La. Admin. Code tit. 76 § I-301

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section I-301 - Regulations

A. In order to protect, conserve, and replenish the wildlife of the state of Louisiana, including all aquatic life, and pursuant to the authority conferred by Article IX, Section 7 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, R.S. 30:212 et seq., and R.S. 36:609; the following rules shall form and after promulgation date, govern any exploration work involving the discharge of explosives and other energy sources in the state of Louisiana for geophysical exploration.

1. The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, pursuant to its constitutional and statutory authority, hereby designates how geophysical exploration work shall be conducted insofar as it relates to the fish, seafood, aquatic life, oysters, wildlife and water bottoms of the state. No geophysical exploration work shall commence without the approval of the secretary of the department or his designee. The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is hereby authorized and directed to enforce and administer these regulations with full power and authority to take all appropriate actions to ensure proper administration and compliance.

2. Application(s) for permission to operate shall be made by letter giving the names of the parishes where the geophysical exploration is to be conducted. Written permission to operate shall be valid for a period of one year from date of approval, unless otherwise specified. In order to obtain and maintain permission to operate, an applicant shall furnish the department a surety bond in the amount of no less than $100,000 per project from a bonding company licensed to do business in the state of Louisiana and to whom A.M. Best and Company has given an "B+/7" or better rating. Bond forms may be obtained from the department. The bond shall be filed by the applicant prior to issuance of any permission to operate. Said bond shall guarantee payment of all inspector fees, all compensation for damage to public lands, and water bottoms (including, without limitation, damages for failure to remove equipment and trash), oysters, fish and other aquatic life, and/or other natural resources, man-made canals, bulkheads, rights-of-way and structures for which said applicant may be legally liable, and which may be suffered by the state of Louisiana. The bond shall also guarantee any and all fees in whole and in part for services rendered by the department and its offices in accordance with regulations of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission and all applicable penalties, and any other liabilities to the state of Louisiana incurred by the applicant during the geophysical operations. Applicants must also supply the department with proof of general liability insurance in the amount of $2,000,000. The policy must be issued by an insurer approved by the department, and specifically cover all damage to land, water bottoms, oysters, fish and other aquatic life, or other natural resources, manmade canals, bulkheads, rights-of-way, and other structures for which permittee may be legally liable. In addition, permittees applying for a renewal of the letter of permission to operate must have demonstrated a record of sound business practices by making timely payments of seismic fees to the department, and by being in complete compliance with the department's regulations including those regulations requiring notifications and timely submission of seismic exploration data daily reports.

a. The department may, after 10 working days written notice to permittee, suspend or cancel the seismic letter of permission to operate granted pursuant hereto for failure by the permittee, to make timely payment to the department for obligations owed to the state of Louisiana for the following:

i. any compensation for damage to public lands, water bottoms, oysters, fish and other aquatic life, or other natural resources, man-made canals, bulkheads, rights-of-way and structures for which said permittee may be legally liable;

ii. any fees for services rendered by LDWF personnel in overseeing geophysical exploration; and

iii. any applicable penalties.

b. The permittee shall be entitled to a hearing upon written request, made within the 10 working day notice period, to the secretary or his designee, to review the circumstances prompting the department to suspend or cancel his letter of permission to operate. This hearing shall be held as soon as practicable.

B. Authorization, Written Comments and Public Hearing. Prior to the granting of authorization by the Department, the permittee shall:

1. submit a detailed project description along with a map of the exact project location and geographic extent (an ESRI shapefile projected in NAD 83, UTM is preferred) for comparison with department databases of threatened, endangered, or sensitive wildlife and fisheries resources and a similar map on an 8.5 inch x 11 inch page.

2. pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, hold not less than one public hearing in the vicinity of the seismic operation to receive comments and recommendations from government agencies, property owners, lessees, residents, and all interested parties. The permittee shall give its first notice at least 30 days prior to the hearing;

a. Maps, as provided to the department in connection with the authorization request and information designating the permittee's contact persons during the geophysical operations, shall be made available to the public for review at this meeting.

3. notices referred to in this Section will be published in the official journal of each parish in which the seismic operation is located in four separate issues. Additional notices should be posted in or on appropriate public places in the area of operations at the direction of the department;

4. the permittee shall notify each parish governing authority of the hearing by letter to its chief executive officer;

5. the permittee shall provide all interested parties and the public, the opportunity to submit written comment on the seismic operation;

6. the comment period shall begin with the first publication in any official parish journal;

7. the comment period shall end upon adjournment of the final public hearing.

C. Department shall make a decision whether to grant or deny the authorization within 30 days after the adjournment of the final hearing.

D. Denial of Authorization. The department shall deny an authorization of the seismic operation if, after a full and thorough evaluation, the department finds that the proposed or alternative use would unreasonably injure fish, seafood, aquatic life, oysters, wildlife or other living natural resources of the state, or their habitats.

E. Authorization Conditions

1. In issuing any authorization, the department may:

a. require conditions in the use and may require that appropriate steps be taken to minimize and/or offset the detrimental effects on the natural and physical features and resources as a condition to the granting of the authorization.

F. Final Decision. The final decision by the department on any seismic operations shall:

1. be in the form of a written report;

2. be part of the record of the decision;

3. include an evaluation of potential impacts; and

4. give full and meaningful consideration and appropriate weight to the comments from the state and local government authorities, interested parties and the public.

G. Modification and Revocation. The department may modify or revoke an authorization for any adjudicated violation of the authorization conditions, the statutes or these regulations or intentional misrepresentation of a material fact on the permit application or authorization request.

H. Appeals of Final Decision. Any person who is denied an authorization by the department may challenge the department's decision in an administrative hearing pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act.

I. Permittees shall notify the department before beginning any geophysical exploration on a "Notification of Beginning of Seismic Operations" furnished by the department. The permittee shall provide the department with the names and telephone numbers of appropriate designated contact persons. The "Notification of Beginning of Seismic Operations" shall be accompanied by a map on an 8.5 inch x 11 inch page showing the outline of the project or line. The permittee also shall furnish the department with a certified copy of the information filed with the appropriate parish clerk of court in accordance with R.S. 30:217. The permittee shall submit notification to the department of interruption or cessation of work. If a change in the prospect or line is necessary, the permittee will provide a new plat indicating the change. If a change on the prospect or line affects different properties, or leasehold interests, the permittee will provide a new plat indicating the new prospect or line, and no work will begin until this change has been furnished to the department and the department has reviewed it with regard to threatened, endangered, or sensitive wildlife and fisheries resources. The granting of permission to operate does not give the permittee the right to trespass on, or conduct activities on private properties, nor does it relieve the permittee of the responsibility for damages to private property.

J. Each geophysical exploration crew working in the state of Louisiana shall always be under the supervision of the department. A seismic inspector may be present during the shooting operations of the permittee to which he or she is assigned.

1. The department representative shall have access to all records, including without limitation, shot point location maps, and shooters' logs and tracings, but only to the extent necessary to determine compliance with these regulations. Any and all proprietary or confidential information viewed or obtained by any department representative or seismic inspector shall be maintained in strict confidence as mandated for disclosures of seismic data under R.S. 30:215. No permittee shall be required to submit to the department any document or thing containing such confidential, proprietary information, if such document would, thereby, become a public record.

2. The party chief or party manager shall instruct the members of his party as to the requirements of these rules and regulations, and to the duty and authority of the department and the seismic inspector.

3. The party chief or party manager shall furnish the department's representative with whatever reasonable and appropriate transportation is needed to allow him to visit the working areas and shall transport the department's representative to whatever locations he or she requests. The department acknowledges that, when the permittee is providing transportation for the seismic inspector or other representative of the department under these regulations or other applicable law, that the permittee is fulfilling a state mandated function and shall not be responsible, in any way, for any decisions, instructions, actions, or omissions of such seismic inspector or other department representative.

4. The seismic inspector has the right to suspend any particular operation (e.g., surveying, drilling, shooting, or picking up equipment) or any portion of an operation, if it violates the department's rules and regulations.

a. Written notice of violations shall be provided to the permittee's designated contact person as soon as practicable. Corrective action taken by the permittee and approved by the department should dissolve the order for suspension issued by the seismic inspector.

b. The permittee may request a hearing from the secretary or his designee to review the circumstances of any suspension of geophysical survey activities. This hearing shall be convened as soon as practicable, but in any event within 10 working days after the written request for a hearing. The department shall provide the permittee with due notice and the opportunity to participate.

5. The department recognizes that conflicts may arise from time to time between parties regarding access to and use of public waters, water bottoms, public lands and natural resources. In the event that such conflicts cannot be otherwise resolved, the department may, at the discretion of the secretary or his designee, restrict, regulate, or suspend such potentially or actually conflicting activities as may be necessary to provide reasonable and safe access to said public resources. The department shall provide the permittee's designated contact person at least five working days written notice prior to any suspension, restriction, or regulation of geophysical survey operations due to user conflicts. The permittee may request a hearing from the secretary or his designee to review the circumstances of the department's restriction, regulation or suspension of geophysical activities. This hearing shall be convened as soon as practicable, but at any event within 10 working days after written request for a hearing. The department shall provide all interested parties with due notice and opportunity to participate.

6. No seismic inspector shall have the right to release any permittee from the obligations imposed by these rules and regulations. Variances from these regulations may be granted by the department only after written application by the permittee setting forth reasons therefore. The release, signed by the secretary or his designee, will designate the particular area and rule affected, and the procedures to be followed in lieu of any established rule. The secretary or his designee may provide this information to appropriate interested parties upon request.

K. The permittee must make a separate report for each day, whether or not shooting is in progress. Daily reports must furnish complete information as indicated by the report form, and must be signed by the party chief or party manager.

L. No geophysical exploration work shall be conducted on any wildlife refuge, waterfowl refuge, Louisiana designated scenic river, game preserve, fish preserve or hatchery, or public oyster seed ground reservation without written permission from the department through the division in charge of such refuge, preserve, river, hatchery, public oyster seed ground or reservation. While operating on any wildlife refuge, waterfowl refuge, Louisiana designated scenic river, game preserve, fish preserve or hatchery or public oyster seed ground or reservation, the permittee must abide by all rules and regulations of said area, in addition to these seismic regulations to the extent they apply.

M. Boats, marsh buggies, airboats, or other types of marsh vehicles, when used, must be used so as to cause the minimum disturbance or damage to the lands, water bottoms, and wildlife and fisheries resources thereon. When working on wildlife management areas, wildlife refuges, Louisiana designated scenic rivers, fish preserves or hatcheries, or public oyster seed grounds or reservations, the permittee will coordinate with the supervisor in charge of the area as to rules of the area. Rules, regulations and fees may vary from one such area to another.

N. No marsh buggies shall have contact with any oyster reef or bed, including state-owned natural reefs, nor shall any explosives or other energy sources be discharged within 250 feet of any oyster reef or bed, including any state-owned natural reefs, without permission from the lessee of the reef or bed, and the department. The department will review all projects in designated public oyster seed grounds and reservations.

O. Geophysical permittees are required to furnish an oyster lease plat to each affected oyster lessee showing the proposed number of shot points on line and their proposed location. Geophysical permittees are required to furnish notice to oyster lease applicants of the proposed crossing of water bottoms for which said applicant has applied for an oyster lease, provided said application(s) has been plotted on the departments map(s).

P. All pipe used in geophysical operations must be removed to at least 6 feet below the surface of the ground, or 6 feet below the bottom in water areas, before finally leaving the shot point. No pipes shall be left unattended on land or in water.

Q. All parties using pipe in water areas must have clearly welded or stamped at each end of each joint the name or abbreviation of the name of the permittee using the pipe. All equipment including cables, boxes, geophones, staff poles, anchors, buoys, etc., must be permanently tagged with the name of the permittee. All 2 x 2's used for survey lines must be clearly stamped with the name of the permittee using the stakes at approximately 3-foot intervals. These stakes must be removed immediately upon completion of the project. All cane poles must be removed immediately upon completion of the project. Anchors shall be marked, stamped, or tagged to identify the permittee who deployed them, and shall be secured to an appropriately marked buoy, vessel, or float.

R. Permittees shall comply with the U.S. Coast Guard and/or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' rules and regulations for marking and lighting material and/or equipment in navigable waters. In addition, all survey buoys used in geophysical operations should be colored fluorescent green (or other approved color) to mark receivers, and fluorescent orange (or other approved color) to mark the source line or shot line as well as show the name of the permittee. All such floats in areas of seismic operations shall use floating line.

S. No explosives shall be discharged knowingly within 1,000 feet of a boat without notice being given to such boat so that it may move from the area.

T. Permittees shall not be assessed any special permit fees to conduct geophysical survey operations on water bottoms designated as public oyster seed grounds or reservations, but shall comply with the provisions and conditions of any applicable Coastal Use Permit issued pursuant to R.S. 49:214.30, including any requirement to perform a water bottom assessment or provide mitigation/compensation for damages to any oyster seed ground or reservation. The department may utilize a portion of the funds received from geophysical and geological survey activity occurring on state lands, including water bottoms, under the provisions of R.S. 30:212(D) and funds received under the provisions of R.S. 30:136.1(D), for purposes of planting cultch, rehabilitating areas damaged by seismic operations, and as mitigation for any other damage to the coastal area. The determination of the amount to be used shall be based upon the amount of geophysical and geological survey activity occurring on any designated oyster seed ground or reservation and the need for such restoration.

U. Persistent gas and water discharges caused by drilling or shooting operations of seismic crews will be stopped immediately by the permittee.

V. Explosive charges or multiple charges in the same shot hole in excess of 50 pounds shall not be used except pursuant to express written authorization from the secretary or his designee. Requests for the use of such charges and other variances from the charge sizes, hole depths, and/or setback requirements must be made in writing, giving the reasons why such charges are needed, the particulars of charge sizes, hole depths, patterns of deployment, and setback from potentially sensitive environments. Such requests should be addressed to the department. Variances shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed. All documents submitted to the department in connection with requests for variances shall be public records; therefore, any confidential proprietary information required for review of a variance request may be submitted orally or by demonstrative presentation referenced in the written application, but the underlying confidential information shall not be disclosed in the written request filed with the department. The permittee may request a hearing to review all determinations, decisions, and regulations imposed with regard to requested variances, as set forth in §301.J.4.b above. The secretary or his designee may provide this information to appropriate interested parties upon request.

1. Minimum required depth of charges shall be as follows for shots detonated in holes.

Weight of Charge	Minimum Required Depth
1 pound or less	10 feet
Charges of 1 pound or less may only be used in upland areas. In addition, the hole must be tamped before shooting and the charge must be shot on the same day it is placed.
Between 1 pound and 2 pounds	25 feet
2 pounds up to 5 pounds	40 feet
5 pounds up to 20 pounds	60 feet
20 pounds up to 30 pounds	70 feet
30 pounds up to 40 pounds	100 feet
40 pounds up to 50 pounds	120 feet
No part of the charge shall be above minimum required depth.

2. The use of suspended charges as energy sources is prohibited unless a variance is granted by the secretary or his designee. If permitted, the secretary or his designee shall then set forth requirements to minimize the effect on wildlife and fisheries resources.

X. Detonation of seismic explosive charges will be allowed only during daylight hours. Variances to this rule may be requested as set forth in §301.V Permittees shall notify the department of 24 hour airgun operations prior to beginning such operations. The department may, after review of the details of such night operations and areas affected thereby, impose additional restrictions, regulations or requirements upon such operations as may be reasonable and necessary for the protection of public waters, water bottoms, lands, and wildlife. No shooting will be allowed in heavy fog. The permittee may request a hearing to review all determinations, decisions, and regulations imposed with regard to night operations and weather conditions, as provided for in §301.J.4 b

Y. In accordance with good industry practice, permittee shall, after drilling and loading shot holes, backfill holes with cuttings or another material authorized by the department, and place the shot hole plug near the surface to avoid wash-in.

Z. All equipment including boxes, cables, staff poles, poles, anchors, etc., must be cleared from project areas before the permittee leaves the area. The permittee shall confirm in writing to the department that all its equipment, materials, and refuse have been cleared from the project area. Said letter of confirmation shall be a public record. Variances from this rule may be granted by the department if accompanied by a written request from an affected landowner or agency. The secretary or his designee may provide this information to appropriate interested parties upon request.

AA. A fee of $135 per day will be charged to geophysical permittees. All payments will be made by the permittees directly to the department on or before the fifteenth of each month. No payments are to be made to the seismic inspectors. Seismic inspectors shall make and the department shall maintain written records of the inspectors' work in connection with each geophysical project, identifying the date, time, location, nature of the inspector's work, and the permittee involved.

BB. All geophysical permittees conducting operations shall exercise reasonable precaution and act in accordance with approved and accepted methods to prevent destruction of, or injury to the fish, oysters, shrimp and other aquatic life, wildlife or other living natural resources of the state of Louisiana, or their habitats.

CC. Any violation of these or other rules promulgated by the commission or the department for the regulation of geophysical operations, or the refusal of any permittee or its employees to comply fully with all orders and requirements which may be made by authorized personnel of the department at the time the exploration is conducted, or any attempt to unduly influence any seismic inspector to abstain from the enforcement of these regulations shall constitute cause for suspension or cancellation of the "permission to operate", cessation of all exploration work, and disqualification of the party chief, party manager, field manager, and/or the permittee involved from future operations in this state. The permittee may request a hearing from the secretary or his designee to review the particular circumstances prompting the department to suspend or cancel his letter of permission to operate per the provisions of §301.J.4 b

DD. These rules and regulations supersede all other rules and regulations issued prior to this date, and are subject to change by the department and the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission.

La. Admin. Code tit. 76, § I-301

Promulgated by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, LR 4:300 (August 1978), amended LR 10:410 (May 1984), LR 13:115 (February 1987), LR 18:509 (May 1992), LR 25:321 (February 1999), Amended LR 491270 (7/1/2023).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:212, R.S. 30:214, R.S. 30:215, R.S. 30:216, R.S. 36:609 and R.S. 56:30.4.