Oregon Administrative Rules › Chapter 632 - DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL INDUSTRIES › Division 20 - GEOTHERMAL REGULATIONS › Section 632-020-0125 - Proper Completion, Plugging, and Decommissioning

Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 7, July 1, 2024
(1) A well is properly completed when the
			 well and casing has been installed in accordance with the well drilling permit
			 and master valves and well control equipment have been installed, and well is
			 secured.
(2) Proper completion and
			 decommissioning requires adequate protection of the environment and of
			 aesthetic qualities of the surface in the area of operation.
(3) A geothermal well or prospect well is
			 considered properly plugged and decommissioned, for the purpose of this
			 chapter, when the conditions of ORS
			 522.005 to
			 522.990 and these rules are
			 fulfilled and the person has shown to the satisfaction of the department that
			 all proper steps have been taken to protect groundwater and surface water from
			 contamination resulting from the drilling or drilling related activities and to
			 prevent the comingling of fluids between zones or to surface.
(4) A well or hole must be plugged and all
			 related disturbance must be reclaimed in accordance with these rules as soon as
			 practical. A hole may not be left unplugged for longer than 30 days from the
			 completion of operations without prior written approval from the
			 department.
(5) The drilling or
			 operation of a well can be suspended only as provided in ORS
			 522.215.
(6) Plugging Methods and Procedure,
			 Geothermal Wells or Prospect Wells.
(a)The
			 well must be filled with mud-laden fluid from bottom to top consisting of mud
			 weighing 15.0 pounds per gallon of not less than a viscosity of 36 (API Full
			 Funnel Method), with the exception of intervals required to be plugged with
			 cement. Other fluids may be used upon approval of the department.
(b) At the top of each producing formation,
			 or fluid zone at greater than hydrostatic pressure, a cement plug must be
			 placed which extends either from the bottom of the well or from a point at
			 least 50 feet below the top of each such producing formation or fluid zone to a
			 point at least 50 feet above each producing formation or fluid zone.
(c) If a well is uncased through a freshwater
			 zone, a cement plug must extend from at least 50 feet below the bottom of the
			 water-bearing zone to at least 50 feet above the water zone.
(d) If the surface string of casing is set
			 below the deepest freshwater-bearing formation, and the well is uncased below
			 this point, a cement plug must be placed in the well extending from a point at
			 least 50 feet below the base of the surface casing and at least 50 feet into
			 the bottom of the casing.
(e) In
			 wells where artesian water is encountered, the well must be plugged with cement
			 from bottom to top, unless otherwise approved by the department.
(f) The top of all casing strings must be cut
			 off at least 4 feet below ground surface in such a manner as not to interfere
			 with soil cultivation and casing and all annuli must be plugged with cement to
			 a depth of at least ten feet.
(g)
			 Cement grout used as a sealing material must be placed or forced upward from
			 the bottom of the hole in one continuous operation without significant
			 interruption. If temporary outer surface casing is used in the construction of
			 the hole, it must be withdrawn as the grout is placed.