Ariz. Admin. Code § 18-9-D635

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 50, December 13, 2024

Section R18-9-D635 - Conditions Applicable to All Permits

The following conditions apply to all UIC permits. All conditions applicable to all permits shall be incorporated into the permits issued under this Article, either expressly or referenced by specific citation. If incorporated by reference, a specific citation to this Section must be given in the permit.

1. The permittee must comply with all conditions of any permit issued under this Article. Any permit noncompliance constitutes a violation of this Article and is grounds for enforcement action; for permit modification, revocation and reissuance, or termination; or for denial of a permit renewal application unless otherwise authorized in an emergency permit under R18-9-C625.

2. If the permittee wishes to continue any activity regulated by permit under this Article after the expiration date of this permit, the permittee must apply for and obtain a new permit.

3. It shall not be a defense for a permittee in an enforcement action that it would have been necessary to halt or reduce the permitted activity in order to maintain compliance with the conditions of this permit.

4. The permittee shall take all reasonable steps to minimize or correct any adverse impact on the environment resulting from noncompliance with this permit.

5. The permittee shall at all times properly operate and maintain all facilities and systems of treatment and control, and related appurtenances, that are installed or used by the permittee to achieve compliance with the conditions of this permit. Proper operation and maintenance includes effective performance, adequate funding, adequate operator staffing and training, and adequate laboratory and process controls, including appropriate quality assurance procedures. This provision requires the operation of back-up or auxiliary facilities or similar systems only when necessary to achieve compliance with the conditions of the permit.

6. This permit may be modified, revoked and reissued, or terminated for cause. The filing of a request by the permittee for a permit modification, revocation and reissuance, or termination, or a notification of planned changes or anticipated noncompliance, does not stay any permit condition.

7. This permit does not convey property rights of any sort, or any exclusive privilege.

8. The permittee shall furnish to the Director, within a time specified, any information which the Director may request to determine whether cause exists for modifying, revoking and reissuing, or terminating this permit, or to determine compliance with this permit. The permittee shall also furnish to the Director, upon request, copies of records required to be kept by this permit.

9. The permittee shall allow the Director, or an authorized representative, upon the presentation of credentials and other documents as may be required by law, to:

a. Enter upon the permittee's premises where a regulated facility or activity is located or conducted, or where records must be kept under the conditions of this permit;

b. Have access to and copy, at reasonable times, any records that must be kept under the conditions of this permit;

c. Inspect at reasonable times any facilities, equipment (including monitoring and control equipment), practices, or operations regulated or required under this permit; and

d. Sample or monitor at reasonable times, for the purposes of assuring permit compliance or as otherwise authorized by this Article the SDWA, any substances or parameters at any location.

10. Monitoring and records.

a. Samples and measurements taken for the purpose of monitoring shall be representative of the monitored activity.

b. The permittee shall retain records of all monitoring information, including the following:

i. Calibration and maintenance records and all original strip-chart recordings for continuous monitoring instrumentation, copies of all reports required by this permit, and records of all data used to complete the application for this permit, for a period of at least three years from the date of the sample, measurement, report, or application. This period may be extended by request of the Director at any time; and

ii. The nature and composition of all injected fluids until three years after the completion of any plugging and abandonment procedures specified under R18-9-D636(A)(5), or under this Article as appropriate. The Director may require the owner or operator to deliver the records to the Director at the conclusion of the retention period.

c. Records of monitoring information shall include:

i. The date, exact place, and time of sampling or measurements;

ii. The individual or individuals who performed the sampling or measurements;

iii. The date or dates analyses were performed;

iv. The individual or individuals who performed the analyses;

v. The analytical techniques or methods used; and

vi. The results of such analyses.

d. Owners or operators of Class VI wells shall retain records as specified in Part J of this Article, including R18-9-J659(G), R18-9-J666(6), R18-9-J667(D), R18-9-J668(F), and R18-9-J668(H).

11. All applications, reports, or information submitted to the Director shall be signed and certified as required under R18-9-C617.

12. Reporting requirements.

a. The permittee shall give notice to the Director as soon as possible of any planned physical alterations or additions to the permitted facility.

b. The permittee shall give advance notice to the Director of any planned changes in the permitted facility or activity that may result in noncompliance with permit requirements.

c. This permit is not transferable to any person except after notice to the Director. The Director may require modification or revocation and reissuance of the permit to change the name of the permittee and incorporate such other requirements as may be necessary under this Article.

d. Monitoring results shall be reported at the intervals specified in this permit.

e. Reports of compliance or noncompliance with, or any progress reports on, interim and final requirements contained in any compliance schedule of this permit shall be submitted no later than 30 days following each schedule date.

f. The permittee shall report any noncompliance that may endanger health or the environment within 24 hours, including:

i. Any monitoring or other information that indicates any contaminant may cause an endangerment to a USDW; or

ii. Any noncompliance with a permit condition or malfunction of the injection system that may cause fluid migration into or between USDWs. Any information shall be provided orally within 24 hours from the time the permittee becomes aware of the circumstances. A written submission shall also be provided within five days of the time the permittee becomes aware of the circumstances. The written submission shall contain a description of the noncompliance and its cause, the period of noncompliance, including exact dates and times, and if the noncompliance has not been corrected, the anticipated time it is expected to continue; and steps taken or planned to reduce, eliminate, and prevent reoccurrence of the noncompliance.

g. The permittee shall report all instances of noncompliance not reported under subsections (A)(12)(a), (A)(12)(d), (A)(12)(e), and (A)(12)(f) of this Section, at the time monitoring reports are submitted. The reports shall contain the information listed in subsection (A)(12)(f) of this Section.

h. Where the permittee becomes aware that it failed to submit any relevant facts in a permit application, or submitted incorrect information in a permit application or in any report to the Director, it shall promptly submit such facts or information.

13. Except for all new wells authorized by an area permit under R18-9-C624(C), a new injection well may not commence injection until construction is complete; and:

a. The permittee has submitted notice of completion of construction to the Director; and

b. Either of the following apply:

i. The Director has inspected or otherwise reviewed the new injection well and finds it is in compliance with the conditions of the permit; or

ii. The permittee has not received notice from the Director of the intent to inspect or otherwise review the new injection well within 13 days of the date of the notice under subsection (A)(13)(a) of this Section, in which case prior inspection or review is waived and the permittee may commence injection. The Director shall include in the notice a reasonable time period in which the well shall be inspected.

14. The permittee shall notify the Director at such times as the permit requires before conversion or abandonment of the well or in the case of area permits before closure of the project.

15. A Class I, II, or III permit shall include, and a Class V permit may include, conditions that meet the requirements of R18-9-B614 to ensure that plugging and abandonment of the well will not allow the movement of fluids into or between USDWs. Where the plan meets the requirements of R18-9-B614, the Director shall incorporate the plan into the permit as a permit condition. Where the Director's review of an application indicates that the permittee's plan is inadequate, the Director may require the applicant to revise the plan, prescribe conditions meeting the requirements of this subsection, or deny the permit. A Class VI permit shall include conditions that meet the requirements set forth in R18-9-J667. Where the plan meets the requirements of R18-9-J667, the Director shall incorporate it into the permit as a permit condition. For purposes of this subsection, temporary or intermittent cessation of injection operations is not abandonment.

16. Within 60 days after plugging a well or at the time of the next quarterly report, whichever is less, the owner or operator shall submit a report to the Director. If the quarterly report is due less than 15 days before completion of plugging, then the report shall be submitted within 60 days. The report shall be certified as accurate by the person who performed the plugging operation. Such report shall consist of either:

a. A statement that the well was plugged in accordance with the plan previously submitted to the Director; or

b. Where actual plugging differed from the plan previously submitted, an updated version of the plan on the form supplied by the Director, specifying the differences.

17. Duty to establish and maintain mechanical integrity.

a. The owner or operator of a Class I, II, III or VI well permitted under this Article shall establish mechanical integrity prior to commencing injection or on a schedule determined by the Director. Thereafter the owner or operator of Class I, II, and III wells must maintain mechanical integrity as defined in R18-9-B613 and the owner or operator of Class VI wells must maintain mechanical integrity as defined in R18-9-J664.

b. When the Director determines that a Class I, II, III or VI well lacks mechanical integrity pursuant to R18-9-B613 or R18-9-J664 for Class VI, written notice of the determination will be given to the owner or operator. Unless the Director requires immediate cessation, the owner or operator shall cease injection into the well within 48 hours of receipt of the Director's determination. The Director may allow plugging of the well pursuant to the requirements of R18-9-B614 or require the permittee to perform such additional construction, operation, monitoring, reporting, and corrective action as is necessary to prevent the movement of fluid into or between USDWs caused by the lack of mechanical integrity. The owner or operator may resume injection upon written notification from the Director that the owner or operator has demonstrated mechanical integrity pursuant to R18-9-B613.

c. The Director may allow the owner or operator of a well that lacks mechanical integrity pursuant to R18-9-B613(A)(1) to continue or resume injection, if the owner or operator has made a satisfactory demonstration that there is no movement of fluid into or between USDWs.

Ariz. Admin. Code § R18-9-D635

New Section made by final rulemaking at 28 A.A.R. 1904, effective 9/6/2022.