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 35-8-10 - Well Records

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 28, July 12, 2024
10.1. Well Records
		Made During Permitted Work - The well operator or its contractor (service
		provider, drilling contractor or other contractor, as appropriate) shall keep at
		the well location a copy of the application as permitted, including the
		associated plat and plans required by section 5 of this rule. The well operator
		or its contractor (service provider, drilling contractor or other contractor, as
		appropriate) shall also make and preserve at the well location accurate records
		of all well work performed pursuant to the permit, including documentation by the
		contractor or person performing the cementing services of the time of completion
		of cementing and the volume of cement used for the cementing of all casing
		operations. The records shall be complete enough to support, as applicable, the
		entries of well work done and related data on Form WR-35, "Well Operator's Report
		of Well Work," Form WR-36, "Well Operator's Report of Initial Gas-Oil Ratio Test,
		and Form WR-38, "Affidavit of Plugging and Filling Well," but these forms shall
		reflect information discovered or changes made after the permitted well work has
		been finished and before the reports are filed. The records made and preserved at
		the well location and the recordings made on Form WR-35 shall include, but not be
		limited to, indications of caverns, open mines or other voids, whether the
		freshwater casing cement circulated to the surface, and the efforts made to fill
		the annular space and the results. Unless the records of well work performed are
		prepared by the well operator or owner, a copy of all the records shall be
		delivered to the well owner or operator, except for those records the contractor
		(service provider, drilling contractor or other contractor, as appropriate)
		designates as a confidential trade secret.
10.1.a. As part of the well completion report
		(Form WR-35), the operator or its service provider shall list all the additives
		used in the hydraulic fracturing or stimulation process, including each
		additive's specific trade name, supplier, and purpose. The operator or its
		service provider shall also list each chemical intentionally added to a base
		fluid for the purpose of preparing a fracturing fluid, along with each chemical's
		CAS registry number if applicable, its maximum concentration in the additive, and
		its maximum concentration as added to the base fluid, and the volume of the base
		fluid used. The concentrations shall be expressed as a mass percent. The operator
		or service provider may designate the information regarding the specific identity
		or concentration or both of a chemical as a confidential trade secret not to be
		disclosed to the agency or anyone else except in the event of an investigation by
		the office, medical emergency, or for diagnostic or treatment purposes involving
		the designated chemical, pursuant to subdivisions 10.1.d. and 10.1.e.
		below.
10.1.b. The operator or
		service provider shall fulfill the additive reporting requirement of subdivision
		10.1.a above by submitting the information to the Office and the FracFocus
		Chemical Disclosure Registry.
10.1.c.
		As part of the well completion report (Form WR-35), the operator shall report the
		volumes of fluids pumped and treatment pressures recorded throughout the
		hydraulic fracturing process.
10.1.d.
		In the event of an investigation by the office involving a chemical designated as
		a confidential trade secret, the operator or service provider shall provide the
		specific identity of the chemical, the concentration of the chemical, or both the
		specific identity and concentration of the chemical, as needed, to the agency
		upon receipt of notification from the chief or his or her designee stating that
		such information is necessary in connection with an investigation by the office.
		Upon receipt of such notification of need, such information shall be disclosed by
		the operator or service provider, as applicable, directly to the chief or his or
		her designee and shall in no way be construed as publicly available. The chief or
		designee may disclose information regarding the specific identity of a chemical,
		the concentration of a chemical, or both the specific identity and concentration
		of a chemical claimed to be a confidential trade secret to additional agency
		staff members to the extent that such disclosure is necessary to allow the agency
		staff member receiving the information to assist in such an investigation by the
		office, provided that such individuals shall not disseminate the information
		further and such information shall at all times be considered confidential and
		shall not be construed as publicly available. Upon request by the operator or
		service provider, and where a notification of need is provided orally, the chief
		shall execute a written statement of need indicating that the information was
		necessary in connection with an investigation by the office.
10.1.e. The operator or service provider shall
		provide the specific identity of a chemical designated as a confidential trade
		secret, the concentration of the chemical designated as a confidential trade
		secret, or both the specific identity and concentration of the chemical
		designated as a confidential trade secret, as needed, upon request to a health
		care professional in a medical emergency, or for diagnostic or treatment
		purposes. The health care professional shall only use the information provided by
		the operator or service provider for diagnosis or treatment of an individual, and
		the operator or service provider may provide notice to the health care
		professional at the time of release of the information, that the information
		provided is solely for diagnosis or treatment of the individual, that the
		information may be a trade secret, and disclosure to others for any other purpose
		may subject that health care professional to a legal action by the operator or
		service provider for violating its trade secret.