3270-3270.4
PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE
SECTION 3270-3270.4
3270. (a) The division shall, by regulation, prescribe minimum facility maintenance standards for all production facilities in the state. The regulations shall include, but are not limited to, standards for all of the following: (1) Leak detection. (2) Corrosion prevention and testing. (3) Tank inspection and cleaning. (4) Valve and gauge maintenance, and secondary containment maintenance. (5) Other facility or equipment maintenance that the supervisor deems important for the proper operation of production facilities and that the supervisor determines are necessary to prevent damage to life, health, property, and natural resources; damage to underground oil and gas deposits from infiltrating water and other causes; loss of oil, gas, or reservoir energy; and damage to underground and surface waters suitable for irrigation or domestic purposes by the infiltration of, or the addition of, detrimental substances. (b) An operator who constructs, acquires, maintains, or alters an oil well or a production facility shall comply with the standards prescribed pursuant to subdivision (a). (c) In a form and at a time prescribed by the division in regulation, an operator shall notify the supervisor of the construction, alteration, or decommissioning of a production facility. (d) An operator shall maintain at the production facility's local office records of maintenance and repair operations, tests, and inspections, and shall provide the supervisor with access to these records at all times during normal business hours and with copies of the records immediately, upon request. 3270.1. Within three months of its acquisition of a production facility or at the time of the initial production at its production facility, the facility operator shall file with the division a spill contingency plan. 3270.2. The division shall inspect production facilities to ensure compliance with the standards prescribed in the regulations promulgated pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 3270. 3270.3. In addition to any other remedy provided by law, the supervisor, upon his or her determination or that of the district deputy that a production facility is being operated in violation of the standards prescribed in subdivision (a) of Section 3270, may issue a cease and desist order to a production facility operator requiring the operator to cease operation until the operator demonstrates, to the satisfaction of the supervisor, that the violation has been corrected. 3270.4. (a) In addition to the bonding requirements under Article 4 (commencing with Section 3200), for an operator with a history of violating this chapter or that has outstanding liabilities to the state associated with a well or production facility, the supervisor may require a life-of-well or life-of-production facility bond in an amount adequate to ensure all of the following: (1) The proper plugging and abandonment of each well. (2) The safe decommissioning of each production facility. (3) The financing of spill response and incident cleanup. (b) Upon the failure of an operator to properly plug and abandon a well, decommission a production facility, or perform the appropriate spill response and incident cleanup, the supervisor may levy on the bond to obtain money to pay the cost of the work. (c) The supervisor may release a life-of-production facility bond upon the satisfactory decommissioning of a production facility, or when an operator has provided another valid life-of-production facility bond. (d) The supervisor may release a life-of-well bond upon the satisfactory plugging and abandonment of all wells covered by the bond or when an operator has provided another valid life-of-well bond. (e) Whenever an operator sells, assigns, transfers, conveys, exchanges, or otherwise disposes to another operator a well or production facility that is covered by a life-of-well bond or a life-of-production facility bond, the new operator shall replace the life-of-well or life-of-production bond, as applicable, and maintain the new bond for five years before it may be released by the supervisor. (f) In lieu of the indemnity bond required by this section, the supervisor may accept a deposit given pursuant to Article 7 (commencing with Section 995.710) of Chapter 2 of Title 14 of Part 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure, excluding a deposit of money, bearer bonds, or bearer notes. (g) The supervisor shall adopt regulations specifying the content, including the conditions, of the bond or other security instrument required by this section.