Redondo Beach Municipal Code Art. 2 Idle Wells

A well shall be an idle well unless it has produced one or more barrels of oil or other hydrocarbon substances or 10,000 or more cubic feet of gas within any 12 month period on or after January 21, 1970.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

Whenever in the opinion of the City Manager a well is an idle well, he shall send notice thereof by registered mail to:

(a) The owner of the fee simple interest in the land on which such well is situated as shown on the last equalized assessment roll;

(b) The owner of the mineral lease on which such well is situated as shown on the last equalized assessment roll; and

(c) The licensee of such well as shown on the records of the License Inspector of the City. For the purposes of this article, the licensee of a well shall be deemed the operator of such well.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

The owner and the operator shall abandon the well pursuant to the provisions of Article 4, Chapter 1, Division 3, of the Public Resources Code of the State within 90 days after:

(a) The City Manager has sent notice of an idle well; or

(b) A notice of intention to abandon a well has been given to the State Division of Oil and Gas by the owner or the operator pursuant to the provisions of Section 3229 of the Public Resources Code of the State or any amendment thereto.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s.., eff. January 21, 1970)

Within 90 days after the City Manager has sent notice of an idle well or a notice of intention to abandon a well has been given to the State Division of Oil and Gas by the owner or the operator pursuant to the provisions of Section 3229 of the Public Resources Code of the State or any amendment thereto, the owner and the operator shall clean and restore the drill site and the surface thereof in conformity with the following requirements:

(a) The derrick and all appurtenant equipment thereto shall be removed from the drill site.

(b) All drilling and production equipment, tanks, towers, and other surface installations shall be removed from the drill site or tank farm site.

(c) All concrete, pipe, wood, and other foreign materials shall be removed from the drill site or tank farm site.

(d) The oil well casing shall be cut off six (6′) feet below the surface of the ground, but in no case below sea level. Nothing shall be placed in the hole above the point of cutoff until the cutoff has been inspected by the City and found to be in compliance with all applicable provisions of the law.

(e) A steel cap of not less than the same thickness as the well casing shall be welded to the casing around the entire circumference of the well casing.

(f) The rathole and all holes and depressions shall be filled and packed with native earth.

(g) All oil, waste oil, refuse, or waste material shall be removed from the drill site.

(h) All oil sumps shall be cleaned of oil and oil-soaked or polluted earth and filled with clean soil to the level of surrounding contiguous land. Such soil fill shall be compacted to 90% of the compaction of the contiguous soils.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

The provisions of Sections 4-11.203 and 4-11.204 of this article shall be suspended from the date an application for a decision or exception is filed with the Planning Commission, as provided in Section 4-11.206 of this article, until the decision is rendered or the exception is granted or denied.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

Within 30 days after notice of an idle well is sent, as provided in Section 4-11.202 of this article, and subject to the provisions of Section 4-11.210 of this article, the owner or the operator thereof may apply to the Planning Commission of the City:

(a) For a decision that the well is not an idle well as defined in Section 4-11.201 of this article; or

(b) If such well is an idle well, for an exception to the provisions of Sections 4-11.203 and 4-11.204 of this article.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

Upon the receipt of the application provided for in Section 4-11.206 of this article, the Secretary of the Planning Commission shall set a date, time, and place for a public hearing thereon before the Commission and shall send notice thereof to the applicant and to all persons having an interest in the land on which the well is situated as shown on the last equalized assessment roll. The Commission may conduct the hearing in an informal manner. The rules of evidence shall not apply. The hearing may be adjourned to a future time at the discretion of the Commission without the giving of further notice other than an announcement by the Chairman of the Commission of the date, time, and place of such adjourned meeting.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

At the conclusion of the hearing on an application for a decision that the well is not an idle well, the Planning Commission shall decide whether or not the well is an idle well in accordance with the provisions of Section 4-11.201 of this article. If the Commission decides that the well is not an idle well, the owner and operator thereof shall comply with the provisions of Sections 4-11.203 and 4-11.204 of this article.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

(a) At the conclusion of the hearing on an application for an exception, the Planning Commission shall deny the application or grant the exception in whole or in part as applied for. The exception may be granted by the Commission if in the judgment of the Commission:

(1) The applicant has shown good cause why there has been no production for the aforesaid 12 months or more period or otherwise why there has been a cessation of production;

(2) There are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships resulting from the strict enforcement of the provisions of this article;

(3) The exception will not be materially detrimental to the public welfare, to the owners of the adjacent property, and to the rights of owners of the fee simple interest in the property; and

(4) The exception will not substantially interfere with the orderly development of the City as provided in the Precise Land Use Plan.

(b) If the exception is granted, the Commission may impose thereon such conditions as it may deem reasonable and proper. Unless stated otherwise by the Commission, the exception shall be for a period of two years from the date of the application therefor. If the Commission shall deny the application for an exception, the owner and operator shall comply with the provisions of Section 4-11.204 of this article or shall appeal the decision of the Commission to the Council.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

In the event of an appeal to the Council, the Council shall hold a public hearing on the application for an exception in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 4 of Title 1 of this Code and the criteria set forth in Section 4-11.209 of this article. If the Council shall deny the application, the owner and the operator shall comply with the provisions of Section 4-11.204 of this article.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)

Notwithstanding any provision of this article to the contrary, in the case of a well for which a notice of intention to abandon has been given to the State Division of Oil and Gas pursuant to the provisions of Section 3229 of the Public Resources Code of the State or any amendment thereto, such well shall be conclusively deemed an idle well, and:

(a) The Commission or the Council shall not make a decision that such well is not an idle well; and

(b) The Commission or the Council shall not grant an exception in whole or in part to the provisions of Sections 4-11.203 and 4-11.204 of this article.

(§ 1, Ord. 2011 c.s., eff. January 21, 1970)