State Regulations: Utah
The Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining in the Utah Department of Natural Resources administers oil and gas regulation in Utah. Otherwise, the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) safeguards human health and quality of life by protecting and enhancing the environment. The Utah Division of Water Rights, also in the Department of Natural Resources, has responsibility for administering the appropriation and distribution of the state's water resources.
Contact
Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining
1594 West North Temple, Suite 1210
P.O. Box 145801
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-5801
(801) 538-5277 (phone)
(801) 359-3940 (fax)
Utah Department of Environmental Quality
168 North 1950 West
Salt Lake City, UT 84116
(801) 536-4400 (phone)
Utah Division of Water Rights
1594 West North Temple, Suite 310
PO Box 146201
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-6201
(801) 538-7230 (phone)
Produced Water Management Practices and Applicable Regulations
Title R649 of the Utah Administrative Code contains the rules administered by the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Minerals: R649-3 (Drilling and Operating Practices), R649-5 (Underground Injection Control of Recovery Operations and Class II Injection Wells), and R649-9 (Waste Management and Disposal). The DEQ administers Utah’s environmental rules.
- R649-3-15 (Pollution
and Surface Damage Control)
- The operator shall take all reasonable precautions to avoid polluting lands, streams, reservoirs, natural drainage ways, and underground water.
- The owner or operator shall, among others:
- Maintain tanks in a workmanlike manner that will preclude leakage and provide for all applicable safety measures, and construct berms of sufficient height and width to contain the quantity of the largest tank at the storage facility. The use of produced water storage tanks without tops is strictly prohibited except during well testing operations.
- Catch leaks and drips, contain spills, and cleanup promptly.
- Waste reduction and recycling should be practiced in order to help reduce disposal volumes.
- Produced water shall be disposed of in compliance with all applicable state, federal, or local regulations.
- In general, good housekeeping practices shall be used.
- R649-5-2 (Requirements for Class II Injection Wells Including Water Disposal and Enhanced Recovery Wells)
- Class II injection wells must be approved by the Division of Oil, Gas and Minerals.
- They must be completed, equipped, operated, and maintained in a manner that will prevent pollution and damage to any underground source of drinking water, or other resources, and will confine injected fluids to the interval approved.
- R649-9-3 (Permitting of Disposal Pits)
- Pits must conform to all applicable requirements governing approval, location, design, construction, operation, and maintenance.
- Commercial disposal pits and pits located off an existing lease must be bonded.
- R649-9-4 (Permitting of Other Disposal Facilities)
- Such facilities for treatment and disposal include landfarming, composting, solidification, bioremediation, and others.
- They must be permitted by the Division of Oil, Gas and Mining.
- Application requirements include the following:
- Complete description of proposed facility, processes involved, all waste to be accepted, and products generated.
- Maps and drawing of suitable scale.
- Materials or products to be applied to the land surface or subsurface shall meet the Division’s cleanup levels for contaminated soil and other wastes.
- The submission of an application to the DEQ’s Division of Water Quality for a discharge permit may be required if it is determined that the facility and associated activity will not have a de minimis actual or potential effect on ground water quality. If the Division determines there is potential for discharge, or if the proposal involves a commercial disposal operation, it will be forwarded to the Division of Water Quality for their review.
- Other Requirements Governing Exempt Exploration and Production Waste Disposal Facilities
- R649-9-5 (Construction, Operation, and Inspection Requirements for Disposal Facilities)
- R649-9-6 (Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements for Disposal Facilities)
- All unauthorized discharges or spills from disposal facilities, including water observed in a leak detection system, shall be promptly reported to the Division of Oil, Gas and Mining.
- Each producer who utilizes any approved produced water disposal facility shall comply with the reporting requirements of R649-8-10.
- R649-9-7 (Final Closure and Cleanup of Disposal Facilities)
- R649-9-8 (Variances from Requirements and Standards)
- R649-9-9 (Bonding of Disposal Facilities)
Beneficial Use of Produced Water
Title 73 of the Utah Code mandates that "beneficial use shall be the basis, the measure and the limit of all rights to the use of water in this state."
The State Engineer directs the Division of Water Rights. The State Engineer's responsibility is to manage the state's water resources, providing citizens opportunity to make beneficial use of the waters while protecting prior rights and the welfare interests of the public. New uses of water or a change in existing use must be approved by the State Engineer prior to the undertaking. Once a use is authorized, the State Engineer monitors development to assure the use actually occurs before a permanent or perfected water right certificate is issued. Once perfected, a water right is a permanent right as long as the use persists, but the right can be lost or forfeited through neglect (failure to continue to beneficially use the water).
Applicants must file a Proof of Beneficial Use form [PDF]. The categories of beneficial use listed on the form include: irrigation, stock watering, domestic, municipal, mining, power, and other.
Another definition for Beneficial Use comes from the Utah water resources glossary: Use of water for one or more of the following purposes including but not limited to, domestic, municipal, irrigation, hydropower generation, industrial, commercial, recreation, fish propagation, and stock watering; the basis, measure and limit of a water right. This definition provides a wider range of uses.