Section 43-02-14-05.1 - Area of review and corrective action1. The storage facility operator shall prepare, maintain, and comply with a plan to delineate the area of review for a proposed storage facility, periodically re-evaluate the delineation, and perform corrective action that meets the requirements of this section and is acceptable to the commission. The requirement to maintain and implement a commission-approved plan is directly enforceable regardless of whether the requirement is a condition of the permit. As a part of the storage facility permit application, the storage facility operator shall submit an area of review and corrective action plan that includes the following: a. The method for delineating the area of review, results of the reservoir or geomechanical modeling and simulation, inputs that will be made, and the site characterization data on which the model will be based.b. A description of: (1) The re-evaluation date, not to exceed five years, at which time the storage facility operator shall re-evaluate the area of review.(2) The monitoring and operational conditions that would warrant a re-evaluation of the area of review before the next scheduled re-evaluation date.(3) How monitoring and operational data will be used to inform an area of review re-evaluation.(4) How corrective action will be conducted to meet requirements of this section, and how corrective action will be adjusted if there are changes in the area of review.2. The storage facility operator shall perform the following actions to delineate the area of review and identify all wells that require corrective action: a. Applicable to oil and gas and saline reservoirs. Predict, using existing site characterization, monitoring and operational data, and reservoir modeling and simulation, the projected lateral and vertical migration of the injectate in the subsurface from the commencement of injection activities until the oil or gas movement ceases, or until the end of a fixed time as determined by the director: (1) Be based on detailed geologic data collected to characterize the injection zone, confining zones, and any additional zones; and anticipated operating data, including injection pressures, rates, and total volumes over the proposed life of the storage project.(2) Consider any geologic heterogeneities, other discontinuities, data quality, and their possible impact on model predictions.(3) Consider potential migration through faults, fractures, and artificial penetrations.b. Applicable to salt caverns. Using site-specific geology, cavern construction data acquired during dissolution mining, and geomechanical modeling, determine necessary buffers as setbacks for the following: (1) Future drilling in the proximity of the cavern.3. The storage facility operator shall perform corrective action on all wells in the area of review that are determined to need corrective action, using methods designed to prevent the movement of injectate or fluid into or between underground sources of drinking water or other unauthorized zones.4. At the re-evaluation date, not to exceed five years, as specified in the area of review and corrective action plan, or when monitoring and operational conditions warrant, the storage facility operator shall:a. Re-evaluate the area of review in the same manner specified in subdivision a or b of subsection 2, whichever is applicable.b. Identify all wells or caverns in the re-evaluated area of review in the same manner specified in subsection 2.c. Perform corrective action on wells requiring action in the re-evaluated area of review in the same manner specified in subsection 3.d. Submit an amended area of review and corrective action plan or demonstrate to the commission through monitoring data and modeling results that no amendment to the plan is needed. Any amendments to the plan are subject to the director's approval and must be incorporated into the permit.5. All modeling inputs and data used to support area of review delineations and re-evaluations must be retained until project completion. Upon project completion, the storage facility operator shall deliver the records to the commission.N.D. Admin Code 43-02-14-05.1
Adopted by Administrative Rules Supplement 2022-384, April 2022, effective 4/1/2022.General Authority: NDCC 38-08-04
Law Implemented: NDCC 38-25