SB 1281, as introduced, Pavley. Oil and gas production: water use reporting.
Under existing law, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources in the Department of Conservation regulates the drilling, operation, maintenance, stimulation, and abandonment of oil and gas wells in the state. Existing law provides that a person who violates any prohibition specific to the regulation of oil or gas operations is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board and the 9 California regional water quality control boards are the principal state agencies with responsibility for the coordination and control of water quality in the state and the Department of Water Resources operates the State Water Project and exercises other functions relating to the state’s water resources.
This bill would declare that the use of freshwater in all elements of the development and production of oil and gas shall be reduced, by January 1, 2019, to an unspecified percentage of baseline freshwater use in 2014, and would require the department and the board, in collaboration with the division, to determine the volume of that baseline use. The bill would require well and facility owners or operators to report to the division the volume, source, and use of all freshwater, recycled water, and treated water, as specified, and would require the division to make that information publicly available. Because a violation of the bill’s reporting requirements by an owner or operator would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 3223.5 is added to the Public Resources
2Code, to read:
(a) (1) It is the policy of the state to require
4conservation of freshwater used, and to promote the use and reuse
5of recycled and treated water, in all elements of the development
6and production of oil and gas.
7(2) The annual use of freshwater in all elements of the
8development and production of oil and gas shall be reduced, on
9or before January 1, 2019, to ____ percent of baseline freshwater
10use in 2014, and this reduction shall be at least maintained
11thereafter.
12(b) (1) A well and facility owner or operator shall report to the
13division the volume and specific source of all freshwater used, the
14volume and specific source of all recycled
and treated water used
15and reused, and how these waters are used in all elements of the
16development and production of oil and gas. This shall include all
17waters supplied, treated, used, and reused by contractors on behalf
18of the well and facility owner or operator.
19(2) The information required pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
20reported no later than 30 calendar days after the use or reuse of
21the waters. The division shall post the information reported on its
22Internet Web site. The information reported shall also be available
23for download by the public from the division’s Internet Web site
24in a spreadsheet or similar format suitable for use in an electronic
25database without additional processing. Activities related to wells
26designated as confidential pursuant to Section 3234 are not exempt
27from the public reporting requirements pursuant to this section.
P3 1(c) The Department of Water
Resources and the State Water
2Resources Control Board, in collaboration with the division, shall
3develop a methodology to determine, and shall determine, the
4volume of freshwater used in the baseline 2014 year, as described
5in subdivision (a). If data are unavailable, estimates derived from
6documented evidence may be used.
7(d) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have
8the following meanings:
9(1) “Freshwater” means water that is or may be used in the
10future as a source of public drinking water.
11(2) “All elements of the development and production of oil and
12gas” includes, but is not limited to, site and facility preparation,
13construction, operation and maintenance, the drilling and redrilling
14of any wells, any well stimulation treatments, any oil and gas
15production and recovery, any operation and
maintenance of idle
16wells, any operation and maintenance of active observation wells,
17any enhanced oil and gas recovery operations including injection
18wells, any well plugging and abandonment operations and all
19related activities.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
21Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
22the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
23district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
24infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
25for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
26the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
27the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
28Constitution.
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