La. Admin. Code tit. 43 § XI-1705

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

Section XI-1705 - Abandoned Facilities (Formerly section 311)

A. All facilities (other than field transmission, flow or gathering lines on state leases or right-of-way):

1. located above the mudline and in less than 20 feet of water; and

2. constituting an obstruction, shall be removed within 90 days after abandonment or as soon thereafter as practicable by the responsible person or persons.

B. Each person responsible for a facility shall notify the assistant secretary of its abandonment in writing no later than 30 days after such facility is abandoned. Such notice shall include:

1. a description of the facility including its location, size and depth of superadjacent waters, and a statement whether the facility will be removed, buried, or remain in place; and

2. the nature and location of all portions of the facility then situated above the mudline.

C. Upon learning thereafter that any portion of a facility abandoned under §1705.B is protruding above the mudline in depths of water less than 20 feet and constituting an obstruction, the person or persons responsible shall notify the assistant secretary and remove or mark that portion of the facility within 90 days or as soon thereafter as practicable; provided, however, field transmission, flow and gathering lines on state leases or right-of-way shall not be required to be removed.

D. For purposes of this rule, a facility shall be deemed abandoned if it has not been actually used for the bona fide movement, processing or production of hydrocarbons within the preceding six months, provided that a facility shall not be deemed abandoned if:

1. the owner or operator thereof reasonably intends to use the facility for the movement, processing or production of hydrocarbons in the reasonably foreseeable future; or

2. the owner or operator has applied for but not received permission from the relevant jurisdictional authority to abandon the facility.

E. All abandoned well and platform locations on state water bottoms in the Gulf of Mexico and adjacent bays and inlets shall be cleared of all related obstructions by the owner of such facilities. All owners shall comply with the following clearance and verification requirements and procedures.

1. All abandoned well and platform locations shall be cleared of all obstructions present as a result of oil and gas activities unless otherwise approved by the commissioner of conservation. For clearance purposes, the locations shall be defined as below:

a.Exploratory, Dry Hole, Delineation, or Other Wells That Have Not Been Produced for Purposes Other Than Production Tests-in open water (territorial seas and coastal waters), the area covered by a 300-foot radius circle centered on the well, depending on site specific conditions. In a canal, bayou, river, or other similarly restricted waterway a maximum linear distance 100 feet upstream and downstream from the location of the well, depending on site specific limitations.

b.Platforms-in territorial seas, the area covered by a 1,320-foot radius circle centered on the platform geometric center. In coastal waters, the area covered by a 400-foot radius circle centered on the platform geometric center, depending on site specific conditions. In a canal, bayou, river, or other similarly restricted waterway, a maximum linear distance 400 feet upstream and downstream from the location of the well depending on site specific limitations.

c.Single or Multi-Well Caisson or Templet-in open water (territorial seas and coastal waters), the area covered by a 400-foot radius circle centered on the well, depending on site specific conditions. In a canal, bayou, river, or other similarly restricted waterway a maximum linear distance 100 feet upstream and downstream from the location of the well depending on site specific limitations.

2. A procedural plan for site clearance verification of platform, well or structure abandonment (§1705.E.1.b or §1705.E.1.c shall be developed by the lessee and submitted to the commissioner of conservation for approval with the permit application for platform or structure removal. Vessels used for site clearance verification operations in territorial seas shall be equipped with a navigational positioning system capable of providing position accuracy of +30 feet. The navigational system proposed for use must be identified in the procedural plan. Vessels used for site clearance verification operations in coastal waters and shallow (5 feet or less below mean sea level) territorial seas are not required to be equipped with a navigational system provided alternate methods for insuring proper positioning during site clearance verification operations are described in the plan submitted for approval. Each such plan and application shall be accompanied by a filing fee of $600.

a. Sites defined in §1705.E.1.b and c located in water depths greater than or equal to 5 feet below mean tide level but less than 200 feet shall have their locations verified clear over 100 percent of their limits in open waters or the length of the location in restricted waters. Trawling is the preferred method of site clearance verification, however alternative methods may be approved by the commissioner. Sites defined in §1705.E.1.a need not be trawled provided approval is obtained from the Office of Conservation for an alternate method of site clearance verification. If an alternate method (e.g., diver survey) is proposed, operational plans must adequately be described in the procedural plan submitted for approval.

i. Trawling contractors performing site clearance verification work shall possess a valid commercial trawling license for both the vessel and the captain. Further, the captain must have prior experience in trawling operations for two consecutive years immediately prior to performing the work.

ii. The trawling vessel used in verification activities in open water must be equipped with a navigational system and plotter that will produce a real time track plot of the vessel position or capable of producing a hard copy post plot on board the vessel of any or all lines in order to verify that the area has been satisfactorily covered prior to departure of the trawling vessel. The track plot must have a minimum scale of 1" - 400' (1:4800).

iii. The trawling vessel must be outfitted with trawling nets with a maximum stretched mesh size of 6 inches and constructed of twine no stronger than #18 twine (ribbon strength). These nets shall not be equipped with turtle excluder devices (TED's). Trawls shall be picked up after a maximum drag time of 30 minutes and all fish, crabs, and shrimp caught in the trawl must be released. The Eighth Coast Guard District Law Enforcement Branch and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Section shall be notified of any site clearance verification trawling operations 48 hours prior to commencing such activities. When trawling in areas where pipelines, snags, or shipwrecks are known to exist, the following guidelines shall be followed.

NOTE: It is suggested that the operator or the trawling contractor contact the Fishermen's Gear Compensation Fund and U.S. Coast Guard Notice to Mariners to identify any recorded snags within the area to be trawled.

(a). There are no restrictions to be placed on the trawling procedure or pattern for abandoned pipelines. It is the responsibility of the lessee (or operator) performing the site clearance verification activities to contact the former pipeline owner (or operator) and determine whether or not the line will cause an obstruction to unrestricted trawling operations.

(b). In general, trawling should not be conducted closer than 300 feet to any existing pipeline, structure, well, snag or shipwreck, but this distance may be reduced depending on the conditions existing at a particular site.

(c). Active pipelines which are buried and for which no above grade obstructions (such as valves) exist must be trawled without any restrictions placed on the trawling procedure or pattern. It is the responsibility of the lessee (or operator) performing the site clearance verification activities to contact the pipeline owner (or operator) and determine the condition of such pipelines within the area to be trawled.

(d). For unburied active pipelines which are 8 inches in diameter or larger, and for unburied smaller diameter lines which have obstructions (e.g., valves) present, trawling shall be carried out no closer than 100 feet to either side and in the same direction as (parallel to) the line. Trawling shall not be carried out across the line.

(e). For unburied active pipelines which are smaller than 8 inches in diameter and have no obstructions present, trawling must be carried out in the direction of the line and trawling on top of the line is acceptable. Trawling shall not be carried out across the line.

iv. Trawling grid patterns (track lines) shall be spaced no more than a distance equal to one-half the width of the net mouth opening. For example, a vessel trawling with a net with a 40-foot mouth opening must be trawled on a 20 foot or smaller grid pattern.

b. Any modifications to the requirements to trawl the site must be approved by the commissioner of conservation. All man-made objects encountered on the seabed which are known (or suspected) to be present as a result of oil and gas activities shall be removed from the seabed or other remedial action taken and reported as specified below unless otherwise approved by the commissioner of conservation. Any grid line that is found to have a snag that is not recovered in the trawl must be retrawled after snag recovery operations are completed. In those instances where the trawling effort is interrupted for any reason and then continued again, overlap of areas trawled (or to be trawled) trawling shall be resumed at a location and in a direction to ensure 100 percent coverage of the site clearance area.

c. The lessee shall notify the commissioner of conservation at least 48 hours prior to conducting the clearance survey. All casing and anchor piling shall be removed to a depth of at least 10 feet below the mudline.

d. For areas with more than one facility to be abandoned, with overlapping site clearance areas, the operator/owner may submit a site clearance plan to the commissioner of conservation for the composite area. A completed plan must be submitted upon removal of the last facility within the area.

3. Within 90 days of completion of platform or structure removal/abandonment operations, site clearance verification shall be completed as specified in the approved plan unless otherwise approved by the commissioner of conservation. Until site clearance verification procedures have been completed, the location shall be marked as a hazard to navigation in accordance with U.S. Coast Guard regulations unless otherwise approved. Verification letters from the company performing the salvage/clearance work and the trawling contractor shall be submitted with the well clearance or platform removal report and, as appropriate, shall include the following:

a. the date(s) the work was performed and vessel involved;

b. a statement from both the salvager and trawling contractor that no objects were recovered, or general categorical descriptions of the objects that were recovered. The trawler must note the general contents of the nets on each trawling pass. Examples of categories of debris recovered are:

i. pipe;

ii. grating;

iii. plate;

iv. structural shapes;

v. tires;

vi. batteries;

vii. wire rope;

viii. hoses; or

ix. other. All material recovered must be disposed of properly;

c. details and results of any alternate methods of site clearance verification performed, i.e., the diver search pattern and equipment used, or the type of sonar equipment used, including instrument deployment method, frequency, range, and height above the seafloor, and a record of the scans with range and scale noted accompanied by an interpretation of the seabed features shown;

d. details and results of the trawling operations, i.e., post job plot or map showing (minimum scale 1" = 400') the pattern in which the trawl was pulled, the size and description of the trawl, grid line numbers corresponding to those used in the trawler's report, location center latitude and longitude, the positioning system and calibration method(s) used and any interruptions experienced during the survey;

e. a letter signed by an authorized lessee/operator company representative stating that he/she witnessed the site clearance operations and subsequent verification surveys shall also be submitted with the well clearance report or report of platform or structure removal;

f. all reports, forms, and letters shall be submitted to the Office of Conservation no later than 90 days following completion of trawling operations.

La. Admin. Code tit. 43, § XI-1705

Promulgated by the Department of Natural Resources, Office of Conservation, LR 11:704 (July 1985), LR 12:115 (February 1986), amended LR 18:1412 (December 1992), Repromulgated LR 49295 (2/1/2023).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:4-D through 4-H.