Pennsylvania Code › Title 25 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Part I - Department of Environmental Protection › Subpart C - Protection of Natural Resources › Article I - Land Resources › Chapter 78a - UNCONVENTIONAL WELLS › Subchapter A - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Section 78a.1 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
The following words and terms, when used in this
						  chapter, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
						  otherwise, or as otherwise provided in this chapter:
ABACT
-
Antidegradation best
						  available combination of technologies
-The term as defined in §
						  102.1 (relating to definitions).
Abandoned water well
-
(i) A water well that is no longer equipped
						in such a manner as to be able to draw groundwater.
(ii) The term includes a water well where the
						pump, piping or electrical components have been disconnected or removed or when
						its use on a regular or prescribed basis has been discontinued.
(iii) The term does not include a water well
						that is not currently used, but is equipped or otherwise properly maintained in
						such a manner as to be able to draw groundwater as an alternative, backup or
						supplemental water supply.
Accredited laboratory
-A laboratory
						  accredited by the Department under Chapter 252 (relating to environmental
						  laboratory accreditation).
Act
-58 Pa.C.S. §§ 3201-3274
						  (relating to development).
Act 2
-The Land Recycling and
						  Environmental Remediation Standards Act (6026.101- 6026.908).
Anti-icing
-Brine applied directly to a
						  paved road prior to a precipitation event.
Approximate original
						  conditions
-Reclamation of the land affected to preconstruction
						  contours so that it closely resembles the general surface configuration of the
						  land prior to construction activities and blends into and complements the
						  drainage pattern of the surrounding terrain, and can support the land uses that
						  existed prior to the applicable oil and gas operations to the extent
						  practicable.
Attainable bottom
-The depth, approved
						  by the Department, which can be achieved after a reasonable effort is expended
						  to clean out to the total depth.
Barrel
-A unit of volume equal to 42 US
						  liquid gallons.
Body of water
-The term as defined in
						  §
												105.1 (relating to
						  definitions).
Borrow pit
-An area of earth
						  disturbance activity where rock, stone, gravel, sand, soil or similar material
						  is excavated for construction of well sites, access roads or facilities that
						  are related to oil and gas development.
Building
-An occupied structure with
						  walls and roof within which persons live or customarily work.
Casing seat
-The depth to which casing
						  is set.
Cement
-A mixture of materials for
						  bonding or sealing that attains a 7-day maximum permeability of 0.01
						  millidarcies and a 24-hour compressive strength of at least 500 psi in
						  accordance with applicable standards and specifications.
Cement job log
-A written record that
						  documents the actual procedures and specifications of the cementing
						  operation.
Centralized impoundment
-A facility
						  authorized by a Permit for a Centralized Impoundment Dam for Oil and Gas
						  Operations (DEP # 8000-PM-OOGM0084).
Certified mail
-Any verifiable means of
						  paper document delivery that confirms the receipt of the document by the
						  intended recipient or the attempt to deliver the document to the proper address
						  for the intended recipient.
Coal area
-An area that is underlain by
						  a workable coal seam.
Coal protective casing
-A string of
						  pipe which is installed in the well for the purpose of coal segregation and
						  protection. In some instances the coal protective casing and the surface casing
						  may be the same.
Common areas of a school's property
-An
						  area on a school's property accessible to the general public for recreational
						  purposes. For the purposes of this definition, a school is a facility providing
						  elementary, secondary or postsecondary educational services.
Condensate
-A low-density, high-API
						  gravity liquid hydrocarbon phase that generally occurs in association with
						  natural gas. For the purposes of this definition, high-API gravity is a
						  specific gravity scale developed by the American Petroleum Institute for
						  measuring the relative density of various petroleum liquids, expressed in
						  degrees.
Conductor pipe
-A short string of
						  large-diameter casing used to stabilize the top of the wellbore in shallow
						  unconsolidated formations.
Deepest fresh groundwater
-The deepest
						  fresh ground-water bearing formation penetrated by the wellbore as determined
						  from drillers logs from the well or from other wells in the area surrounding
						  the well or from historical records of the normal surface casing seat depths in
						  the area surrounding the well, whichever is deeper.
De-icing
-Brine applied to a paved road
						  after a precipitation event.
Drill cuttings
-Rock cuttings and
						  related mineral residues generated during the drilling of an oil or gas
						  well.
Floodplain
-The area inundated by the
						  100-year flood as identified on maps and flood insurance studies provided by
						  the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or in the absence of these maps or
						  studies or any evidence to the contrary, the area within 100 feet measured
						  horizontally from the top of the bank of a perennial stream or 50 feet from the
						  top of the bank of an intermittent stream.
Freeboard
-The vertical distance
						  between the surface of an impounded or contained fluid and the lowest point or
						  opening on a lined pit edge or open top storage structure.
Fresh groundwater
-Water in that
						  portion of the generally recognized hydrologic cycle which occupies the pore
						  spaces and fractures of saturated subsurface materials.
Gas storage field
-A gas storage
						  reservoir and all of the gas storage wells connected to the gas storage
						  reservoir.
Gas storage reservoir
-The portion of a
						  subsurface geologic formation or rock strata used for or being tested for
						  storage of natural gas that:
(i) Has
						sufficient porosity and permeability to allow gas to be injected or withdrawn,
						or both.
(ii) Is bounded by strata
						of insufficient porosity or permeability, or both, to allow gas movement out of
						the reservoir.
(iii) Contains or
						will contain injected gas geologically or by pressure control.
Gas storage well
-A well located and
						  used in a gas storage reservoir for injection or withdrawal purposes, or an
						  observation well.
Gathering pipeline
-A pipeline that
						  transports oil, liquid hydrocarbons or natural gas from individual wells to an
						  intrastate transmission pipeline regulated by the Pennsylvania Public Utility
						  Commission or interstate transmission pipeline regulated by the Federal Energy
						  Regulatory Commission.
Gel
-A slurry of clay or other
						  equivalent material and water at a ratio of not more than seven barrels of
						  water to each 100 pounds of clay or other equivalent matter.
Inactive well
-A well granted inactive
						  status by the Department under section 3214 of the act (relating to inactive
						  status) and §
												78a.101 (relating to general
						  provisions).
Intermediate casing
-A string of casing
						  set after the surface casing and before production casing, not to include coal
						  protection casing, that is used in the wellbore to isolate, stabilize or
						  provide well control.
L.E.L.
-Lower explosive limit.
Limit of disturbance
-The boundary
						  within which it is anticipated that earth disturbance activities (including
						  installation of best management practices) will take place.
Mine influenced water
-Any of the
						  following:
(i) Water in a mine
						pool.
(ii) Surface discharge of
						water caused by mining activities that pollutes or may create a threat of
						pollution to waters of the Commonwealth.
(iii) A surface water polluted by mine pool
						water.
(iv) A surface discharge
						caused by mining activities.
Modular aboveground storage
						  structure
-An aboveground structure used to store wastewater that
						  requires final assembly at a well site to function and which can be
						  disassembled and moved to another well site after use.
Noncementing material
-A mixture of
						  very fine to coarse grained nonbonding materials, including unwashed crushed
						  rock, drill cuttings, earthen mud or other equivalent material approved by the
						  Department.
Noncoal area
-An area that is not
						  underlain by a workable coal seam.
Nonporous material
-Nontoxic earthen
						  mud, drill cuttings, fire clay, gel, cement or equivalent materials approved by
						  the Department that will equally retard the movement of fluids.
Nonvertical unconventional
						  well
-
(i) An unconventional
						well drilled intentionally to deviate from a vertical axis.
(ii) The term includes wells drilled
						diagonally and wells that have horizontal bore holes.
Observation well
-A well used to
						  monitor the operational integrity and conditions in a gas storage reservoir,
						  the reservoir protective area, or strata above or below the gas storage
						  horizon.
Oil and gas operations
-The term
						  includes the following:
(i) Well site
						preparation, construction, drilling, hydraulic fracturing, completion,
						production, operation, alteration, plugging and site restoration associated
						with an oil or gas well.
(ii) Water
						withdrawals, residual waste processing, water and other fluid management and
						storage used exclusively for the development of oil and gas wells.
(iii) Construction, installation, use,
						maintenance and repair of:
(A) Oil and gas
						well development, gathering and transmission pipelines.
(B) Natural gas compressor
						stations.
(C) Natural gas processing
						plants or facilities performing equivalent functions.