Corona Municipal Code Ch. 14.20 Safety and Maintenance

At all times a two-foot minimum pipe with suitable gate valve in good working condition shall be connected to the casing for the purpose of bleeding off casing pressure and for a hook-up to inject water, mud or cement to kill the well during an emergency.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.010.)

(A) Protection shall be provided at all times to prevent the blow-out of an oil well during drilling or redrilling it. The protection shall conform with all the requirements of the Petroleum Safety Orders, as provided in the State Administrative Code. The equipment must be installed properly at all times on the well head and be in operating condition. At all times a well is not being serviced, the well head or tubing head shall be securely bolted, gasketed and maintained to prevent blow-out or leakage.

(B) In the following instances, protection conforming to the requirements of the Petroleum Safety Orders – Drilling and Production, as provided in the State Administrative Code, shall be provided to prevent the blow-out of an oil well:

(1) During perforating, shooting or cutting off a string of casing;

(2) During well-servicing operations on a well that has sufficient gas pressure to cause the well to flow or where the gas pressure is unknown.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.020.)

An operator shall notify the Secretary at least one day before any of the operations described in this chapter are commenced. In the event that the day following the day on which notice shall be given falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, an additional day’s notice must be given so that there shall be one day (Saturday, Sunday and holidays excepted) between the date notice shall be given and the date operations will commence.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.030.)

The following regulations shall apply to cellars.

(A) In addition to the requirements stated in this chapter, every cellar shall be constructed in accordance with regulations established by the Agency.

(B) Except during drilling and servicing operations, such cellars shall be kept free from water, oil drilling fluids or other substances which might constitute a safety hazard.

(C) The depth of the cellars shall be the vertical measurement between the lowest point of the floor area in the bottom of such cellar and the lowest point of ground or any surface adjacent to the top of the cellar wall.

(D) All multi-well cellars exceeding three feet in depth and 25 feet in length shall have two separate means of entrance or exits; provided, however, that if the cellar exceeds 50 feet in length, one of the means of entrance or exits shall be a stairway. If the cellar exceeds 200 feet in length, a third means of entrance or exits shall be provided.

(E) Multi-well cellars shall have a steel grate cover with no unobstructed openings in excess of three inches. Materials, equipment or oil appurtenances and oil production implements shall not be stored or placed on the grating so as to interfere with the escape of gases and vapors.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.040.)

The engines used in connection with the drilling of any oil well or with any production equipment of any oil well shall be equipped with an exhaust muffler to prevent excessive or unusual noise. Appropriate means shall be provided on all engines used in drilling operations to prevent the escape of flames, sparks, ignited carbon and soot.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.050.)

Not more than two temporary production tanks shall be installed on any drilling site; neither one of which shall have a rated capacity in excess of $1,000 barrels, and the tanks shall not be permitted on the drill site more than 90 days after initial production from the pertinent well; provided, however, time extensions may be granted by the Agency consistent with the intent of this title. All such tanks shall be maintained in good condition.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.060.)

The operator shall give prompt notice to the Agency of any and all accidents, including injuries to persons and damage to property occurring on property of the city or other public property arising out of or incidental to any oil production operations of the operator, except that such notice shall not be required of injuries sustained by employees of the operator, while acting in the course and scope of their employment and who are subject to and covered by the provisions of the State Workmen’s Compensation Insurance and Safety Act.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.070.)

(A) Electrical equipment. All electrical equipment used, operated, installed or maintained within 50 feet of a drilling well and within 25 feet of a producing well shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the regulations of the State Electrical Safety Orders, Article 22, Hazardous Locations, Class 1, Division 2.

(B) Internal combustion engines, storage tanks, fired equipment and open flames. No internal combustion engine (except those engines and their fuel tanks used in drilling, production and servicing of oil wells), storage tanks, boiler, fired equipment or open flame (except welding activities supervised by the operator’s production foreman, drilling foreman, drilling engineer, drilling supervisors or safety supervisors) shall be located closer than 25 feet to a producing well or closer than 100 feet to a drilling well. During drilling operations on a drill site, where two or more wells are drilled and drilling and production equipment are located, the provisions of this chapter relating to distances of storage tanks may be modified by the Agency in the public interest, after its consideration of special features related to such site, such as: topographic conditions, height, the nature of the occupancy, character of construction of and proximity of buildings on adjoining property; capacity and construction of proposed tanks and nature of the liquids to be stored therein; the degree of private fire protections to be provided at the sites and facilities of the city’s Fire Department to cope with flammable liquid fires.

(C) Flammable waste gases and vapors. Flammable waste gases or vapors escaping from a production drill site shall be burned or controlled to prevent hazardous concentrations reaching sources of ignition or otherwise endangering the area surrounding the site.

(1) Flares. Means of ignition approved by the Agency shall be provided wherever hydrocarbon gases are released to the air through flares.

(2) Venting. Nonburned gases or vapors shall not be discharged to the atmosphere unless approved by the Agency and shall not be discharged less than 20 feet vertically above grade and not less than 25 feet horizontally from any source of ignition. The discharge shall be at locations which do not create a hazard to the general area of the discharge.

(D) Smoking. No person shall smoke or cause, permit or assist another person to smoke within 50 feet of any well, tank location or any area contaminated by oil or waste gas.

(E) No smoking signs. "NO SMOKING" signs shall be posted and maintained in all locations where no smoking is required by this title. All such signs shall have letters at least four inches in height and not less than one-half inch stroke. They shall be posted and maintained at readily visible locations approved or designated by the city’s Fire Chief. The signs shall bear red letters on white background.

(F) Fire control equipment. Fire suppression appliances, equipment and materials, including first aid fire appliances shall be provided by the permittee in a quantity and at locations specified by the city’s Fire Chief. All such equipment shall meet the current National Fire Protection Association standards.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.080.)

(A) Fences. All oil leaseholds, drill sites and sumps, sump holes, oil wells and production equipment having external moving parts found by the Secretary to be hazardous to life or limb shall be attended 24 hours a day by an adult having an understanding of oil production operations; or, in lieu of the attendance, shall be enclosed according to the following requirements.

(1) Individual drill sites. All such individual drill sites shall be enclosed by a solid masonry fence or a fence of equivalent quality and character, as determined by the Agency, such fence to have a height not less than six feet and not more than ten feet. The fence shall have a gate opening not less than 15 feet in width. Fully enclosed individual drill sites shall be designed to harmonize with the architectural character of a surrounding development or proposed development as indicated on the city’s general plan. The design shall have the prior approval of the city’s Planning Commission and Agency.

(2) Controlled drill site. Such a controlled drill site shall be enclosed on the boundary lines thereof by a ten foot wide landscaped area and a solid masonry wall or a wall of equivalent quality and character, as determined by the Agency. The wall is to have a height not less than six feet and not more than 15 feet. The wall shall have a gate opening not less than 20 feet in width. The nature of the required landscaping for such a site shall have the prior approval of the Secretary.

(3) Sumps, sump holes and oil wells and production – equipment having external moving parts hazardous to life or limb. All such sumps, sump holes, oil wells and oil production equipment shall be enclosed by a steel chain link type fence not less than six feet in height. The fence shall have gates located at nonhazardous locations and shall be locked at all times when unattended by a watchman or serviceman.

(B) Landscaping.

(1) Any drilling site, including an entire controlled drilling site, shall be adequately landscaped except for those portions of the site within the confines of required walls and those areas required for access and driveway. Plans showing the type and extent of such landscaping shall first be submitted to and approved by the Secretary.

(2) Upon the completion of the drilling of a well, the premises shall be placed in a clean condition and shall be landscaped with shrubbery and trees subject to the approval of the Secretary. The landscaping shall be maintained in good condition.

(3) No slope of cut or fill shall have a gradient steeper than a one-foot rise in a one-foot horizontal measure. If, by reason of the condition of the soil, the nature of the terrain or the size or length of the cut required, it is impractical to provide such gradient, the Agency may grant an exception to such requirement; provided, however, that it first finds that compliance with such requirement is impractical and that the architectural and aesthetic integrity of the surrounding neighborhood will be maintained if such exception is granted.

(4) All excavation slopes, cut and fill shall be planted and maintained with grasses, plants or shrubs during drilling and production operations in a manner comparable with the undisturbed surfaces in the vicinity of such excavations.

(`78 Code, § 14.20.090.)