25159.10. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Specific state laws and regulations have been enacted to
prevent leaks and hazardous waste discharges to land, such as those
from underground storage tanks, surface impoundments, pits, ponds, or
lagoons.
(b) The present federal law which regulates the discharge of
hazardous waste to land in injection wells is inadequate to fully
protect California's water supplies from contamination. As a result,
underground injection of hazardous waste presents a serious
short-term and long-term threat to the quality of waters in the
state.
(c) State-of-the-art design and operation safeguards of injection
wells without adequate groundwater monitoring, specific geological
information, and other system safeguards cannot guarantee that
migration of hazardous wastes into underground sources of drinking
water will not occur.
(d) Monitoring requirements specified in federal law are not
adequate to detect all leaks from injection wells and there are no
requirements in federal law for monitoring the movement of wastes in
the substrata to ensure that wastes have not escaped the injection
zone or are not reacting with, or have not breached the confining
strata.
(e) Injecting wastes into wells deep in the geological substrata
is an unproven method for the containment of wastes because, among
other things, hazardous wastes can react with geological substrata,
rendering these containment barriers ineffective, pressure of the
injected wastes can breach containment layers, and active or
abandoned wells in the vicinity of waste injection can serve as a
conduit for the wastes to migrate to drinking water supplies.
(f) Restoring contaminated groundwater to its original state after
the fact and removal or cleanup of wastes once injected to these
depths are formidable tasks which are not typically economically
feasible.
(g) It is in the public interest to establish a continuing program
for the purpose of preventing contamination from underground
injection of waste. It is the intent of the Legislature to prohibit
any injection of hazardous wastes into or above drinking water in the
state, and to prohibit any injection of hazardous waste below
drinking water in the state which is not properly permitted and
monitored so as to prevent hazardous wastes from migrating to
drinking water or otherwise endangering the environment of the state.
(h) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Legislature will
provide a process for the public and industry to appeal the actions
or inactions of the department under this article. However, the
specific process cannot be developed until the Legislature determines
the general organization of the department with regard to
administration of hazardous waste management programs.
25159.11. This article shall be known and may be cited as the Toxic
Injection Well Control Act of 1985.
25159.12. For purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
(a) "Annulus" means the space between the outside edge of the
injection tube and the well casing.
(b) "State board" means the State Water Resources Control Board.
(c) "Compatibility" means that waste constituents do not react
with each other, with the materials constituting the injection well,
or with fluids or solid geologic media in the injection zone or
confining zone in a manner as to cause leaching, precipitation of
solids, gas or pressure buildup, dissolution, or any other effect
that will impair the effectiveness of the confining zone or the safe
operation of the injection well.
(d) "Confining zone" means the geological formation, or part of a
formation, that is intended to be a barrier to prevent the migration
of waste constituents from the injection zone.
(e) "Constituent" means an element, chemical, compound, or mixture
of compounds that is a component of a hazardous waste or leachate
and that has the physical or chemical properties that cause the waste
to be identified as hazardous waste by the department pursuant to
this chapter.
(f) "Discharge" means to place, inject, dispose of, or store
hazardous wastes into, or in, an injection well owned or operated by
the person who is conducting the placing, disposal, or storage.
(g) "Drinking water" has the same meaning as "potential source of
drinking water," as defined in subdivision (t) of Section 25208.2.
(h) "Facility" means the structures, appurtenances, and
improvements on the land, and all contiguous land, that are
associated with an injection well and are used for treating, storing,
or disposing of hazardous waste. A facility may consist of several
waste management units, including, but not limited to, surface
impoundments, landfills, underground or aboveground tanks, sumps,
pits, ponds, and lagoons that are associated with an injection well.
(i) "Groundwater" means water, including, but not limited to,
drinking water, below the land surface in a zone of saturation.
(j) "Hazardous waste" means any hazardous waste specified as
hazardous waste or extremely hazardous waste, as defined in this
chapter. Any waste mixture formed by mixing any waste or substance
with a hazardous waste shall be considered hazardous waste for the
purposes of this article.
(k) "Hazardous waste facilities permit" means a permit issued for
an injection well pursuant to Sections 25200 and 25200.6.
(l) "Injection well" or "well" means any bored, drilled, or driven
shaft, dug pit, or hole in the ground the depth of which is greater
than the circumference of the bored hole and any associated
subsurface appurtenances, including, but not limited to, the casing.
For the purposes of this article, injection well does not include
either of the following:
(1) Wells exempted pursuant to Section 25159.24.
(2) Wells that are regulated by the Division of Oil and Gas in the
Department of Conservation pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with
Section 3000) of the Public Resources Code and Subpart F (commencing
with Section 147.250) of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations and are in compliance
with that division and Subpart A (commencing with Section 146.1) of
Part 147 of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Title 40 of the Code of
Federal Regulations.
(m) "Injection zone" means that portion of the receiving formation
that has received, is receiving, or is expected to receive, over the
lifetime of the well, waste fluid from the injection well.
"Injection zone" does not include that portion of the receiving
formation that exceeds the horizontal and vertical extent specified
pursuant to Section 25159.20.
(n) "Owner" means a person who owns a facility or part of a
facility.
(o) "Perched water" means a localized body of groundwater that
overlies, and is hydraulically separated from, an underlying body of
groundwater.
(p) "pH" means a measure of a sample's acidity expressed as a
negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration.
(q) "Qualified person" means a person who has at least five years
of full-time experience in hydrogeology and who is a professional
geologist registered pursuant to Section 7850 of the Business and
Professions Code, or a registered petroleum engineer registered
pursuant to Section 6762 of the Business and Professions Code.
"Full-time experience" in hydrogeology may include a combination of
postgraduate studies in hydrogeology and work experience, with each
year of postgraduate work counted as one year of full-time work
experience, except that not more than three years of postgraduate
studies may be counted as full-time experience.
(r) "Receiving formation" means the geologic strata that are
hydraulically connected to the injection well.
(s) "Regional board" means the California regional water quality
control board for the region in which the injection well is located.
(t) "Report" means the hydrogeological assessment report specified
in Section 25159.18.
(u) "Safe Drinking Water Act" means Subchapter XII (commencing
with Section 300f) of Chapter 6A of Title 42 of the United States
Code.
(v) "Strata" means a distinctive layer or series of layers of
earth materials.
(w) "Waste management unit" means that portion of a facility used
for the discharge of hazardous waste into or onto land, including all
containment and monitoring equipment associated with that portion of
the facility.
25159.15. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on or
after January 1, 1986, a person shall not discharge hazardous waste
into an injection well which commences operation on or after January
1, 1986, and after January 1, 1988, a person shall not discharge
hazardous waste into an injection well which commenced operation
before January 1, 1986, unless all of the following conditions are
met:
(1) Unless granted an exemption pursuant to subdivision (b), no
point along the length of the injection well, as measured either
horizontally or vertically, is located within one-half mile of
drinking water.
(2) The person has received a hazardous waste facilities permit
for the well issued pursuant to Section 25200.6.
(3) The injection well does not discharge hazardous waste into or
above a formation which contains a source of drinking water within
one-half mile of the well.
(b) A person may apply to the department to exempt an injection
well from paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) if the person has received
a hazardous waste facilities permit and the person has filed a
report pursuant to Section 25159.18 with the department on or before
January 1, 1987, which has been approved by the department, pursuant
to Section 25159.18. If the person proposes to commence operation of
an injection well on or after January 1, 1986, the person shall file
the request for an exemption and the report at least one year before
any proposed discharge or injection.
(c) The department shall either grant or deny an exemption from
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) on or before December 31, 1987, or
within one year after receipt of the application for a proposed
injection well. The department may grant an exemption from paragraph
(1) of subdivision (a) only if the department makes all of the
following written findings, and supports these findings by citing
specific evidence presented in the report or provided to the
department:
(1) The hydrogeology report prepared pursuant to Section 25159.18
is current, accurate, and complete.
(2) No hazardous waste constituents have migrated from that
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone.
(3) Practical alternative technologies, other than well injection,
do not exist to reduce, treat, or dispose of the hazardous wastes
which are to be discharged.
(4) Continuing or commencing the operation of the injection well
does not pose a potential of hazardous waste constituents migrating
from that portion of the injection well located above the injection
zone or migrating from the injection zone and a monitoring program
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 25159.17 has been installed,
or for a proposed injection well, the monitoring program has been
designed and will be installed before any discharge or injections
into the well.
(d) An exemption granted pursuant to subdivision (c) shall not be
effective for more than five years. Applications for an exemption, or
a renewal of an exemption, shall be accompanied by the fee specified
in the fee schedules adopted by the department pursuant to Section
25159.19. The department shall not renew the exemption unless it
makes all of the findings in subdivision (c).
(e) The department shall revoke an exemption granted pursuant to
subdivision (c) if the department determines that there is migration
of hazardous wastes, or a threat of migration of hazardous wastes,
from the well into any strata or the waters of the state outside the
injection zone. The department shall then prohibit the discharge of
any hazardous waste into the injection well, require appropriate
removal and remedial actions by the person granted the exemption, and
require the responsible parties to take appropriate removal and
remedial actions.
(f) The state board, the regional boards, and the department shall
establish procedures providing for the interagency transfer and
review of applications for exemption received pursuant to subdivision
(b).
(g) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.16. (a) If the department or regional board determines that
there is migration of hazardous waste constituents, or a threat of
migration of hazardous waste constituents, from an injection well
into any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone,
the department shall prohibit the discharge of any hazardous waste
into the injection well until removal and remedial actions have been
conducted to abate the migration or threat.
(b) The department shall determine, after the remedial and removal
actions required pursuant to subdivision (a) are completed, whether
the injection well should be continued to be used for the discharge
of hazardous wastes. The department shall not approve the continued
use of the injection well for the discharge of hazardous waste unless
the department makes both of the following determinations:
(1) The removal or remedial action abated the contamination, or
threat of contamination, from the migration or threat of migration.
(2) There is no potential, in continuing the operation of the
injection well, for any future migration of hazardous waste
constituents, from that portion of the injection well located above
the injection zone, or from the injection zone.
The department shall make these determinations pursuant to a
public hearing for which the department shall provide notice to all
residents in the affected area, as determined by the department, and
by mail to all persons listed on any mailing lists compiled by the
department, using any appropriate mailing lists compiled by the
regional board.
(c) If the department determines, pursuant to subdivision (b),
that an injection well should not continue to be used for the
discharge of hazardous wastes, the department shall require that all
hazardous waste discharges be permanently terminated at the well and
that the owner of the well take all actions necessary to prepare the
injection well for closure pursuant to subdivision (d) and for
postclosure maintenance which are required pursuant to the Federal
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 6901
et seq.), the regulations adopted by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act for proper
closure, plugging, and monitoring of injection wells, and the
regulations adopted by the state board and the department for closure
of hazardous waste management units.
(d) Before any injection well used for the discharge of hazardous
waste is closed, the department shall require the owner to certify
that the well is in a state of static equilibrium, all defects or
damages in the well casing are corrected prior to closure, that
closure is sufficient to prevent the movement of fluids from the
injection zone, and that all closure will commence within six months
from the date the department orders closure. The injection well shall
also be closed in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) Fluids and gases shall be confined to the stratum in which
they occur by the use of cement grout or other suitable material. The
amount, type, kind of material, and method of placement shall be
approved by the department and the well shall be filled from bottom
to top with the approved material.
(2) No well shall be sealed without the prior approval of the
department. The person responsible for well closure shall submit a
sealing plan to the department at least 90 days prior to the proposed
date of sealing. The department may require that a representative of
the department observe that sealing.
(e) The department shall consult with the regional board and the
Division of Oil and Gas, where necessary, to fulfill the requirements
of subdivision (d).
(f) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.17. (a) The department shall make an inspection at least once
each year of all facilities with injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged. The owner shall tabulate the
monitoring data recovered, pursuant to subdivision (c), monthly. The
department shall review the data specified in paragraphs (1), (2),
and (3), of subdivision (c) monthly and the data specified in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) quarterly to ensure that all
injection wells into which hazardous waste is discharged comply with
this chapter and that any equipment or programs required pursuant to
this article are operating properly.
(b) The department shall require complete mechanical integrity
testing of the well bore at least once a year and shall require
pressure tests at least once every six months. The testing program
shall be designed to detect defects, damage, and corrosion in the
well, well casings, injection tube, packer, cement, and the screened
or perforated portion of the well.
(c) The operator of an injection well into which hazardous waste
is discharged shall conduct monitoring of the surface equipment, the
well, and the movement of injected wastes, in the following manner:
(1) Injection fluids shall be sampled and analyzed at least
monthly to yield representative data of their characteristics at all
injection wells located at onsite facilities. If the injection well
is located at an offsite facility, the fluids shall be sampled and
analyzed every time the composition of the hazardous waste discharged
into the injection well is different than the waste discharged
immediately prior to the new discharge.
(2) Pressure gauges shall be installed and maintained in proper
operating condition at all times on the injection tubing and annulus.
(3) Continuous recording devices shall be installed and maintained
in proper operating condition at all times to record injection
temperatures and pressures, injection flow rates, injection volumes,
and annulus pressure.
(4) The monitoring system, including all monitoring wells, shall
be constructed and operated in accordance with the standards
specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18. The design of the
monitoring system and location and number of monitoring wells shall
be approved by the department. Monitoring wells shall be sufficient
in number and location for compliance with the monitoring
requirements specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18, the
federal regulations adopted pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act,
and for determining all of the following:
(A) The direction and rate of regional groundwater movement.
(B) Any upward migration of hazardous wastes and changes in water
quality in the water bearing formation immediately above the
injection zone.
(C) Any changes in water quality of drinking water within at least
one-half mile of the well.
(D) The direction, rate, hydraulic effects, alteration, and
characteristics of wastes injected into the injection zone, and any
changes of pressure within or above the injection zone.
(d) The operator of an injection well shall equip the surface
facilities of an injection well into which hazardous waste is
discharged with shutoff devices, alarms, and fencing.
(e) The department shall require all abandoned water wells within
three miles of a facility to be closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81.
(f) The department may require any subsurface structure or hole
which is contaminated, may become contaminated, provides a potential
conduit for contamination, or penetrates a formation containing
drinking water to be closed in accordance with standards at least as
stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water Resources
Bulletin No. 74-81. If the subsurface structure or hole is an oil or
gas well, the well shall be closed in accordance with standards at
least as stringent as the regulations adopted by the Division of Oil
and Gas. If the subsurface structure is an injection well into which
hazardous waste is discharged, the injection well shall be closed in
accordance with the procedures specified in subdivision (d) of
Section 25159.16.
(g) The regional board shall revise any existing waste discharge
requirements, issued for any injection well into which hazardous
waste is discharged, pursuant to Section 13263 of the Water Code,
based upon a review of the report.
(h) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.18. Any person who applies to the department for a hazardous
waste facilities permit, or for the renewal or revision of a
hazardous waste facilities permit, for the discharge of hazardous
wastes into an injection well, including any proposed injection well,
shall submit a hydrogeological assessment report to the department
and to the appropriate regional board six months before making that
application. A qualified person shall be responsible for the
preparation of the report and shall certify its completeness and
accuracy. The department shall not approve the report unless the
department finds that the report is current, accurate, and complete,
and that no hazardous waste constituents have migrated from the
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone. The report shall be
accompanied by the fee established pursuant to Section 25159.19. The
report shall contain, for each injection well, including any proposed
injection well, any information required by the department, and all
of the following information:
(a) A description of the injection well, including all of the
following:
(1) Physical characteristics.
(2) A log of construction activities, including dates and methods
used.
(3) A description of materials used in the injection well,
including tubing, casing, packers, seals, and grout.
(4) Design specifications and a drawing of the well as completed.
(5) An analysis of the chemical and physical compatibility of the
materials used with the wastes injected.
(6) Annulus fluid composition, level, and pressure at the time of
well completion through the present time.
(b) A description of both of the following:
(1) The volume, temperature, pH, and radiological characteristics,
and composition of hazardous waste constituents placed in the well,
based on a statistically significant representative chemical analysis
of each specific hazardous waste type, so that any variations in
hazardous waste constituents over time are documented.
(2) The pressure and rate at which fluid is injected into the
well.
(c) A map showing the distances, within the facility, to the
nearest surface water bodies and springs, and the distances, within
three miles from the facility's perimeter, to the nearest surface
water bodies and springs.
(d) Tabular data from each surface water body and spring shown on
the map specified in subdivision (c), within one mile from the
facility's perimeter, which indicate its flow and a representative
water analysis. The report shall include an evaluation and
characterization of seasonal changes and, if substantive changes
occur from season to season, the tabular data shall reflect these
seasonal changes.
(e) A map showing the location of all existing and abandoned
wells, dry holes, mines, and quarries within the facility and within
three miles of the facility's perimeter. The report shall include,
for each well shown on the map, a description of the present use of
the well, a representative water analysis from any existing wells,
any known physical characteristics, and a determination as to whether
the well, if abandoned, has been closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81, or, if the well is an oil or gas well,
in accordance with standards at least as stringent as the regulations
of the Division of Oil and Gas. The report also shall include, when
possible, the water well driller's report or well log.
(f) A map showing the structural geology and stratigraphy within
three miles of the facility's perimeter that can influence the
direction of the groundwater flow or the movement of the discharged
wastes. The report shall include a description of folds, domes,
basins, faults, seismic activity, fractures, and joint patterns, and
a geologic cross section and general description of the subsurface
rock units, including stratigraphic position, lithology, thickness,
and areal distribution.
(g) An analysis for all of the following:
(1) The vertical and lateral extent of any water-bearing strata
that could be affected by leakage from the injection well.
(2) The vertical and lateral extent of any strata through which
the well is drilled.
(3) The vertical and lateral limits of the confining beds above,
below, and adjacent to, the injection well.
(h) The analysis specified in subdivision (g) shall include all of
the following:
(1) A map and cross section of all hydrogeologic units.
(2) Maps showing contours of equal elevation of the water surface
for perched water, unconfined water, and confined groundwater
required to be analyzed by this subdivision.
(3) An estimate of the flow, and flow direction, of the water in
all water-bearing formations shown on both the maps and the
subsurface geologic cross sections.
(4) An estimate of the transmissivity, permeability, porosity, and
storage coefficient for each perched zone of water and water-bearing
formations identified on the maps specified in paragraph (1).
(5) A determination of the water quality of each zone of the
water-bearing formations and perched water that is identified on the
maps specified in paragraph (1) and is under, or above and adjacent
to, the well. This determination shall be conducted by taking samples
either upgradient of the injection well or from another location
that has not been affected by leakage from the injection well.
(i) A determination as to whether the groundwater is contiguous
with regional bodies of groundwater and the depth measured from the
injection zone and well casing to the groundwater, including the
depth measured to perched water and water-bearing strata identified
on the maps specified in subdivision (h).
(j) All of the following information for the receiving formation:
(1) A description of the chemical and physical properties of the
receiving formation, including its lithology, thickness, composition,
structure, porosity, storage capacity, permeability,
compressibility, density, subsurface stress, vertical and lateral
continuity and extent, fluid temperature, pressure, composition, and
the measurement of the minimum pressure that would fracture the
receiving formation.
(2) The effect of the injection pressure on the receiving
formation.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
receiving formation.
(4) An assessment of compatibility of waste, formation fluids, and
formation lithology. This shall include a description of short-range
and long-range changes anticipated in the physical and chemical
state of the receiving formation in its fluids through chemical
reaction and interaction with injection fluids.
(k) All of the following information for the confining zone:
(1) A description of its chemical and physical properties,
including its age, composition, thickness, vertical and lateral
continuity, unconformities, permeability, transmissivity,
compressibility, porosity, density, and subsurface stress.
(2) The minimum amount of pressure that would fracture the
confining zone, calculated specifically for the particular confining
zone, a description of the number and types of existing fractures,
faults, and cavities, and an analysis as to whether fractures were
created or enlarged by past injection of wastes.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
confining zone.
(4) Anticipated short-range and long-range changes in the physical
state of the confining zone through chemical reaction and
interaction with injection fluids.
(5) An estimate of the rate of migration of the hazardous waste
constituents through the confining zone.
( l) A geologic cross section and description of the composition
of each stratum through which the injection well is drilled. This
description shall include a physical, chemical, and hydrogeological
characterization of both the consolidated and unconsolidated rock
material, including lithology, mineralogy, texture, bedding,
thickness, and permeability. It shall also include an analysis for
pollutants, including those constituents discharged into the
injection well. The report shall arrange all monitoring data in a
tabular form so that the dates, the constituents, and the
concentrations are readily discernible.
(m) A description of surface facilities, including, but not
limited to, pressure gauges, automatic shutoff devices, alarms,
fencing, specifications for valves and pipe fittings, and operator
training and requirements.
(n) A description of contingency plans for well failures and
shutdowns to prevent migration of contaminants from the well.
(o) A description of the monitoring being conducted to detect
migration of hazardous waste constituents, including the number and
positioning of the monitoring wells, the monitoring wells' distances
from the injection well, the monitoring wells' design data, the
monitoring wells' installation, the monitoring development
procedures, the sampling and analytical methodologies, the sampling
frequency, and the chemical constituents analyzed. The design data of
the monitoring wells shall include the monitoring wells' depth, the
monitoring wells' diameters, the monitoring wells' casing materials,
the perforated intervals within the well, the size of the
perforations, the gradation of the filter pack, and the extent of the
wells' annular seals.
(p) Documentation demonstrating that the monitoring system and
methods used at the facility can detect any seepage, including any
leaks, cracks, or malfunctions in the well or a breach of the
confining zone, before the hazardous waste constituents migrate from
the well above the injection zone or from the confining zone. This
documentation shall include, but is not limited to, substantiation of
all of the following:
(1) The monitoring system is effective enough, and includes a
sufficient number of monitoring wells in the major water-bearing
zones, which are located close enough to the injection well casing
and to the injection zone, to verify that no lateral and vertical
migration of any constituents discharged into the well is occurring
outside of the injection zone.
(2) Monitoring wells are not located within the influence of any
adjacent pumping wells that might impair their effectiveness.
(3) Monitoring wells are only screened in the aquifer to be
monitored and are monitored for both pressure and water quality.
(4) The chosen casing material does not adversely react with the
potential contaminants of major concern at the facility.
(5) The casing diameter allows an adequate amount of water to be
removed during sampling and allows full development of the monitor
well.
(6) Monitoring wells are constructed so as not to provide
potential conduits for migration of pollution, and the wells'
construction features, including annular seals, prevent pollutants
from migrating up or down the monitoring well.
(7) The methods of water sample collection require that the
samples are transported and handled in accordance with the United
States Geological Survey's "National Handbook of Recommended Methods
for Water-Data Acquisition," which provides guidelines for collection
and analysis of groundwater samples for selected unstable
constituents and any additional procedures specified by the
department. For all monitoring wells, except those extending into the
injection zone, the sample shall be collected after at least five
well volumes have been removed from the well.
(8) The hazardous waste constituents selected for analysis are
specific to the facility, taking into account the chemical
composition of hazardous wastes previously discharged into the
injection well. The monitoring data shall be arranged in tabular form
so that the date, the constituents, and the concentrations are
readily discernible.
(9) The frequency of monitoring is sufficient to give timely
warning of migration of hazardous waste constituents so that remedial
action can be taken prior to any adverse changes in the quality of
the groundwater.
(10) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any constituents have migrated into the
surface water bodies or any strata outside the injection zone,
including water-bearing strata.
(11) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any migration of hazardous waste
constituents into surface water bodies or any strata outside the
injection zone, including water-bearing strata, is likely or not
likely to occur within five years, and any evidence supporting that
statement.
(q) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.19. (a) On or before July 1, 1986, the department shall, by
emergency regulation, adopt a fee schedule that assesses a fee upon
any person discharging any hazardous wastes into an injection well.
The department shall include in this fee schedule the fees charged
for filing a hazardous waste injection statement specified in former
Section 25159.13, as added by Chapter 1591 of the Statutes of 1985,
the report specified in Section 25159.18, and applications for, and
renewals of, the exemptions specified in Section 25159.15. The
department shall also include provisions in the fee schedule for
assessing a penalty pursuant to subdivision (c). These fees shall be
based on the reasonable anticipated costs that will be incurred by
the department to implement and administer this article. The
department may also request an appropriation to be used in
combination with these fees to perform the monitoring, inspections,
review of reports, or any other implementation and administrative
actions required by this article.
(b) The emergency regulations that set the fee schedule shall be
adopted by the department in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code, and for the purposes of that chapter, including
Section 11349.6 of the Government Code, the adoption of these
regulations is an emergency and shall be considered by the Office of
Administrative Law as necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public peace, health, and safety, and general welfare.
Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1
of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, any emergency
regulations adopted by the department pursuant to this section shall
be filed with, but not be repealed by, the Office of Administrative
Law and shall remain in effect until revised by the department.
(c) The department shall send a notice to each person subject to
the fee specified in subdivision (a). If a person fails to pay the
fee within 60 days after receipt of this notice, the department shall
require the person to pay an additional penalty fee. The department
shall set the penalty fee at not more than 100 percent of the
assessed fee, but in an amount sufficient to deter future
noncompliance, as based upon that person's past history of compliance
and ability to pay, and upon additional expenses incurred by this
noncompliance.
(d) The department shall collect and deposit the fees and
penalties collected pursuant to this section in the Hazardous Waste
Injection Well Account, which is hereby created in the General Fund.
The money within the Hazardous Waste Injection Well Account is
available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department
for purposes of administering this article.
(e) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.20. (a) The department shall specify, for purposes of
paragraph (4) of Section 25200.6, the horizontal and vertical extent
of any injection zone for an injection well. The department shall
cite specific information presented in the report prepared pursuant
to Section 25159.18 as the basis for specifying the extent of the
injection zone and shall make a finding as to whether the injection
wells' hydrogeological and operating conditions ensure that there is
no potential for any migration of any hazardous waste constituents to
any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone.
(b) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.21. (a) The state board, a regional board, or the department
may enter and inspect a facility for determining compliance with this
article, including, for this purpose, inspecting, at a reasonable
time, records, files, papers, processes, and controls.
(b) Nothing in this article shall prevent the department from
enforcing existing permit conditions for the land disposal of
hazardous wastes that are more stringent than the restrictions of
this article or prohibit the department, the state board, or the
regional boards from imposing more stringent restrictions on the
discharge of hazardous wastes at any particular hazardous waste
disposal facility.
25159.22. This article shall not be construed to limit or abridge
the powers and duties granted to the department pursuant to this
chapter or pursuant to Chapter 6.8 (commencing with Section 25300) or
to the state board or any regional board pursuant to Division 7
(commencing with Section 13000) of the Water Code, to the Division of
Oil and Gas pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with Section 3000) of
the Public Resources Code, or the authority of any city, county, or
district to act pursuant to the local agency's ordinances or
regulations.
25159.23. The State Oil and Gas Supervisor shall promptly report to
the department and the state board any injection well regulated by
the Division of Oil and Gas pursuant to Subpart F of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations that is not in compliance
with these regulations because fluids not authorized by these
regulations are discharged into the well.
25159.24. (a) Any injection well used to inject contaminated
groundwater that has been treated and is being reinjected into the
same formation from which it was drawn for the purpose of improving
the quality of the groundwater in the formation is exempt from this
article if this method is part of a remedial program initiated in
response to an order, requirement, or other action of a federal or
state agency.
(b) Any injection well used for the reinjection of geothermal
resources, as defined in Section 6903 of the Public Resources Code,
is exempt from this article if the well is in compliance with Chapter
4 (commencing with Section 3700) of Division 3 of the Public
Resources Code.
25159.25. Any action taken by the department pursuant to this
article shall comply with and incorporate any waste discharge
requirements issued by the state board or a regional board, and the
action shall be consistent with all applicable water quality control
plans adopted pursuant to Section 13170 of the Water Code and Article
3 (commencing with Section 13240) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code and with the state policies for water quality control
adopted pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 13140) of
Chapter 3 of Division 7 of the Water Code, and any amendments made to
these plans, policies, or requirements. The department may also
include any more stringent requirement which the department
determines is necessary or appropriate to protect water quality.
25159.10. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Specific state laws and regulations have been enacted to
prevent leaks and hazardous waste discharges to land, such as those
from underground storage tanks, surface impoundments, pits, ponds, or
lagoons.
(b) The present federal law which regulates the discharge of
hazardous waste to land in injection wells is inadequate to fully
protect California's water supplies from contamination. As a result,
underground injection of hazardous waste presents a serious
short-term and long-term threat to the quality of waters in the
state.
(c) State-of-the-art design and operation safeguards of injection
wells without adequate groundwater monitoring, specific geological
information, and other system safeguards cannot guarantee that
migration of hazardous wastes into underground sources of drinking
water will not occur.
(d) Monitoring requirements specified in federal law are not
adequate to detect all leaks from injection wells and there are no
requirements in federal law for monitoring the movement of wastes in
the substrata to ensure that wastes have not escaped the injection
zone or are not reacting with, or have not breached the confining
strata.
(e) Injecting wastes into wells deep in the geological substrata
is an unproven method for the containment of wastes because, among
other things, hazardous wastes can react with geological substrata,
rendering these containment barriers ineffective, pressure of the
injected wastes can breach containment layers, and active or
abandoned wells in the vicinity of waste injection can serve as a
conduit for the wastes to migrate to drinking water supplies.
(f) Restoring contaminated groundwater to its original state after
the fact and removal or cleanup of wastes once injected to these
depths are formidable tasks which are not typically economically
feasible.
(g) It is in the public interest to establish a continuing program
for the purpose of preventing contamination from underground
injection of waste. It is the intent of the Legislature to prohibit
any injection of hazardous wastes into or above drinking water in the
state, and to prohibit any injection of hazardous waste below
drinking water in the state which is not properly permitted and
monitored so as to prevent hazardous wastes from migrating to
drinking water or otherwise endangering the environment of the state.
(h) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Legislature will
provide a process for the public and industry to appeal the actions
or inactions of the department under this article. However, the
specific process cannot be developed until the Legislature determines
the general organization of the department with regard to
administration of hazardous waste management programs.
25159.11. This article shall be known and may be cited as the Toxic
Injection Well Control Act of 1985.
25159.12. For purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
(a) "Annulus" means the space between the outside edge of the
injection tube and the well casing.
(b) "State board" means the State Water Resources Control Board.
(c) "Compatibility" means that waste constituents do not react
with each other, with the materials constituting the injection well,
or with fluids or solid geologic media in the injection zone or
confining zone in a manner as to cause leaching, precipitation of
solids, gas or pressure buildup, dissolution, or any other effect
that will impair the effectiveness of the confining zone or the safe
operation of the injection well.
(d) "Confining zone" means the geological formation, or part of a
formation, that is intended to be a barrier to prevent the migration
of waste constituents from the injection zone.
(e) "Constituent" means an element, chemical, compound, or mixture
of compounds that is a component of a hazardous waste or leachate
and that has the physical or chemical properties that cause the waste
to be identified as hazardous waste by the department pursuant to
this chapter.
(f) "Discharge" means to place, inject, dispose of, or store
hazardous wastes into, or in, an injection well owned or operated by
the person who is conducting the placing, disposal, or storage.
(g) "Drinking water" has the same meaning as "potential source of
drinking water," as defined in subdivision (t) of Section 25208.2.
(h) "Facility" means the structures, appurtenances, and
improvements on the land, and all contiguous land, that are
associated with an injection well and are used for treating, storing,
or disposing of hazardous waste. A facility may consist of several
waste management units, including, but not limited to, surface
impoundments, landfills, underground or aboveground tanks, sumps,
pits, ponds, and lagoons that are associated with an injection well.
(i) "Groundwater" means water, including, but not limited to,
drinking water, below the land surface in a zone of saturation.
(j) "Hazardous waste" means any hazardous waste specified as
hazardous waste or extremely hazardous waste, as defined in this
chapter. Any waste mixture formed by mixing any waste or substance
with a hazardous waste shall be considered hazardous waste for the
purposes of this article.
(k) "Hazardous waste facilities permit" means a permit issued for
an injection well pursuant to Sections 25200 and 25200.6.
(l) "Injection well" or "well" means any bored, drilled, or driven
shaft, dug pit, or hole in the ground the depth of which is greater
than the circumference of the bored hole and any associated
subsurface appurtenances, including, but not limited to, the casing.
For the purposes of this article, injection well does not include
either of the following:
(1) Wells exempted pursuant to Section 25159.24.
(2) Wells that are regulated by the Division of Oil and Gas in the
Department of Conservation pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with
Section 3000) of the Public Resources Code and Subpart F (commencing
with Section 147.250) of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations and are in compliance
with that division and Subpart A (commencing with Section 146.1) of
Part 147 of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Title 40 of the Code of
Federal Regulations.
(m) "Injection zone" means that portion of the receiving formation
that has received, is receiving, or is expected to receive, over the
lifetime of the well, waste fluid from the injection well.
"Injection zone" does not include that portion of the receiving
formation that exceeds the horizontal and vertical extent specified
pursuant to Section 25159.20.
(n) "Owner" means a person who owns a facility or part of a
facility.
(o) "Perched water" means a localized body of groundwater that
overlies, and is hydraulically separated from, an underlying body of
groundwater.
(p) "pH" means a measure of a sample's acidity expressed as a
negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration.
(q) "Qualified person" means a person who has at least five years
of full-time experience in hydrogeology and who is a professional
geologist registered pursuant to Section 7850 of the Business and
Professions Code, or a registered petroleum engineer registered
pursuant to Section 6762 of the Business and Professions Code.
"Full-time experience" in hydrogeology may include a combination of
postgraduate studies in hydrogeology and work experience, with each
year of postgraduate work counted as one year of full-time work
experience, except that not more than three years of postgraduate
studies may be counted as full-time experience.
(r) "Receiving formation" means the geologic strata that are
hydraulically connected to the injection well.
(s) "Regional board" means the California regional water quality
control board for the region in which the injection well is located.
(t) "Report" means the hydrogeological assessment report specified
in Section 25159.18.
(u) "Safe Drinking Water Act" means Subchapter XII (commencing
with Section 300f) of Chapter 6A of Title 42 of the United States
Code.
(v) "Strata" means a distinctive layer or series of layers of
earth materials.
(w) "Waste management unit" means that portion of a facility used
for the discharge of hazardous waste into or onto land, including all
containment and monitoring equipment associated with that portion of
the facility.
25159.15. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on or
after January 1, 1986, a person shall not discharge hazardous waste
into an injection well which commences operation on or after January
1, 1986, and after January 1, 1988, a person shall not discharge
hazardous waste into an injection well which commenced operation
before January 1, 1986, unless all of the following conditions are
met:
(1) Unless granted an exemption pursuant to subdivision (b), no
point along the length of the injection well, as measured either
horizontally or vertically, is located within one-half mile of
drinking water.
(2) The person has received a hazardous waste facilities permit
for the well issued pursuant to Section 25200.6.
(3) The injection well does not discharge hazardous waste into or
above a formation which contains a source of drinking water within
one-half mile of the well.
(b) A person may apply to the department to exempt an injection
well from paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) if the person has received
a hazardous waste facilities permit and the person has filed a
report pursuant to Section 25159.18 with the department on or before
January 1, 1987, which has been approved by the department, pursuant
to Section 25159.18. If the person proposes to commence operation of
an injection well on or after January 1, 1986, the person shall file
the request for an exemption and the report at least one year before
any proposed discharge or injection.
(c) The department shall either grant or deny an exemption from
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) on or before December 31, 1987, or
within one year after receipt of the application for a proposed
injection well. The department may grant an exemption from paragraph
(1) of subdivision (a) only if the department makes all of the
following written findings, and supports these findings by citing
specific evidence presented in the report or provided to the
department:
(1) The hydrogeology report prepared pursuant to Section 25159.18
is current, accurate, and complete.
(2) No hazardous waste constituents have migrated from that
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone.
(3) Practical alternative technologies, other than well injection,
do not exist to reduce, treat, or dispose of the hazardous wastes
which are to be discharged.
(4) Continuing or commencing the operation of the injection well
does not pose a potential of hazardous waste constituents migrating
from that portion of the injection well located above the injection
zone or migrating from the injection zone and a monitoring program
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 25159.17 has been installed,
or for a proposed injection well, the monitoring program has been
designed and will be installed before any discharge or injections
into the well.
(d) An exemption granted pursuant to subdivision (c) shall not be
effective for more than five years. Applications for an exemption, or
a renewal of an exemption, shall be accompanied by the fee specified
in the fee schedules adopted by the department pursuant to Section
25159.19. The department shall not renew the exemption unless it
makes all of the findings in subdivision (c).
(e) The department shall revoke an exemption granted pursuant to
subdivision (c) if the department determines that there is migration
of hazardous wastes, or a threat of migration of hazardous wastes,
from the well into any strata or the waters of the state outside the
injection zone. The department shall then prohibit the discharge of
any hazardous waste into the injection well, require appropriate
removal and remedial actions by the person granted the exemption, and
require the responsible parties to take appropriate removal and
remedial actions.
(f) The state board, the regional boards, and the department shall
establish procedures providing for the interagency transfer and
review of applications for exemption received pursuant to subdivision
(b).
(g) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.16. (a) If the department or regional board determines that
there is migration of hazardous waste constituents, or a threat of
migration of hazardous waste constituents, from an injection well
into any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone,
the department shall prohibit the discharge of any hazardous waste
into the injection well until removal and remedial actions have been
conducted to abate the migration or threat.
(b) The department shall determine, after the remedial and removal
actions required pursuant to subdivision (a) are completed, whether
the injection well should be continued to be used for the discharge
of hazardous wastes. The department shall not approve the continued
use of the injection well for the discharge of hazardous waste unless
the department makes both of the following determinations:
(1) The removal or remedial action abated the contamination, or
threat of contamination, from the migration or threat of migration.
(2) There is no potential, in continuing the operation of the
injection well, for any future migration of hazardous waste
constituents, from that portion of the injection well located above
the injection zone, or from the injection zone.
The department shall make these determinations pursuant to a
public hearing for which the department shall provide notice to all
residents in the affected area, as determined by the department, and
by mail to all persons listed on any mailing lists compiled by the
department, using any appropriate mailing lists compiled by the
regional board.
(c) If the department determines, pursuant to subdivision (b),
that an injection well should not continue to be used for the
discharge of hazardous wastes, the department shall require that all
hazardous waste discharges be permanently terminated at the well and
that the owner of the well take all actions necessary to prepare the
injection well for closure pursuant to subdivision (d) and for
postclosure maintenance which are required pursuant to the Federal
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 6901
et seq.), the regulations adopted by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act for proper
closure, plugging, and monitoring of injection wells, and the
regulations adopted by the state board and the department for closure
of hazardous waste management units.
(d) Before any injection well used for the discharge of hazardous
waste is closed, the department shall require the owner to certify
that the well is in a state of static equilibrium, all defects or
damages in the well casing are corrected prior to closure, that
closure is sufficient to prevent the movement of fluids from the
injection zone, and that all closure will commence within six months
from the date the department orders closure. The injection well shall
also be closed in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) Fluids and gases shall be confined to the stratum in which
they occur by the use of cement grout or other suitable material. The
amount, type, kind of material, and method of placement shall be
approved by the department and the well shall be filled from bottom
to top with the approved material.
(2) No well shall be sealed without the prior approval of the
department. The person responsible for well closure shall submit a
sealing plan to the department at least 90 days prior to the proposed
date of sealing. The department may require that a representative of
the department observe that sealing.
(e) The department shall consult with the regional board and the
Division of Oil and Gas, where necessary, to fulfill the requirements
of subdivision (d).
(f) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.17. (a) The department shall make an inspection at least once
each year of all facilities with injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged. The owner shall tabulate the
monitoring data recovered, pursuant to subdivision (c), monthly. The
department shall review the data specified in paragraphs (1), (2),
and (3), of subdivision (c) monthly and the data specified in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) quarterly to ensure that all
injection wells into which hazardous waste is discharged comply with
this chapter and that any equipment or programs required pursuant to
this article are operating properly.
(b) The department shall require complete mechanical integrity
testing of the well bore at least once a year and shall require
pressure tests at least once every six months. The testing program
shall be designed to detect defects, damage, and corrosion in the
well, well casings, injection tube, packer, cement, and the screened
or perforated portion of the well.
(c) The operator of an injection well into which hazardous waste
is discharged shall conduct monitoring of the surface equipment, the
well, and the movement of injected wastes, in the following manner:
(1) Injection fluids shall be sampled and analyzed at least
monthly to yield representative data of their characteristics at all
injection wells located at onsite facilities. If the injection well
is located at an offsite facility, the fluids shall be sampled and
analyzed every time the composition of the hazardous waste discharged
into the injection well is different than the waste discharged
immediately prior to the new discharge.
(2) Pressure gauges shall be installed and maintained in proper
operating condition at all times on the injection tubing and annulus.
(3) Continuous recording devices shall be installed and maintained
in proper operating condition at all times to record injection
temperatures and pressures, injection flow rates, injection volumes,
and annulus pressure.
(4) The monitoring system, including all monitoring wells, shall
be constructed and operated in accordance with the standards
specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18. The design of the
monitoring system and location and number of monitoring wells shall
be approved by the department. Monitoring wells shall be sufficient
in number and location for compliance with the monitoring
requirements specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18, the
federal regulations adopted pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act,
and for determining all of the following:
(A) The direction and rate of regional groundwater movement.
(B) Any upward migration of hazardous wastes and changes in water
quality in the water bearing formation immediately above the
injection zone.
(C) Any changes in water quality of drinking water within at least
one-half mile of the well.
(D) The direction, rate, hydraulic effects, alteration, and
characteristics of wastes injected into the injection zone, and any
changes of pressure within or above the injection zone.
(d) The operator of an injection well shall equip the surface
facilities of an injection well into which hazardous waste is
discharged with shutoff devices, alarms, and fencing.
(e) The department shall require all abandoned water wells within
three miles of a facility to be closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81.
(f) The department may require any subsurface structure or hole
which is contaminated, may become contaminated, provides a potential
conduit for contamination, or penetrates a formation containing
drinking water to be closed in accordance with standards at least as
stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water Resources
Bulletin No. 74-81. If the subsurface structure or hole is an oil or
gas well, the well shall be closed in accordance with standards at
least as stringent as the regulations adopted by the Division of Oil
and Gas. If the subsurface structure is an injection well into which
hazardous waste is discharged, the injection well shall be closed in
accordance with the procedures specified in subdivision (d) of
Section 25159.16.
(g) The regional board shall revise any existing waste discharge
requirements, issued for any injection well into which hazardous
waste is discharged, pursuant to Section 13263 of the Water Code,
based upon a review of the report.
(h) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.18. Any person who applies to the department for a hazardous
waste facilities permit, or for the renewal or revision of a
hazardous waste facilities permit, for the discharge of hazardous
wastes into an injection well, including any proposed injection well,
shall submit a hydrogeological assessment report to the department
and to the appropriate regional board six months before making that
application. A qualified person shall be responsible for the
preparation of the report and shall certify its completeness and
accuracy. The department shall not approve the report unless the
department finds that the report is current, accurate, and complete,
and that no hazardous waste constituents have migrated from the
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone. The report shall be
accompanied by the fee established pursuant to Section 25159.19. The
report shall contain, for each injection well, including any proposed
injection well, any information required by the department, and all
of the following information:
(a) A description of the injection well, including all of the
following:
(1) Physical characteristics.
(2) A log of construction activities, including dates and methods
used.
(3) A description of materials used in the injection well,
including tubing, casing, packers, seals, and grout.
(4) Design specifications and a drawing of the well as completed.
(5) An analysis of the chemical and physical compatibility of the
materials used with the wastes injected.
(6) Annulus fluid composition, level, and pressure at the time of
well completion through the present time.
(b) A description of both of the following:
(1) The volume, temperature, pH, and radiological characteristics,
and composition of hazardous waste constituents placed in the well,
based on a statistically significant representative chemical analysis
of each specific hazardous waste type, so that any variations in
hazardous waste constituents over time are documented.
(2) The pressure and rate at which fluid is injected into the
well.
(c) A map showing the distances, within the facility, to the
nearest surface water bodies and springs, and the distances, within
three miles from the facility's perimeter, to the nearest surface
water bodies and springs.
(d) Tabular data from each surface water body and spring shown on
the map specified in subdivision (c), within one mile from the
facility's perimeter, which indicate its flow and a representative
water analysis. The report shall include an evaluation and
characterization of seasonal changes and, if substantive changes
occur from season to season, the tabular data shall reflect these
seasonal changes.
(e) A map showing the location of all existing and abandoned
wells, dry holes, mines, and quarries within the facility and within
three miles of the facility's perimeter. The report shall include,
for each well shown on the map, a description of the present use of
the well, a representative water analysis from any existing wells,
any known physical characteristics, and a determination as to whether
the well, if abandoned, has been closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81, or, if the well is an oil or gas well,
in accordance with standards at least as stringent as the regulations
of the Division of Oil and Gas. The report also shall include, when
possible, the water well driller's report or well log.
(f) A map showing the structural geology and stratigraphy within
three miles of the facility's perimeter that can influence the
direction of the groundwater flow or the movement of the discharged
wastes. The report shall include a description of folds, domes,
basins, faults, seismic activity, fractures, and joint patterns, and
a geologic cross section and general description of the subsurface
rock units, including stratigraphic position, lithology, thickness,
and areal distribution.
(g) An analysis for all of the following:
(1) The vertical and lateral extent of any water-bearing strata
that could be affected by leakage from the injection well.
(2) The vertical and lateral extent of any strata through which
the well is drilled.
(3) The vertical and lateral limits of the confining beds above,
below, and adjacent to, the injection well.
(h) The analysis specified in subdivision (g) shall include all of
the following:
(1) A map and cross section of all hydrogeologic units.
(2) Maps showing contours of equal elevation of the water surface
for perched water, unconfined water, and confined groundwater
required to be analyzed by this subdivision.
(3) An estimate of the flow, and flow direction, of the water in
all water-bearing formations shown on both the maps and the
subsurface geologic cross sections.
(4) An estimate of the transmissivity, permeability, porosity, and
storage coefficient for each perched zone of water and water-bearing
formations identified on the maps specified in paragraph (1).
(5) A determination of the water quality of each zone of the
water-bearing formations and perched water that is identified on the
maps specified in paragraph (1) and is under, or above and adjacent
to, the well. This determination shall be conducted by taking samples
either upgradient of the injection well or from another location
that has not been affected by leakage from the injection well.
(i) A determination as to whether the groundwater is contiguous
with regional bodies of groundwater and the depth measured from the
injection zone and well casing to the groundwater, including the
depth measured to perched water and water-bearing strata identified
on the maps specified in subdivision (h).
(j) All of the following information for the receiving formation:
(1) A description of the chemical and physical properties of the
receiving formation, including its lithology, thickness, composition,
structure, porosity, storage capacity, permeability,
compressibility, density, subsurface stress, vertical and lateral
continuity and extent, fluid temperature, pressure, composition, and
the measurement of the minimum pressure that would fracture the
receiving formation.
(2) The effect of the injection pressure on the receiving
formation.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
receiving formation.
(4) An assessment of compatibility of waste, formation fluids, and
formation lithology. This shall include a description of short-range
and long-range changes anticipated in the physical and chemical
state of the receiving formation in its fluids through chemical
reaction and interaction with injection fluids.
(k) All of the following information for the confining zone:
(1) A description of its chemical and physical properties,
including its age, composition, thickness, vertical and lateral
continuity, unconformities, permeability, transmissivity,
compressibility, porosity, density, and subsurface stress.
(2) The minimum amount of pressure that would fracture the
confining zone, calculated specifically for the particular confining
zone, a description of the number and types of existing fractures,
faults, and cavities, and an analysis as to whether fractures were
created or enlarged by past injection of wastes.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
confining zone.
(4) Anticipated short-range and long-range changes in the physical
state of the confining zone through chemical reaction and
interaction with injection fluids.
(5) An estimate of the rate of migration of the hazardous waste
constituents through the confining zone.
( l) A geologic cross section and description of the composition
of each stratum through which the injection well is drilled. This
description shall include a physical, chemical, and hydrogeological
characterization of both the consolidated and unconsolidated rock
material, including lithology, mineralogy, texture, bedding,
thickness, and permeability. It shall also include an analysis for
pollutants, including those constituents discharged into the
injection well. The report shall arrange all monitoring data in a
tabular form so that the dates, the constituents, and the
concentrations are readily discernible.
(m) A description of surface facilities, including, but not
limited to, pressure gauges, automatic shutoff devices, alarms,
fencing, specifications for valves and pipe fittings, and operator
training and requirements.
(n) A description of contingency plans for well failures and
shutdowns to prevent migration of contaminants from the well.
(o) A description of the monitoring being conducted to detect
migration of hazardous waste constituents, including the number and
positioning of the monitoring wells, the monitoring wells' distances
from the injection well, the monitoring wells' design data, the
monitoring wells' installation, the monitoring development
procedures, the sampling and analytical methodologies, the sampling
frequency, and the chemical constituents analyzed. The design data of
the monitoring wells shall include the monitoring wells' depth, the
monitoring wells' diameters, the monitoring wells' casing materials,
the perforated intervals within the well, the size of the
perforations, the gradation of the filter pack, and the extent of the
wells' annular seals.
(p) Documentation demonstrating that the monitoring system and
methods used at the facility can detect any seepage, including any
leaks, cracks, or malfunctions in the well or a breach of the
confining zone, before the hazardous waste constituents migrate from
the well above the injection zone or from the confining zone. This
documentation shall include, but is not limited to, substantiation of
all of the following:
(1) The monitoring system is effective enough, and includes a
sufficient number of monitoring wells in the major water-bearing
zones, which are located close enough to the injection well casing
and to the injection zone, to verify that no lateral and vertical
migration of any constituents discharged into the well is occurring
outside of the injection zone.
(2) Monitoring wells are not located within the influence of any
adjacent pumping wells that might impair their effectiveness.
(3) Monitoring wells are only screened in the aquifer to be
monitored and are monitored for both pressure and water quality.
(4) The chosen casing material does not adversely react with the
potential contaminants of major concern at the facility.
(5) The casing diameter allows an adequate amount of water to be
removed during sampling and allows full development of the monitor
well.
(6) Monitoring wells are constructed so as not to provide
potential conduits for migration of pollution, and the wells'
construction features, including annular seals, prevent pollutants
from migrating up or down the monitoring well.
(7) The methods of water sample collection require that the
samples are transported and handled in accordance with the United
States Geological Survey's "National Handbook of Recommended Methods
for Water-Data Acquisition," which provides guidelines for collection
and analysis of groundwater samples for selected unstable
constituents and any additional procedures specified by the
department. For all monitoring wells, except those extending into the
injection zone, the sample shall be collected after at least five
well volumes have been removed from the well.
(8) The hazardous waste constituents selected for analysis are
specific to the facility, taking into account the chemical
composition of hazardous wastes previously discharged into the
injection well. The monitoring data shall be arranged in tabular form
so that the date, the constituents, and the concentrations are
readily discernible.
(9) The frequency of monitoring is sufficient to give timely
warning of migration of hazardous waste constituents so that remedial
action can be taken prior to any adverse changes in the quality of
the groundwater.
(10) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any constituents have migrated into the
surface water bodies or any strata outside the injection zone,
including water-bearing strata.
(11) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any migration of hazardous waste
constituents into surface water bodies or any strata outside the
injection zone, including water-bearing strata, is likely or not
likely to occur within five years, and any evidence supporting that
statement.
(q) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.19. (a) On or before July 1, 1986, the department shall, by
emergency regulation, adopt a fee schedule that assesses a fee upon
any person discharging any hazardous wastes into an injection well.
The department shall include in this fee schedule the fees charged
for filing a hazardous waste injection statement specified in former
Section 25159.13, as added by Chapter 1591 of the Statutes of 1985,
the report specified in Section 25159.18, and applications for, and
renewals of, the exemptions specified in Section 25159.15. The
department shall also include provisions in the fee schedule for
assessing a penalty pursuant to subdivision (c). These fees shall be
based on the reasonable anticipated costs that will be incurred by
the department to implement and administer this article. The
department may also request an appropriation to be used in
combination with these fees to perform the monitoring, inspections,
review of reports, or any other implementation and administrative
actions required by this article.
(b) The emergency regulations that set the fee schedule shall be
adopted by the department in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code, and for the purposes of that chapter, including
Section 11349.6 of the Government Code, the adoption of these
regulations is an emergency and shall be considered by the Office of
Administrative Law as necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public peace, health, and safety, and general welfare.
Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1
of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, any emergency
regulations adopted by the department pursuant to this section shall
be filed with, but not be repealed by, the Office of Administrative
Law and shall remain in effect until revised by the department.
(c) The department shall send a notice to each person subject to
the fee specified in subdivision (a). If a person fails to pay the
fee within 60 days after receipt of this notice, the department shall
require the person to pay an additional penalty fee. The department
shall set the penalty fee at not more than 100 percent of the
assessed fee, but in an amount sufficient to deter future
noncompliance, as based upon that person's past history of compliance
and ability to pay, and upon additional expenses incurred by this
noncompliance.
(d) The department shall collect and deposit the fees and
penalties collected pursuant to this section in the Hazardous Waste
Injection Well Account, which is hereby created in the General Fund.
The money within the Hazardous Waste Injection Well Account is
available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department
for purposes of administering this article.
(e) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.20. (a) The department shall specify, for purposes of
paragraph (4) of Section 25200.6, the horizontal and vertical extent
of any injection zone for an injection well. The department shall
cite specific information presented in the report prepared pursuant
to Section 25159.18 as the basis for specifying the extent of the
injection zone and shall make a finding as to whether the injection
wells' hydrogeological and operating conditions ensure that there is
no potential for any migration of any hazardous waste constituents to
any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone.
(b) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.21. (a) The state board, a regional board, or the department
may enter and inspect a facility for determining compliance with this
article, including, for this purpose, inspecting, at a reasonable
time, records, files, papers, processes, and controls.
(b) Nothing in this article shall prevent the department from
enforcing existing permit conditions for the land disposal of
hazardous wastes that are more stringent than the restrictions of
this article or prohibit the department, the state board, or the
regional boards from imposing more stringent restrictions on the
discharge of hazardous wastes at any particular hazardous waste
disposal facility.
25159.22. This article shall not be construed to limit or abridge
the powers and duties granted to the department pursuant to this
chapter or pursuant to Chapter 6.8 (commencing with Section 25300) or
to the state board or any regional board pursuant to Division 7
(commencing with Section 13000) of the Water Code, to the Division of
Oil and Gas pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with Section 3000) of
the Public Resources Code, or the authority of any city, county, or
district to act pursuant to the local agency's ordinances or
regulations.
25159.23. The State Oil and Gas Supervisor shall promptly report to
the department and the state board any injection well regulated by
the Division of Oil and Gas pursuant to Subpart F of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations that is not in compliance
with these regulations because fluids not authorized by these
regulations are discharged into the well.
25159.24. (a) Any injection well used to inject contaminated
groundwater that has been treated and is being reinjected into the
same formation from which it was drawn for the purpose of improving
the quality of the groundwater in the formation is exempt from this
article if this method is part of a remedial program initiated in
response to an order, requirement, or other action of a federal or
state agency.
(b) Any injection well used for the reinjection of geothermal
resources, as defined in Section 6903 of the Public Resources Code,
is exempt from this article if the well is in compliance with Chapter
4 (commencing with Section 3700) of Division 3 of the Public
Resources Code.
25159.25. Any action taken by the department pursuant to this
article shall comply with and incorporate any waste discharge
requirements issued by the state board or a regional board, and the
action shall be consistent with all applicable water quality control
plans adopted pursuant to Section 13170 of the Water Code and Article
3 (commencing with Section 13240) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code and with the state policies for water quality control
adopted pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 13140) of
Chapter 3 of Division 7 of the Water Code, and any amendments made to
these plans, policies, or requirements. The department may also
include any more stringent requirement which the department
determines is necessary or appropriate to protect water quality.
25159.10. The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Specific state laws and regulations have been enacted to
prevent leaks and hazardous waste discharges to land, such as those
from underground storage tanks, surface impoundments, pits, ponds, or
lagoons.
(b) The present federal law which regulates the discharge of
hazardous waste to land in injection wells is inadequate to fully
protect California's water supplies from contamination. As a result,
underground injection of hazardous waste presents a serious
short-term and long-term threat to the quality of waters in the
state.
(c) State-of-the-art design and operation safeguards of injection
wells without adequate groundwater monitoring, specific geological
information, and other system safeguards cannot guarantee that
migration of hazardous wastes into underground sources of drinking
water will not occur.
(d) Monitoring requirements specified in federal law are not
adequate to detect all leaks from injection wells and there are no
requirements in federal law for monitoring the movement of wastes in
the substrata to ensure that wastes have not escaped the injection
zone or are not reacting with, or have not breached the confining
strata.
(e) Injecting wastes into wells deep in the geological substrata
is an unproven method for the containment of wastes because, among
other things, hazardous wastes can react with geological substrata,
rendering these containment barriers ineffective, pressure of the
injected wastes can breach containment layers, and active or
abandoned wells in the vicinity of waste injection can serve as a
conduit for the wastes to migrate to drinking water supplies.
(f) Restoring contaminated groundwater to its original state after
the fact and removal or cleanup of wastes once injected to these
depths are formidable tasks which are not typically economically
feasible.
(g) It is in the public interest to establish a continuing program
for the purpose of preventing contamination from underground
injection of waste. It is the intent of the Legislature to prohibit
any injection of hazardous wastes into or above drinking water in the
state, and to prohibit any injection of hazardous waste below
drinking water in the state which is not properly permitted and
monitored so as to prevent hazardous wastes from migrating to
drinking water or otherwise endangering the environment of the state.
(h) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Legislature will
provide a process for the public and industry to appeal the actions
or inactions of the department under this article. However, the
specific process cannot be developed until the Legislature determines
the general organization of the department with regard to
administration of hazardous waste management programs.
25159.11. This article shall be known and may be cited as the Toxic
Injection Well Control Act of 1985.
25159.12. For purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
(a) "Annulus" means the space between the outside edge of the
injection tube and the well casing.
(b) "State board" means the State Water Resources Control Board.
(c) "Compatibility" means that waste constituents do not react
with each other, with the materials constituting the injection well,
or with fluids or solid geologic media in the injection zone or
confining zone in a manner as to cause leaching, precipitation of
solids, gas or pressure buildup, dissolution, or any other effect
that will impair the effectiveness of the confining zone or the safe
operation of the injection well.
(d) "Confining zone" means the geological formation, or part of a
formation, that is intended to be a barrier to prevent the migration
of waste constituents from the injection zone.
(e) "Constituent" means an element, chemical, compound, or mixture
of compounds that is a component of a hazardous waste or leachate
and that has the physical or chemical properties that cause the waste
to be identified as hazardous waste by the department pursuant to
this chapter.
(f) "Discharge" means to place, inject, dispose of, or store
hazardous wastes into, or in, an injection well owned or operated by
the person who is conducting the placing, disposal, or storage.
(g) "Drinking water" has the same meaning as "potential source of
drinking water," as defined in subdivision (t) of Section 25208.2.
(h) "Facility" means the structures, appurtenances, and
improvements on the land, and all contiguous land, that are
associated with an injection well and are used for treating, storing,
or disposing of hazardous waste. A facility may consist of several
waste management units, including, but not limited to, surface
impoundments, landfills, underground or aboveground tanks, sumps,
pits, ponds, and lagoons that are associated with an injection well.
(i) "Groundwater" means water, including, but not limited to,
drinking water, below the land surface in a zone of saturation.
(j) "Hazardous waste" means any hazardous waste specified as
hazardous waste or extremely hazardous waste, as defined in this
chapter. Any waste mixture formed by mixing any waste or substance
with a hazardous waste shall be considered hazardous waste for the
purposes of this article.
(k) "Hazardous waste facilities permit" means a permit issued for
an injection well pursuant to Sections 25200 and 25200.6.
(l) "Injection well" or "well" means any bored, drilled, or driven
shaft, dug pit, or hole in the ground the depth of which is greater
than the circumference of the bored hole and any associated
subsurface appurtenances, including, but not limited to, the casing.
For the purposes of this article, injection well does not include
either of the following:
(1) Wells exempted pursuant to Section 25159.24.
(2) Wells that are regulated by the Division of Oil and Gas in the
Department of Conservation pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with
Section 3000) of the Public Resources Code and Subpart F (commencing
with Section 147.250) of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations and are in compliance
with that division and Subpart A (commencing with Section 146.1) of
Part 147 of Subchapter D of Chapter 1 of Title 40 of the Code of
Federal Regulations.
(m) "Injection zone" means that portion of the receiving formation
that has received, is receiving, or is expected to receive, over the
lifetime of the well, waste fluid from the injection well.
"Injection zone" does not include that portion of the receiving
formation that exceeds the horizontal and vertical extent specified
pursuant to Section 25159.20.
(n) "Owner" means a person who owns a facility or part of a
facility.
(o) "Perched water" means a localized body of groundwater that
overlies, and is hydraulically separated from, an underlying body of
groundwater.
(p) "pH" means a measure of a sample's acidity expressed as a
negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration.
(q) "Qualified person" means a person who has at least five years
of full-time experience in hydrogeology and who is a professional
geologist registered pursuant to Section 7850 of the Business and
Professions Code, or a registered petroleum engineer registered
pursuant to Section 6762 of the Business and Professions Code.
"Full-time experience" in hydrogeology may include a combination of
postgraduate studies in hydrogeology and work experience, with each
year of postgraduate work counted as one year of full-time work
experience, except that not more than three years of postgraduate
studies may be counted as full-time experience.
(r) "Receiving formation" means the geologic strata that are
hydraulically connected to the injection well.
(s) "Regional board" means the California regional water quality
control board for the region in which the injection well is located.
(t) "Report" means the hydrogeological assessment report specified
in Section 25159.18.
(u) "Safe Drinking Water Act" means Subchapter XII (commencing
with Section 300f) of Chapter 6A of Title 42 of the United States
Code.
(v) "Strata" means a distinctive layer or series of layers of
earth materials.
(w) "Waste management unit" means that portion of a facility used
for the discharge of hazardous waste into or onto land, including all
containment and monitoring equipment associated with that portion of
the facility.
25159.15. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on or
after January 1, 1986, a person shall not discharge hazardous waste
into an injection well which commences operation on or after January
1, 1986, and after January 1, 1988, a person shall not discharge
hazardous waste into an injection well which commenced operation
before January 1, 1986, unless all of the following conditions are
met:
(1) Unless granted an exemption pursuant to subdivision (b), no
point along the length of the injection well, as measured either
horizontally or vertically, is located within one-half mile of
drinking water.
(2) The person has received a hazardous waste facilities permit
for the well issued pursuant to Section 25200.6.
(3) The injection well does not discharge hazardous waste into or
above a formation which contains a source of drinking water within
one-half mile of the well.
(b) A person may apply to the department to exempt an injection
well from paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) if the person has received
a hazardous waste facilities permit and the person has filed a
report pursuant to Section 25159.18 with the department on or before
January 1, 1987, which has been approved by the department, pursuant
to Section 25159.18. If the person proposes to commence operation of
an injection well on or after January 1, 1986, the person shall file
the request for an exemption and the report at least one year before
any proposed discharge or injection.
(c) The department shall either grant or deny an exemption from
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) on or before December 31, 1987, or
within one year after receipt of the application for a proposed
injection well. The department may grant an exemption from paragraph
(1) of subdivision (a) only if the department makes all of the
following written findings, and supports these findings by citing
specific evidence presented in the report or provided to the
department:
(1) The hydrogeology report prepared pursuant to Section 25159.18
is current, accurate, and complete.
(2) No hazardous waste constituents have migrated from that
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone.
(3) Practical alternative technologies, other than well injection,
do not exist to reduce, treat, or dispose of the hazardous wastes
which are to be discharged.
(4) Continuing or commencing the operation of the injection well
does not pose a potential of hazardous waste constituents migrating
from that portion of the injection well located above the injection
zone or migrating from the injection zone and a monitoring program
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 25159.17 has been installed,
or for a proposed injection well, the monitoring program has been
designed and will be installed before any discharge or injections
into the well.
(d) An exemption granted pursuant to subdivision (c) shall not be
effective for more than five years. Applications for an exemption, or
a renewal of an exemption, shall be accompanied by the fee specified
in the fee schedules adopted by the department pursuant to Section
25159.19. The department shall not renew the exemption unless it
makes all of the findings in subdivision (c).
(e) The department shall revoke an exemption granted pursuant to
subdivision (c) if the department determines that there is migration
of hazardous wastes, or a threat of migration of hazardous wastes,
from the well into any strata or the waters of the state outside the
injection zone. The department shall then prohibit the discharge of
any hazardous waste into the injection well, require appropriate
removal and remedial actions by the person granted the exemption, and
require the responsible parties to take appropriate removal and
remedial actions.
(f) The state board, the regional boards, and the department shall
establish procedures providing for the interagency transfer and
review of applications for exemption received pursuant to subdivision
(b).
(g) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.16. (a) If the department or regional board determines that
there is migration of hazardous waste constituents, or a threat of
migration of hazardous waste constituents, from an injection well
into any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone,
the department shall prohibit the discharge of any hazardous waste
into the injection well until removal and remedial actions have been
conducted to abate the migration or threat.
(b) The department shall determine, after the remedial and removal
actions required pursuant to subdivision (a) are completed, whether
the injection well should be continued to be used for the discharge
of hazardous wastes. The department shall not approve the continued
use of the injection well for the discharge of hazardous waste unless
the department makes both of the following determinations:
(1) The removal or remedial action abated the contamination, or
threat of contamination, from the migration or threat of migration.
(2) There is no potential, in continuing the operation of the
injection well, for any future migration of hazardous waste
constituents, from that portion of the injection well located above
the injection zone, or from the injection zone.
The department shall make these determinations pursuant to a
public hearing for which the department shall provide notice to all
residents in the affected area, as determined by the department, and
by mail to all persons listed on any mailing lists compiled by the
department, using any appropriate mailing lists compiled by the
regional board.
(c) If the department determines, pursuant to subdivision (b),
that an injection well should not continue to be used for the
discharge of hazardous wastes, the department shall require that all
hazardous waste discharges be permanently terminated at the well and
that the owner of the well take all actions necessary to prepare the
injection well for closure pursuant to subdivision (d) and for
postclosure maintenance which are required pursuant to the Federal
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 6901
et seq.), the regulations adopted by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act for proper
closure, plugging, and monitoring of injection wells, and the
regulations adopted by the state board and the department for closure
of hazardous waste management units.
(d) Before any injection well used for the discharge of hazardous
waste is closed, the department shall require the owner to certify
that the well is in a state of static equilibrium, all defects or
damages in the well casing are corrected prior to closure, that
closure is sufficient to prevent the movement of fluids from the
injection zone, and that all closure will commence within six months
from the date the department orders closure. The injection well shall
also be closed in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) Fluids and gases shall be confined to the stratum in which
they occur by the use of cement grout or other suitable material. The
amount, type, kind of material, and method of placement shall be
approved by the department and the well shall be filled from bottom
to top with the approved material.
(2) No well shall be sealed without the prior approval of the
department. The person responsible for well closure shall submit a
sealing plan to the department at least 90 days prior to the proposed
date of sealing. The department may require that a representative of
the department observe that sealing.
(e) The department shall consult with the regional board and the
Division of Oil and Gas, where necessary, to fulfill the requirements
of subdivision (d).
(f) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.17. (a) The department shall make an inspection at least once
each year of all facilities with injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged. The owner shall tabulate the
monitoring data recovered, pursuant to subdivision (c), monthly. The
department shall review the data specified in paragraphs (1), (2),
and (3), of subdivision (c) monthly and the data specified in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) quarterly to ensure that all
injection wells into which hazardous waste is discharged comply with
this chapter and that any equipment or programs required pursuant to
this article are operating properly.
(b) The department shall require complete mechanical integrity
testing of the well bore at least once a year and shall require
pressure tests at least once every six months. The testing program
shall be designed to detect defects, damage, and corrosion in the
well, well casings, injection tube, packer, cement, and the screened
or perforated portion of the well.
(c) The operator of an injection well into which hazardous waste
is discharged shall conduct monitoring of the surface equipment, the
well, and the movement of injected wastes, in the following manner:
(1) Injection fluids shall be sampled and analyzed at least
monthly to yield representative data of their characteristics at all
injection wells located at onsite facilities. If the injection well
is located at an offsite facility, the fluids shall be sampled and
analyzed every time the composition of the hazardous waste discharged
into the injection well is different than the waste discharged
immediately prior to the new discharge.
(2) Pressure gauges shall be installed and maintained in proper
operating condition at all times on the injection tubing and annulus.
(3) Continuous recording devices shall be installed and maintained
in proper operating condition at all times to record injection
temperatures and pressures, injection flow rates, injection volumes,
and annulus pressure.
(4) The monitoring system, including all monitoring wells, shall
be constructed and operated in accordance with the standards
specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18. The design of the
monitoring system and location and number of monitoring wells shall
be approved by the department. Monitoring wells shall be sufficient
in number and location for compliance with the monitoring
requirements specified in subdivision (p) of Section 25159.18, the
federal regulations adopted pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act,
and for determining all of the following:
(A) The direction and rate of regional groundwater movement.
(B) Any upward migration of hazardous wastes and changes in water
quality in the water bearing formation immediately above the
injection zone.
(C) Any changes in water quality of drinking water within at least
one-half mile of the well.
(D) The direction, rate, hydraulic effects, alteration, and
characteristics of wastes injected into the injection zone, and any
changes of pressure within or above the injection zone.
(d) The operator of an injection well shall equip the surface
facilities of an injection well into which hazardous waste is
discharged with shutoff devices, alarms, and fencing.
(e) The department shall require all abandoned water wells within
three miles of a facility to be closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81.
(f) The department may require any subsurface structure or hole
which is contaminated, may become contaminated, provides a potential
conduit for contamination, or penetrates a formation containing
drinking water to be closed in accordance with standards at least as
stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water Resources
Bulletin No. 74-81. If the subsurface structure or hole is an oil or
gas well, the well shall be closed in accordance with standards at
least as stringent as the regulations adopted by the Division of Oil
and Gas. If the subsurface structure is an injection well into which
hazardous waste is discharged, the injection well shall be closed in
accordance with the procedures specified in subdivision (d) of
Section 25159.16.
(g) The regional board shall revise any existing waste discharge
requirements, issued for any injection well into which hazardous
waste is discharged, pursuant to Section 13263 of the Water Code,
based upon a review of the report.
(h) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.18. Any person who applies to the department for a hazardous
waste facilities permit, or for the renewal or revision of a
hazardous waste facilities permit, for the discharge of hazardous
wastes into an injection well, including any proposed injection well,
shall submit a hydrogeological assessment report to the department
and to the appropriate regional board six months before making that
application. A qualified person shall be responsible for the
preparation of the report and shall certify its completeness and
accuracy. The department shall not approve the report unless the
department finds that the report is current, accurate, and complete,
and that no hazardous waste constituents have migrated from the
portion of the injection well located above the injection zone or
have migrated from the injection zone. The report shall be
accompanied by the fee established pursuant to Section 25159.19. The
report shall contain, for each injection well, including any proposed
injection well, any information required by the department, and all
of the following information:
(a) A description of the injection well, including all of the
following:
(1) Physical characteristics.
(2) A log of construction activities, including dates and methods
used.
(3) A description of materials used in the injection well,
including tubing, casing, packers, seals, and grout.
(4) Design specifications and a drawing of the well as completed.
(5) An analysis of the chemical and physical compatibility of the
materials used with the wastes injected.
(6) Annulus fluid composition, level, and pressure at the time of
well completion through the present time.
(b) A description of both of the following:
(1) The volume, temperature, pH, and radiological characteristics,
and composition of hazardous waste constituents placed in the well,
based on a statistically significant representative chemical analysis
of each specific hazardous waste type, so that any variations in
hazardous waste constituents over time are documented.
(2) The pressure and rate at which fluid is injected into the
well.
(c) A map showing the distances, within the facility, to the
nearest surface water bodies and springs, and the distances, within
three miles from the facility's perimeter, to the nearest surface
water bodies and springs.
(d) Tabular data from each surface water body and spring shown on
the map specified in subdivision (c), within one mile from the
facility's perimeter, which indicate its flow and a representative
water analysis. The report shall include an evaluation and
characterization of seasonal changes and, if substantive changes
occur from season to season, the tabular data shall reflect these
seasonal changes.
(e) A map showing the location of all existing and abandoned
wells, dry holes, mines, and quarries within the facility and within
three miles of the facility's perimeter. The report shall include,
for each well shown on the map, a description of the present use of
the well, a representative water analysis from any existing wells,
any known physical characteristics, and a determination as to whether
the well, if abandoned, has been closed in accordance with standards
at least as stringent as those set forth in the Department of Water
Resources Bulletin No. 74-81, or, if the well is an oil or gas well,
in accordance with standards at least as stringent as the regulations
of the Division of Oil and Gas. The report also shall include, when
possible, the water well driller's report or well log.
(f) A map showing the structural geology and stratigraphy within
three miles of the facility's perimeter that can influence the
direction of the groundwater flow or the movement of the discharged
wastes. The report shall include a description of folds, domes,
basins, faults, seismic activity, fractures, and joint patterns, and
a geologic cross section and general description of the subsurface
rock units, including stratigraphic position, lithology, thickness,
and areal distribution.
(g) An analysis for all of the following:
(1) The vertical and lateral extent of any water-bearing strata
that could be affected by leakage from the injection well.
(2) The vertical and lateral extent of any strata through which
the well is drilled.
(3) The vertical and lateral limits of the confining beds above,
below, and adjacent to, the injection well.
(h) The analysis specified in subdivision (g) shall include all of
the following:
(1) A map and cross section of all hydrogeologic units.
(2) Maps showing contours of equal elevation of the water surface
for perched water, unconfined water, and confined groundwater
required to be analyzed by this subdivision.
(3) An estimate of the flow, and flow direction, of the water in
all water-bearing formations shown on both the maps and the
subsurface geologic cross sections.
(4) An estimate of the transmissivity, permeability, porosity, and
storage coefficient for each perched zone of water and water-bearing
formations identified on the maps specified in paragraph (1).
(5) A determination of the water quality of each zone of the
water-bearing formations and perched water that is identified on the
maps specified in paragraph (1) and is under, or above and adjacent
to, the well. This determination shall be conducted by taking samples
either upgradient of the injection well or from another location
that has not been affected by leakage from the injection well.
(i) A determination as to whether the groundwater is contiguous
with regional bodies of groundwater and the depth measured from the
injection zone and well casing to the groundwater, including the
depth measured to perched water and water-bearing strata identified
on the maps specified in subdivision (h).
(j) All of the following information for the receiving formation:
(1) A description of the chemical and physical properties of the
receiving formation, including its lithology, thickness, composition,
structure, porosity, storage capacity, permeability,
compressibility, density, subsurface stress, vertical and lateral
continuity and extent, fluid temperature, pressure, composition, and
the measurement of the minimum pressure that would fracture the
receiving formation.
(2) The effect of the injection pressure on the receiving
formation.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
receiving formation.
(4) An assessment of compatibility of waste, formation fluids, and
formation lithology. This shall include a description of short-range
and long-range changes anticipated in the physical and chemical
state of the receiving formation in its fluids through chemical
reaction and interaction with injection fluids.
(k) All of the following information for the confining zone:
(1) A description of its chemical and physical properties,
including its age, composition, thickness, vertical and lateral
continuity, unconformities, permeability, transmissivity,
compressibility, porosity, density, and subsurface stress.
(2) The minimum amount of pressure that would fracture the
confining zone, calculated specifically for the particular confining
zone, a description of the number and types of existing fractures,
faults, and cavities, and an analysis as to whether fractures were
created or enlarged by past injection of wastes.
(3) The geologic stability and long-term integrity of the
confining zone.
(4) Anticipated short-range and long-range changes in the physical
state of the confining zone through chemical reaction and
interaction with injection fluids.
(5) An estimate of the rate of migration of the hazardous waste
constituents through the confining zone.
( l) A geologic cross section and description of the composition
of each stratum through which the injection well is drilled. This
description shall include a physical, chemical, and hydrogeological
characterization of both the consolidated and unconsolidated rock
material, including lithology, mineralogy, texture, bedding,
thickness, and permeability. It shall also include an analysis for
pollutants, including those constituents discharged into the
injection well. The report shall arrange all monitoring data in a
tabular form so that the dates, the constituents, and the
concentrations are readily discernible.
(m) A description of surface facilities, including, but not
limited to, pressure gauges, automatic shutoff devices, alarms,
fencing, specifications for valves and pipe fittings, and operator
training and requirements.
(n) A description of contingency plans for well failures and
shutdowns to prevent migration of contaminants from the well.
(o) A description of the monitoring being conducted to detect
migration of hazardous waste constituents, including the number and
positioning of the monitoring wells, the monitoring wells' distances
from the injection well, the monitoring wells' design data, the
monitoring wells' installation, the monitoring development
procedures, the sampling and analytical methodologies, the sampling
frequency, and the chemical constituents analyzed. The design data of
the monitoring wells shall include the monitoring wells' depth, the
monitoring wells' diameters, the monitoring wells' casing materials,
the perforated intervals within the well, the size of the
perforations, the gradation of the filter pack, and the extent of the
wells' annular seals.
(p) Documentation demonstrating that the monitoring system and
methods used at the facility can detect any seepage, including any
leaks, cracks, or malfunctions in the well or a breach of the
confining zone, before the hazardous waste constituents migrate from
the well above the injection zone or from the confining zone. This
documentation shall include, but is not limited to, substantiation of
all of the following:
(1) The monitoring system is effective enough, and includes a
sufficient number of monitoring wells in the major water-bearing
zones, which are located close enough to the injection well casing
and to the injection zone, to verify that no lateral and vertical
migration of any constituents discharged into the well is occurring
outside of the injection zone.
(2) Monitoring wells are not located within the influence of any
adjacent pumping wells that might impair their effectiveness.
(3) Monitoring wells are only screened in the aquifer to be
monitored and are monitored for both pressure and water quality.
(4) The chosen casing material does not adversely react with the
potential contaminants of major concern at the facility.
(5) The casing diameter allows an adequate amount of water to be
removed during sampling and allows full development of the monitor
well.
(6) Monitoring wells are constructed so as not to provide
potential conduits for migration of pollution, and the wells'
construction features, including annular seals, prevent pollutants
from migrating up or down the monitoring well.
(7) The methods of water sample collection require that the
samples are transported and handled in accordance with the United
States Geological Survey's "National Handbook of Recommended Methods
for Water-Data Acquisition," which provides guidelines for collection
and analysis of groundwater samples for selected unstable
constituents and any additional procedures specified by the
department. For all monitoring wells, except those extending into the
injection zone, the sample shall be collected after at least five
well volumes have been removed from the well.
(8) The hazardous waste constituents selected for analysis are
specific to the facility, taking into account the chemical
composition of hazardous wastes previously discharged into the
injection well. The monitoring data shall be arranged in tabular form
so that the date, the constituents, and the concentrations are
readily discernible.
(9) The frequency of monitoring is sufficient to give timely
warning of migration of hazardous waste constituents so that remedial
action can be taken prior to any adverse changes in the quality of
the groundwater.
(10) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any constituents have migrated into the
surface water bodies or any strata outside the injection zone,
including water-bearing strata.
(11) A written statement from the qualified person preparing the
report indicating whether any migration of hazardous waste
constituents into surface water bodies or any strata outside the
injection zone, including water-bearing strata, is likely or not
likely to occur within five years, and any evidence supporting that
statement.
(q) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.19. (a) On or before July 1, 1986, the department shall, by
emergency regulation, adopt a fee schedule that assesses a fee upon
any person discharging any hazardous wastes into an injection well.
The department shall include in this fee schedule the fees charged
for filing a hazardous waste injection statement specified in former
Section 25159.13, as added by Chapter 1591 of the Statutes of 1985,
the report specified in Section 25159.18, and applications for, and
renewals of, the exemptions specified in Section 25159.15. The
department shall also include provisions in the fee schedule for
assessing a penalty pursuant to subdivision (c). These fees shall be
based on the reasonable anticipated costs that will be incurred by
the department to implement and administer this article. The
department may also request an appropriation to be used in
combination with these fees to perform the monitoring, inspections,
review of reports, or any other implementation and administrative
actions required by this article.
(b) The emergency regulations that set the fee schedule shall be
adopted by the department in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code, and for the purposes of that chapter, including
Section 11349.6 of the Government Code, the adoption of these
regulations is an emergency and shall be considered by the Office of
Administrative Law as necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public peace, health, and safety, and general welfare.
Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1
of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, any emergency
regulations adopted by the department pursuant to this section shall
be filed with, but not be repealed by, the Office of Administrative
Law and shall remain in effect until revised by the department.
(c) The department shall send a notice to each person subject to
the fee specified in subdivision (a). If a person fails to pay the
fee within 60 days after receipt of this notice, the department shall
require the person to pay an additional penalty fee. The department
shall set the penalty fee at not more than 100 percent of the
assessed fee, but in an amount sufficient to deter future
noncompliance, as based upon that person's past history of compliance
and ability to pay, and upon additional expenses incurred by this
noncompliance.
(d) The department shall collect and deposit the fees and
penalties collected pursuant to this section in the Hazardous Waste
Injection Well Account, which is hereby created in the General Fund.
The money within the Hazardous Waste Injection Well Account is
available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department
for purposes of administering this article.
(e) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.20. (a) The department shall specify, for purposes of
paragraph (4) of Section 25200.6, the horizontal and vertical extent
of any injection zone for an injection well. The department shall
cite specific information presented in the report prepared pursuant
to Section 25159.18 as the basis for specifying the extent of the
injection zone and shall make a finding as to whether the injection
wells' hydrogeological and operating conditions ensure that there is
no potential for any migration of any hazardous waste constituents to
any strata or waters of the state outside the injection zone.
(b) This section applies only to injection wells into which
hazardous waste is discharged.
25159.21. (a) The state board, a regional board, or the department
may enter and inspect a facility for determining compliance with this
article, including, for this purpose, inspecting, at a reasonable
time, records, files, papers, processes, and controls.
(b) Nothing in this article shall prevent the department from
enforcing existing permit conditions for the land disposal of
hazardous wastes that are more stringent than the restrictions of
this article or prohibit the department, the state board, or the
regional boards from imposing more stringent restrictions on the
discharge of hazardous wastes at any particular hazardous waste
disposal facility.
25159.22. This article shall not be construed to limit or abridge
the powers and duties granted to the department pursuant to this
chapter or pursuant to Chapter 6.8 (commencing with Section 25300) or
to the state board or any regional board pursuant to Division 7
(commencing with Section 13000) of the Water Code, to the Division of
Oil and Gas pursuant to Division 3 (commencing with Section 3000) of
the Public Resources Code, or the authority of any city, county, or
district to act pursuant to the local agency's ordinances or
regulations.
25159.23. The State Oil and Gas Supervisor shall promptly report to
the department and the state board any injection well regulated by
the Division of Oil and Gas pursuant to Subpart F of Part 147 of
Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations that is not in compliance
with these regulations because fluids not authorized by these
regulations are discharged into the well.
25159.24. (a) Any injection well used to inject contaminated
groundwater that has been treated and is being reinjected into the
same formation from which it was drawn for the purpose of improving
the quality of the groundwater in the formation is exempt from this
article if this method is part of a remedial program initiated in
response to an order, requirement, or other action of a federal or
state agency.
(b) Any injection well used for the reinjection of geothermal
resources, as defined in Section 6903 of the Public Resources Code,
is exempt from this article if the well is in compliance with Chapter
4 (commencing with Section 3700) of Division 3 of the Public
Resources Code.
25159.25. Any action taken by the department pursuant to this
article shall comply with and incorporate any waste discharge
requirements issued by the state board or a regional board, and the
action shall be consistent with all applicable water quality control
plans adopted pursuant to Section 13170 of the Water Code and Article
3 (commencing with Section 13240) of Chapter 4 of Division 7 of the
Water Code and with the state policies for water quality control
adopted pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 13140) of
Chapter 3 of Division 7 of the Water Code, and any amendments made to
these plans, policies, or requirements. The department may also
include any more stringent requirement which the department
determines is necessary or appropriate to protect water quality.
