Article 7 — IDLE WELLS.

(Amended by O-2705)

a) A well shall be an idle well:

1. Where it has not produced one hundred (100) or more barrels of oil or other liquid hydrocarbon substances or one million (1,000,000) or more cubic feet of gas within any twelve (12) month period.

2. Where there has been a cessation of production therefrom of oil, gas or other hydrocarbon substances with an intent of the operator thereof to permanently cease production. The removal from the drill site of any part of the equipment or machinery necessary for the production of oil or gas, including, prima facie evidence of the intent of the operator to permanently cease production, and thereupon, the operator shall have the burden of proving that the well was not an idle well. The presence at the drill site or the operation of a derrick, drilling rig or other oil well drilling or production equipment shall not be evidence of production of oil or gas.

3. Where the drilling, redrilling or deepening thereof has been commenced and it has not produced one hundred (100) or more barrels of oil or other liquid hydrocarbon substances or one million (1,000,000) or more cubic feet of gas within twelve (12) months thereafter.

b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection a), any oil well in a Combining Oil District approved by the City which is included in a unit agreement or secondary recovery plan approved by the State Division of Oil and Gas shall not be an idle well. This exemption shall last for the life of the unit.

An idle well as described in Section 97.7.1 is hereby found and determined to be a public nuisance.

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.

Within ninety (90) days after notice of an idle well has been sent by the City Manager as provided in Section 97.7.3 or a notice of intention to abandon a well has been given to the State Division of Oil and Gas by the owner or operator pursuant to the State Public Resources Code, the owner and operator shall abandon the well pursuant to the provisions of such Code.

When any well is abandoned, the owner and operator shall clear and restore the drill site in conformance 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, pipeline above ground, wood and other foreign materials shall be removed from the drill site or tank farm site. All buried pipeline shall be excavated and removed or, in the alternative, purged of all hydrocarbon substances and filled with water-base drilling mud or other inert material approved by the City Manager.

d) The oil well casing shall be cut off at the cellar floor, but in no case below sea level. Nothing shall be placed in the hole above the point of cut-off until the cut-off has been inspected by the City and found to be in compliance with all applicable provisions of 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, sumps 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.

The provisions of Sections 97.7.4 and 97.7.5 shall be suspended from the date an application for a decision or exception is filed with the Oil Board as provided in Section 97.7.7 until the decision is rendered or the exception is granted or denied.

Within thirty (30) days after notice of an idle well is sent as provided in Section 97.7.3, and subject to the provisions of Section 97.7.11, the owner or the operator thereof may apply to the Oil Board of the City:

a) For a decision that the well is not an idle well as defined in Section 97.7.1; or.

b) If such well is an idle well, for an exception to the provisions of Sections 97.7.4. and 97.7.5. Such application shall be filed with the Secretary of the Oil Board and shall be accompanied by a fee of Thirty-five Dollars ($35.00) to cover the cost of publication and servicing of such application and shall include such information as prescribed by the Board. The fee shall be remitted to the applicant in the event that the Board finds that such well is not an idle well.

Upon receipt of such application, the secretary of the Board shall set a date, time and place for a public hearing thereon before the Board 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 Board 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 Board without the giving of further notice other than an announcement by the Board of date, time and place of such adjourned meeting.

At the conclusion of the hearing on an application for a decision that the well is not an idle well, the Board shall decide whether or not the well is an idle well in accordance with the provisions of Section 97.7.1. If the Board decides that the well is an idle well, the owner and the operator thereof shall comply with the provisions of Sections 97.7.4. and 97.7.5.

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

1. The applicant has shown good cause why there has been no production for the aforesaid twelve (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 this Article;

3. It 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. It will not substantially interfere with the orderly development of the City as provided in the Official Land Use Plan.

b) If the exception is granted, the Board may impose thereon such conditions as it may deem reasonable and proper. Unless stated otherwise by the Board, the exception shall be for a period of two (2) years from the date of the application therefor. If the Board shall deny the application for an exception, the owner and operator shall comply with the provisions of Section 97.7.5. or shall appeal the decision of the Board to the City Council pursuant to the procedure of Article 5 of Chapter 1 of Division 1 of this Code.

(Amended by O-2397; O-2822)

The decision of the Oil Board may be appealed to the City Council pursuant to the provisions of Article 5, Chapter 1, Division 1 of this Code, commencing at Section 11.5.1.

Notwithstanding any other 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 Section 3229 of the Public Resources Code or any amendment thereto, such well shall be conclusively deemed an idle well, and:

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

b) The Board or the City Council shall not grant an exception in whole or in part to the provisions of Sections 97.7.4 or 97.7.5