West Virginia Code of State Rules › Agency 35 - Oil And Gas › Title 35 - LEGISLATIVE RULE DIVISION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION OFFICE OF OIL AND GAS › Series 35-08 - RULES GOVERNING HORIZONTAL WELL DEVELOPMENT › Section 35-8-12 - Reclamation; Notification; Production and Gathering Pipelines; and Operating in Designated Mining Areas

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
12.1. Reclamation
		under the Construction and Reclamation Plan. - All proposed reclamation methods
		for construction of any roads, drilling locations, pits, impoundments or
		alternative overflow prevention facilities shall be submitted on Form WW-9 with
		the application for any permit required by W. Va. Code §
									22-6A-7. Proposed
		reclamation methods shall be approved by the Chief or the Chief's designee prior
		to the issuance of the permit, and all reclamation shall be done under the
		supervision of the Chief or the Chief's designee. With the consent of this Chief
		or the Chief's designee, the reclamation may be altered from the plan initially
		set out in Form WW-9, if found necessary due to topography or other conditions
		not apparent upon initial submission and approval of the proposed reclamation
		methods.
12.2. Access Roads - All
		access roads shall be constructed and maintained so as to minimize sedimentation,
		maintain natural drainage areas and, if practicable, to direct or carry away from
		disturbed areas surface water run-off from undisturbed areas.
12.3. Drilling Sites - Drilling sites shall be
		constructed and maintained to prevent surface run-off carrying excessive
		sedimentation from the site, to confine all materials leaked or spilled as a
		result of drilling operations to the drilling site, and to minimize sedimentation
		by not placing in any stream any material moved or cut. Upon the plugging of a
		non-productive well, whether as a continuous operation with other permitted well
		work or otherwise, all cementing and other waste materials resulting therefrom
		shall be retained on the drilling site until properly disposed of or
		recycled.
12.4. Pits and Freshwater
		Impoundments Associated with a Well Work Permit - All pits shall meet the
		requirements of subdivisions 17.2.b. through 17.2.f. and subdivision 17.2.h. of
		this rule. Additionally, all pits and freshwater impoundments constructed on the
		permitted well location shall meet the following minimum requirements:
12.4.a. All pits and freshwater impoundments
		shall be constructed and maintained so as to prevent seepage, leakage or
		overflows and to maintain their integrity.
12.4.b. Provisions shall be made for diverting
		surface water from pits.
12.4.c. All
		pits and freshwater impoundments shall have adequate freeboard to prevent
		overflow, and in no case shall the freeboard be less than approximately two (2)
		feet. When an operator is unable to maintain adequate freeboard to prevent
		overflow, the operator shall notify the oil and gas inspector and an additional
		pit, freshwater impoundment or alternative overflow facility shall be constructed
		under the supervision of the Chief or the Chief's designee. The additional pit,
		freshwater impoundment or alternative overflow facility shall also meet the
		requirements specified in this subsection (12.4).
12.4.d. All pits and freshwater impoundments
		shall have an impermeable synthetic liner to prevent seepage or leakage, except
		those freshwater impoundments deemed to be suitable to prevent seepage or leakage
		based on soil analyses from the operator and standards developed and certified by
		a West Virginia registered professional engineer and approved by the Chief. All
		liners shall be installed in a manner that protects the structural integrity of
		both pit or freshwater impoundment and liner.
12.4.e. Dikes and embankments associated with
		pits and freshwater impoundments shall be constructed of compacted material and
		maintained with a slope that will preserve the structural integrity of the dike
		or embankment.
12.4.f. All dikes and
		embankments shall be free of trees and other organic matter, large rocks or any
		other material that reasonably could be expected to adversely affect the
		structural integrity of the dike or embankment.
12.4.g. Reclamation of the pits and freshwater
		impoundments shall not cause an overflow or discharge of materials to waters of
		the State. All material in the pit or freshwater impoundment, including the
		liner, shall be disposed of under approved permit unless beneficially reused in
		an appropriate manner.
12.4.h. All
		pits and alternative overflow prevention facilities shall be constructed,
		maintained, and reclaimed so as not to be left in a condition that constitutes a
		hazard or prevents use of the surface for any use available prior to the well
		activity, unless otherwise allowed by agreement with the surface owner, after the
		expiration of the reclamation period prescribed by W. Va. Code §
										22-6A-14
		and this section of the rule.
12.4.i.
		No pits or freshwater impoundments shall be constructed or utilized in any area
		having karst terrain, as identified, mapped, and published by the West Virginia
		Geological and Economic Survey.