-
(i) A sudden, infrequent, not reasonably
						preventable failure of the monitoring system to provide valid data.
(ii) The term does not include a system
						failure caused by poor maintenance or careless operation.
Natural gas distribution segment
-The
						  delivery of natural gas to the end user by a distribution company after the
						  distribution company receives the natural gas from the natural gas transmission
						  and storage segment.
Natural gas-driven continuous bleed pneumatic
						  control-ler
-An automated instrument used for maintaining a process
						  condition such as liquid level, pressure, deltapressure or temperature powered
						  by a continuous flow of pressurized natural gas.
Natural gas-driven diaphragm
						  pump
.
(i) A positive
						displacement pump powered by pressurized natural gas that uses the
						reciprocating action of flexible diaphragms in conjunction with check valves to
						pump a fluid.
(ii) The term does
						not include either of the following:
(A) A
						pump in which a fluid is displaced by a piston driven by a diaphragm.
(B) A lean glycol circulation pump that
						relies on energy exchange with the rich glycol from the contactor.
Natural gas liquids
-The hydrocarbons,
						  such as ethane, propane, butane and pentane, that are extracted from field
						  gas.
Natural gas processing plant
-
(i) A processing site engaged in the
						extraction of natural gas liquids from field gas, fractionation of mixed
						natural gas liquids to natural gas products, or both.
(ii) The term does not include a
						Joule-Thompson valve, a dew point depression valve or an isolated or standalone
						Joule-Thompson skid.
Natural gas transmission and storage
						  segment
-The term includes the following:
(i) The pipelines used for the long-distance
						transport of natural gas, excluding processing.
(ii) The natural gas transmission stations
						which include the following:
(A) The land,
						mains, valves, meters, boosters, regulators, storage vessels, dehydrators and
						compressors.
(B) The driving units
						and appurtenances associated with the items listed in clause (A).
(C) The equipment used for transporting gas
						from a production plant, delivery point of purchased gas, gathering system,
						storage area or other wholesale source of gas to one or more distribution
						areas.
(iii) The
						aboveground storage facilities and underground storage facilities that
						transport and store natural gas between the natural gas processing plant and
						natural gas distribution segment.
OGI
-Optical gas imaging.
Open-ended valve or line
-A valve,
						  except a safety relief valve, having one side of the valve seat in contact with
						  process fluid and one side open to the atmosphere, either directly or through
						  open piping.
Produced water
-Water that is extracted
						  from the earth from an oil or natural gas production well or that is separated
						  from crude oil, condensate or natural gas after extraction.
Qualified professional
						  engineer
.
(i) An individual
						who is licensed by a state as a Professional Engineer to practice one or more
						disciplines of engineering and who is qualified by education, technical
						knowledge and experience to make the required specific technical
						certification.
(ii) The individual
						making this certification must be currently licensed in this Commonwealth or
						another state in which the responsible official, as defined in §
													121.1 (relating to definitions),
						is located and with which the Commonwealth offers reciprocity.
Quality assurance or quality control
						  activity
-An activity such as a system accuracy audit and a zero and
						  span adjustment that ensures the proper calibration and operation of monitoring
						  equipment.
Reciprocating compressor
-A piece of
						  equipment that employs linear movement of a driveshaft to increase the pressure
						  of a process gas by positive displacement.
Reciprocating compressor rod
						  packing
.
(i) A series of
						flexible rings in machined metal cups that fit around the reciprocating
						compressor piston rod to create a seal limiting the amount of compressed
						natural gas that escapes to the atmosphere.
(ii) Another mechanism that provides the same
						function.
Removed from service
-A storage vessel
						  that has been physically isolated and disconnected from the process for a
						  purpose other than maintenance.
Repaired
-A piece of equipment that is
						  adjusted or otherwise altered to eliminate a leak and is remonitored to verify
						  that emissions from the equipment are at or below the applicable leak
						  limitation.
Returned to service
-A storage vessel
						  that was removed from service which has been:
(i) Reconnected to the original source of
						liquids or has been used to replace another storage vessel.
(ii) Installed in another location and
						introduced with crude oil, condensate, intermediate hydrocarbon liquids or
						produced water.
Routed to a process
or
route
						  to a process
-The emissions are conveyed by means of a closed vent
						  system to an enclosed portion of a process that is operational where the
						  emissions are controlled in one or more of the following ways:
(i) Predominantly recycled or consumed, or
						both, in the same manner as a material that fulfills the same function in the
						process.
(ii) Transformed by
						chemical reaction into materials that are not regulated.
(iii) Incorporated into a product.
(iv) Recovered for beneficial use.
Sensor
-A device that measures a
						  physical quantity or the change in a physical quantity such as temperature,
						  pressure, flow rate, pH or liquid level.
Storage vessel
-
(i) A container used to collect crude oil,
						condensate, intermediate hydrocarbon liquids or produced water that is
						constructed primarily of non-earthen materials which provide structural
						support.
(ii) The term includes a
						container described in subparagraph (i) that is skid-mounted or permanently
						attached to something that is mobile which has been located at a site for 180
						or more consecutive days.
(iii) The
						term does not include the following:
(A) A
						process vessel such as a surge control vessel, bottoms receiver or knockout
						vessel.
(B) A pressure vessel used
						to store a liquid or a gas and is designed to operate in excess of 204.9
						kilopascals (29.7 pounds per square inch, absolute) and to not vent to the
						atmosphere as a result of compression of the vapor headspace during filling of
						the vessel.
(C) A container
						described in subparagraph (i) with a capacity greater than 100,000 gallons used
						to recycle water that has been passed through two-stage separation.
Surface site
-A combination of one or
						  more graded pad sites, gravel pad sites, foundations, platforms or the
						  immediate physical location upon which equipment is physically affixed.
TOC- total organic compounds
-The
						  results of EPA Method 25A.
UIC
-Underground injection
						  control.
UIC Class I oilfield disposal well
-A
						  well with a UIC Class I permit that meets the definition in
						  40 CFR
						  144.6(a)(2) (relating to
						  classification of wells) and receives eligible fluids from oil and natural gas
						  exploration and production operations.
UIC Class II oilfield disposal well
-A
						  well with a UIC Class II permit where wastewater resulting from oil and natural
						  gas production operations is injected into underground porous rock formations
						  not productive of oil or gas and sealed above and below by unbroken,
						  impermeable strata.
Unconventional formation
-A geological
						  shale formation existing below the base of the Elk Sandstone or its geologic
						  equivalent stratigraphic interval where natural gas generally cannot be
						  produced at economic flow rates or in economic volumes except by vertical or
						  horizontal well bores stimulated by hydraulic fracture treatments or by using
						  multilateral well bores or other techniques to expose more of the formation to
						  the well bore.
Unconventional well
-A bore hole
						  drilled or being drilled for the purpose of or to be used for the production of
						  natural gas from an unconventional formation.
Unconventional well site
-A location
						  with one or more unconventional wells.
VRU- vapor recovery unit
-A device used
						  to recover vapor and route it to a process, flow line or other
						  equipment.
Well
-A hole drilled for producing oil
						  or natural gas or into which a fluid is injected.
Wellhead
-
(i) The piping, casing, tubing and connected
						valves protruding above the earth's surface for an oil or natural gas
						well.
(ii) The wellhead ends where
						the flow line connects to a wellhead valve.
(iii) The term does not include other
						equipment at the well site except for a conveyance through which gas is vented
						to the atmosphere.
Well site
-
(i) One or more surface sites that are
						constructed for the drilling and subsequent operation of a conventional well or
						injection well.
(ii) For purposes
						of the fugitive emissions standards in §
													129.137, the term also means a
						separate tank battery surface site collecting crude oil, condensate,
						intermediate hydrocarbon liquids or produced water from a well not located at
						the well site, for example, a centralized tank battery.
(iii) For purposes of the fugitive emissions
						standards in § 129.137, the term does not include:
(A) A UIC Class I oilfield disposal
						well.
(B) A UIC Class II oilfield
						disposal well and disposal facility.
(C) The flange immediately upstream of the
						custody meter assembly.
(D)
						Equipment, including fugitive emissions components, located downstream of the
						flange in clause (C).