HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 07-049 ORDINANCE NO. 07-049
ENTITLED AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 19,
SECTIONS 19-1, 19-2, 19-3, SUBSECTION 19-4(a), SECTIONS
19-5, 19-6, 19-7, 19-8, 19-9, 19-10, 19-13, 19-14, 19-15, 19-17, 19-
18, 19-19, 19-21, SUBSECTIONS 19-26(b) AND 19-29(b),
SECTIONS 19-35, 19-36, 19-37, 19-43, 19-44, SUBSECTIONS 19-
45(3) AND (4), AND SECTION 19-46, AND REPEALING
CHAPTER 19, SECTION 19-41, OF THE CODE OF
ORDINANCES; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING
FOR REPEAL; AND PROVIDING A PENALTY.
WHEREAS, the City of Beaumont endeavors to maintain a clear,
comprehensible, and cohesive Code of Ordinances; and,
WHEREAS, the City is therefore revising its Code to comport with current
law and court interpretation;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BEAUMONT:
Section 1.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-1, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-1. Definitions.
For the purpose of this chapter, all technical or oil and gas industry words
or phrases used herein and not specifically defined herein shall have that
meaning customarily attributed to them by the oil and gas industry. The following
words and terms wherever and whenever used or appearing in this chapter shall
have the scope and meaning hereinafter defined and set out in connection with
each:
Applicant.Any person who applies for a drilling permit hereunder.
Approved, approved type, or approved design: Improvements, equipment
or facilities of a type or design approved by the building official.
Building code: The portion of this Code or any ordinance of the city known
by that title and all amendments thereto.
Building permit:The permit required by the building code.
Completion of drilling: A well is completed, for the purpose of these
regulations, thirty (30) days after the drilling crew has been released. The drilling
crew is released within the meaning of this paragraph when work at the wellsite
for drilling or completing the well is suspended, either temporarily or permanently.
Derrick. Any structure, improvement, equipment, or facility, and each and
every part thereof, whether completed or not, and which is required, or used or
useful for or in connection with drilling, operating, or maintaining a well for the
production of oil, gas or other hydrocarbons from the earth, together with all parts
of and appurtenances to such structure, improvement, equipment, or facility,
including, but not limited to, foundations and sills therefor, pumphouses, engine-
houses, or housings, pipe-racks, postings, walkways, mud-ditches, and crown
block.
Designated agent: The designated agent of applicant or permittee.
Diligence: That the drilling derrick is in its operating position over the well,
properly anchored and supported and that an operating crew is on duty at the
drill site at all reasonable times.
Drill site: The premises used during the drilling and subsequent life of a
well or wells, which is necessary for the safe operations thereof.
Drilling: Entry onto the site with equipment and/or personnel for the
specific purpose of actually opening a well hole intended to produce oil or gas.
Erect: To build, construct, install, assemble, put together, improve, alter,
move, reconstruct, restore, renovate, renew or repair any building, structure,
improvement or facility, or any part or portion thereof or foundations therefor, or
appurtenance thereto, whether or not such building, structure, improvement or
facility is completed, or to work upon, or in any way assist in such erection.
Flammable liquids: Oil and other fluid hydrocarbons, including liquefied
gases or other flammable liquids, having a flash point below two hundred (200)
degrees Fahrenheit. The flash point of all commodities shall be determined by
the Elliot, Abel, Abel-Pensky, or Tag closed cap testers, but the Tag closed cap
tester, standardized by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, shall
be authoritative in case of dispute. All tests shall be in accordance with the
methods adopted by the American Society for Testing Materials, and approved
by the American National Standards Institute, or their successors.
Gas: The gaseous components or vapors occurring in or derived from
petroleum or natural gas.
Lessee: The possessor of the right to explore and recover minerals from
the premises.
Lessor.•The owner of mineral rights.
Maintain: To repair, or otherwise keep or place in working condition, and
also to permit, or authorize to exist, regardless of whether any actual
maintenance work is done. For the purposes of this chapter, an oil well, well-
hole, derrick and production equipment, shall be deemed to be "maintained"
upon the premises in and upon which the same were or are being drilled, erected
or installed, until the following tasks are accomplished:
(1) Every part of such derrick and production equipment shall be
removed from the drill site.
(2) All requirements for abandonment established by the state and any
other regulatory authority having jurisdiction must be met.
(3) All sumps, cellars, rotary mud, concrete, oil and rubbish must be
removed and the drill site cleaned and all ditches must be leveled.
(4) All property of the city which may have been disturbed or damaged
by the operations at the drill site shall be repaired and cleaned as
needed and restored to substantially the same condition as existed
at the time of the issuance of the permit.
Maintenance: The repair and replacement of parts of a structure when the
repair or replacement does not alter or lessen the strength or stability of the
structure.
Non-urbanized drilling site: A drill site shall be considered non-urbanized if
no occupied commercial, residential or industrial structure exists in use within
one thousand (1,000) feet of the proposed well-hole.
Occupied structure: Only those structures that are regularly occupied by
persons at least twenty (20) hours per week.
Oil: Petroleum and other fluid hydrocarbons obtained from the earth.
Operate: To work or act upon, or to cause or permit natural or artificial
forces to function in connection with any structure, plant, equipment, machinery,
or facility with the purpose of utilizing the same for the purpose for which it was or
is erected or maintained, or for any other purpose, and when used with reference
to a well, well-hole, derrick or production equipment, means and includes any
acts or functions performed or permitted to occur in connection with such well,
well-hole, derrick or production equipment from and after the completion of the
drilling of the well, for the purpose of producing or obtaining oil, gas, or other
hydrocarbons from the ground, and for the purpose of collecting and handling the
same and making deliveries thereof at the well or from the shipping tanks or
lease tanks in the vicinity of the well. "Operate" includes all functions performed
or permitted to occur in connection with such production, collection, handling and
delivery, including the repair, reconditioning, restoration, perforating, redrilling or
deepening of said well or well-hole, and the dehydration or cleaning of said oil
prior to making such deliveries as aforesaid.
Operator: The person, whether owner, lessee, or independent contractor,
actually in charge and in control of the drilling, maintenance, operation or
pumping of a well or lease.
Owner. A person who has legal or equitable title to the surface of the drill
site.
Permit or drilling permit. The written, typed or printed permission issued to
applicant by the building official under the authority of this chapter.
Permittee: Any person to whom a permit has been granted and issued
under and pursuant to the terms of this chapter by the building official.
Person: An individual; a receiver; a trustee; a partnership; a joint
adventure; a firm; an unincorporated association; a syndicate; a club; a society; a
trust; a private corporation; a public corporation; a municipal corporation; a
county, a state, or national government; a commission; a water district; a utility
district; a political subdivision; and a drainage, irrigation, levee, reclamation, flood
control, or water conservation district, whether acting for himself or itself or in any
representative capacity.
Production equipment: Pumping equipment, tubing, pipes, gauges,
meters, valves, oil and gas separators, sumps, flow tanks, production tanks,
shipping tanks, lease tanks, shipping pumps, loading racks and all other
structures, machinery, equipment and facilities, and each and every part thereof,
whether completed or not, required for or used or useful in connection with the
operation, repair, reconditioning, redrilling or maintenance of a well or well-hole,
and the collection, handling and delivery of oil, gas or other hydrocarbons
therefrom, and which structures, machinery, equipment and facilities are not
included in the "derrick", "well", or "well-hole", as heretofore defined. "Production
equipment' also includes any wash tanks, dehydration plant or other equipment
or facility operated or maintained by or in behalf of the operator of said well for
the purpose of separating sand, water and other foreign substances from the oil,
gas or other hydrocarbons produced or obtained by said operator, prior to
shipping or delivering said oil from the shipping tanks or lease tanks at the well,
or in the vicinity thereof.
Redrilling: The deepening of an existing oil well or otherwise drilling
beyond the extremities (to the side) of the existing well casing. The provisions of
this chapter relating to drilling shall be equally applicable to redrilling.
Structure: That which is built or constructed; a tank, edifice, or building of
any kind.
Suspended operations: The approved temporary suspension of drilling or
redrilling operations pending a resumption of operations or abandonment.
Tank: A container, covered or uncovered, used in conjunction with the
drilling or production of an oil well, for holding or storing liquids at or near
atmospheric pressure.
Urbanized drilling site: A drill site shall be considered urbanized where an
occupied commercial, residential or industrial structure exists within one
thousand (1,000) feet of the proposed well-hole.
Well head: A well head is composed of the casinghead, Christmas tree
and all well connections.
Section 2.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-2, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-2. Permit required (drilling or seismographic testing); acts constituting
nuisances.
(a) No person shall conduct any drilling or redrilling within the corporate limits
of the City of Beaumont without having obtained a permit for said drilling
or redrilling under this chapter.
(b) It is hereby declared a nuisance for any person to conduct any drilling
operations within one thousand (1,000) feet of the property line of any
school of the Beaumont Independent School District without the prior
written consent of the board of trustees of said district, or within one
thousand (1,000) feet of the property line of any parochial or charter
school without the prior written consent of the board of trustees or other
governing body of said schools. It is hereby declared a nuisance for any
person to conduct any drilling operations within one thousand (1,000) feet
of a property line of any hospital, convalescent home, orphanage or
nursing home located within the city limits of the City of Beaumont without
the prior written consent of the owner or owners thereof. It is hereby
declared a nuisance for any person to conduct any drilling or redrilling
operation outside the city limits of the City of Beaumont closer than one
thousand (1,000) feet to any occupied structure other than a school,
hospital, convalescent home, orphanage, or nursing home located within
such city limits without obtaining a permit for said drilling or redrilling under
this chapter.
(c) It is hereby declared a nuisance for any person to construct any storage
tank or tanks within one thousand (1,000) feet of the property line of any
school of the Beaumont Independent School District without the prior
written consent of its board of trustees, or within one thousand (1,000) feet
of the property line of any parochial or charter school without the prior
written consent of the board of trustees or the governing body of said
schools or within one thousand (1,000) feet of any hospital, convalescent
home, orphanage or nursing home located either within or outside the city
limits of Beaumont without the prior written consent of the owner or
owners thereof.
(d) It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct seismographic testing within
the city without a permit, as set out below:
(1) Seismographic permits (within the city)........................$50.00
Plus (2) or (3) if applicable
(2) Per shot hole on city property or rights-of-way...........$100.00
(3) Mobile vibratory units on city property or rights-of-way,
per mile or portion of a mile.....................................$1,200.00
Section 3.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-3, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-3. Review and action on permit application; approval or
disapproval of operations.
It shall be the responsibility of the building official to review impartially and
to approve or disapprove all applications for drilling permits. The building official,
based upon the criteria established herein, may require the applicant for a permit
hereunder to do those things necessary to insure the health, safety, and welfare
of the citizens of the city. Items required shall be clearly stated in the permit
issued hereunder. The building official is hereby authorized to approve or
disapprove the actions of the permittee not otherwise covered by the permit
application during the drilling and post-drilling operations in accordance with the
terms of this chapter only. The building official shall issue or deny a permit within
ten (10) days of receipt of a properly completed application for drilling at a non-
' urbanized drilling site. The building official shall issue or deny a permit within
thirty (30) days of the receipt of a properly completed application for drilling at an
urbanized drilling site.
(1) If the building official denies a drilling permit, he shall notify the
applicant in writing of such denial and the reasons therefor.
(2) If the building official grants a drilling permit, the permit, in a form as
determined by the building official, shall be mailed to the applicant.
Section 4.
That Chapter 19, Subsection 194(a), be and the same is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 19-4. Form of permit application; permit fee.
(a) Applications for permits to drill or redrill any oil or gas well shall be made
in writing to the building official and shall include the following:
(1) The legal description of the proposed drill site and the legal
description of the real property in the city which the applicant
proposes to explore for oil and gas purposes. A map shall be
attached to the application, which map shall clearly show and
outline the proposed drill site with reference to existing city street or
city limits.
(2) A statement of what property the applicant has the right, by reason
of ownership or permission of the owner, to pass through and enter
for drilling purposes and a further statement that the applicant
agrees, in finally locating the well, not to pass through or enter any
property where he does not have such right.
(3) The proposed location, type, kinds, size, and amount of major
equipment and a general description and the method of operation
of the proposed well.
(4) The proposed method of handling and using any product proposed
to be developed at the well site and the proposed method of
disposing of all waste products anticipated.
(5) A statement from a licensed surveyor or registered professional
engineer verifying the drill site as being either an urbanized or a
non-urbanized drilling site as defined herein.
Section 5.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-5, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-5. Notification.
(a) Permittee shall publish notices in the local newspaper in the manner and
order set forth below:
1st Notice - to be published at least three (3) days prior to the start of any
drilling, blasting, and/or vibratory testing. Running time - one (1) day.
2nd Notice - to be published on the day which drilling, blasting, and/or
vibratory first begins. Running time - one (1) day.
Such work may continue no more than three (3) consecutive
working days of non-production. If drilling, blasting, and/or
vibratory testing does not occur during this time, another
notice must be published on the day such work will restart.
Additional notices must be republished to coincide with
intermittent work. Running time - one (1) day each
occurrence.
Final Notice - to be published when any such drilling, blasting, and/or
vibratory testing is approximately fifty percent (50%) complete. Running
time - one (1) day.
Aforementioned notices shall appear in the classified section under legal
notices. The notice shall indicate the scope of operations to be performed and
will detail the approximate dates and time (starting and ending) and general
location of work to be performed.
The City of Beaumont Building Official shall be notified when the notice
has been placed with the newspaper and what dates it will be published.
(b) Permittee is required to notify the following entities twenty-four (24) hours
prior to the start of any drilling, blasting, or vibrancy testing:
Fire Department - Fire Marshal (409-880-3905)
BLASTING WORK ONLY;
Engineering Division (409-880-3725); and
All residents abutting test route.
If more than three (3) consecutive working days of non-production occur,
Permittee must contact the Fire Department twenty-four (24) hours in advance of
any blasting to be done after a period of intermittent work.
In addition, Permittee is required to notify any and all other entities,
directly or indirectly, involved through other permits or agreements.
Section 6.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-6, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-6. Bond required; amounts, conditions.
Prior to the issuance of any permit hereunder, the applicant shall furnish
the building official with a bond in the principal sum of seventy-five thousand
dollars ($75,000) per drill site. Such bond shall be executed by an insurance
company authorized to do business in the state, as surety, and with applicant as
principal, naming the city for the benefit of the city conditioned that the permittee
will comply with the terms and conditions of this chapter. In addition, the bond will
be conditioned that the applicant will promptly pay fines, penalties and other
assessments imposed upon applicant by reason of the breach of any of the
terms, provisions and conditions of this chapter, and that the applicant will
promptly restore to their former condition streets, sidewalks, and other public
property which may be damaged in drilling operations; and that the applicant will
comply with all fencing, screening and site restoration requirements of this
chapter. If at any time the building official should find the applicant's bond to be
insufficient for any reason, he may require the applicant to file a new bond.
Section 7.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-7, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-7. Reduction of amount of bond.
Upon written request from a permittee, who has complied with all
provisions of this chapter, the building official may permit a reduction of the
permittee's bond to a sum of not less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) per
drill site for the remainder of the time such well produces.
Section 8.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-8, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-8. Insurance required; types, amounts.
Prior to issuance of any permit hereunder, applicant shall furnish the
building official with a certificate of insurance showing a valid policy or policies of
public liability insurance, covering bodily injuries and property damage. Said
insurance shall be written by a company authorized to do business in this state.
Such policies shall provide for the following minimum coverage:
(1) Bodily injuries and general liability one occurrence: $5,000,000 in
an urbanized area.
(2) Property damage: $2,500,000 in an urbanized area.
(3) Bodily injuries and general liability one occurrence: $2,500,000 in
an non-urbanized area.
(4) Property damage: $1,000,000 in a non-urbanized area.
Section 9.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-9, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-9. Waiver of bond and insurance to financially responsible person.
The building official may waive the requirements for surety bond and
policies of insurance as required herein as to any permittee who is financially
responsible and capable of meeting obligations for amounts in excess of ten
million dollars ($10,000,000) upon permittee filing with the building official in lieu
of any such surety bond or insurance policies a letter of acceptance and
indemnity approved by the city attorney, binding and obligating such permittee to
abide by the conditions for which surety bond and insurance policies are required
as prescribed herein, and agreeing to indemnify and hold the city harmless from
any and all liability growing out of or attributable to the granting of any and all
permits to such permittee including acts or omissions of the city, its officers,
agents, and employees in connection with said drilling permit.
Section 10.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-10, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-10. Minimum distance of well hole from occupied structure.
In each case of drilling or redrilling, the distance from any well-hole to any
occupied structure shall be a minimum of three hundred (300) feet, unless
permittee obtains written consent from the owners and tenants of said occupied
structure and furnishes said written consent to the building official prior to
issuance of said permit.
Section 11.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-13, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-13. Vehicular access route to site.
A vehicular access route to the site may be established at the discretion of
the building official after consideration of all of the circumstances including but
not limited to the existing width, load-bearing capability, and composition of all
streets proposed to be included in the access route; residential densities;
potential interference with pedestrian and bicycle traffic; the presence of effective
traffic control; and the general character of the areas through which the proposed
access route would pass.
Section 12.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-14, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-14. Compliance with permit as to drilling location and as to
operations.
The oil or gas well drilled pursuant to any drilling permit shall be drilled
only within the properties which the permittee set forth in its application as the
properties through which such well was proposed to pass unless the permittee
secures approval of the building official to cause such well to pass through other
properties.
No permittee shall drill, operate, or maintain any oil or gas well except in
conformity with the terms and conditions of a permit issued under this chapter.
Section 13.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-15, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-15. Representative operations supervisor.
The applicant or permittee shall designate a competent representative
who shall be responsible for the supervision of drilling operations and the
carrying out of the conditions of any permit. Such representative shall be
available at all times during drilling operations and shall be the responsible
contact agent of the applicant or the permittee whom the building official may
require to carry out the provisions of the permit.
Section 14.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-17, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-17. Permit transfer approval.
All permits granted under this chapter shall be transferable upon approval
of the building official, after a determination that all requirements of this chapter
are met by the transferee.
Section 15.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-18, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-18. Lapse of permit--Time; work without permit prohibited.
The drilling permit shall become null and void unless the permit is
accepted by the applicant in its entirety in writing, filed with the building official
within thirty (30) days from the effective date thereof, and no work on such drill
site shall be commenced until such permit is issued and accepted. The drilling
permit shall become null and void unless drilling is commenced within one
hundred eighty (180) days of the effective date of the permit.
Section 16.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-19, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-19. Same--Extension of time.
Whenever a person holding a permit pursuant to the provisions of this
chapter wishes to request an extension of the time within which drilling
operations are required to be commenced to a period beyond one hundred eighty
(180) days after the effective date of the permit, a request for such extension
shall be filed with the building official in writing and be accompanied by a fee in
the amount of one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125.00) for each well for which
an extension is requested.
Such request for an extension shall set forth facts showing good cause for
the building official to allow additional time for the commencement of the well.
When good cause is shown, the building official shall grant an extension not to
exceed an additional one hundred eighty (180) days.
Section 17.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-21, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-21. Filing of"Potential" or "Plug and Abandon" report.
A copy of the "Potential" or "Plug and Abandon" report of any well
furnished to the Texas Railroad Commission shall be concurrently filed by the
permittee with the building official.
Section 18.
That Chapter 19, Subsection 19-26(b), be and the same is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 19-26. Noise, vibration, odor, etc., restricted.
(b) The engines used in connection with the drilling of any oil well or any
production equipment shall be equipped with an exhaust muffler or
mufflers, or an exhaust muffler box, sufficient to suppress noise and to
prevent the escape of obnoxious gases, fumes, sparks, ignited carbon, or
soot. The type and design of any muffler or muffler box shall be approved
by the building official and by the fire chief or his authorized
representative.
Section 19.
That Chapter 19, Subsection 19-29(b), be and the same is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 19-29. Casing quality.
(b) Each joint and length of each particular casing string shall have prior to
setting unconditionally passed a complete cold water test and the building
official shall be furnished a copy of said test results.
Section 20.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-35, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-35. Casingheads.
Each well drilled within the city limits shall be equipped with a casinghead
with a working pressure sufficient to contain the formation pressure.
Casingheads shall not be welded. The casinghead pressure shall be checked at
two (2) or more times each calendar year and if pressure is found to exist, proper
remedial measures shall be immediately taken to eliminate the source and the
existence of the pressure.
Section 21.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-36, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-36. Christmas tree and well head connection maintenance; safety
valve.
The Christmas tree and all well head connections on each well existing
within the city limits and on each well drilled pursuant to a permit under this
section shall be maintained so as to operate safely. If a Christmas tree or a well
connection is found to be leaking or otherwise defective, the building official may
immediately revoke the permit. In the event the surface shut-in pressure of any
well in the city limits exceeds two thousand (2,000) pounds per square inch, the
flow wing of the Christmas tree shall be equipped with an automatic closing
safety valve in addition to the regular control valves.
Section 22.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-37, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-37. Compressor station shutdown devices and other precautionary
measures.
The compressor station on each well existing within the city limits and on
each well drilled pursuant to a permit under this section shall be equipped with an
automatic shutdown device which shall be clearly marked and visible at all times.
The compressor station and all pipes and valves connected thereto must meet or
exceed the minimum internal pressure yield strength established under American
Petroleum Institute standards and shall have prior to installation unconditionally
passed a complete cold water test. All compressor stations shall be checked a
minimum of once each three (3) months and the result of said check shall be
sent to the building official upon request. Failure to comply with this section shall
result in immediate cancellation of the drilling permit issued hereunder.
Section 23.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-41, be and the same is hereby repealed.
Section 24.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-43, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-43. Transportation of oil and gas restricted.
When production has been established in any new well, the construction
of a pipeline shall be started as soon as practical and economically feasible and
thereon diligently prosecuted until such pipeline is completed in order to eliminate
the trucking of oil. All oil and gas shall be shipped and transported through
pipelines after those pipelines have been completed, except in cases in which
such a method of transportation is found by the building official to be unfeasible.
In such cases the shipping and transportation of oil by truck may be permitted at
the discretion of the building official after consideration of all the circumstances
including but not limited to the proximity of the well to existing and available
pipelines, the availability of acceptable access routes to the drill site, and the
frequency and size of transportation vehicles required to serve the well. In the
instance of an oil spill, permittee may bring in a vacuum truck to clean said spill
without the necessity of obtaining permission from the building official.
Section 25.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-44, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-44. Producing or nonproducing status of well.
If a well is placed in production, it shall be inspected periodically by the
building official in accordance with the requirements of this chapter. A notification
of status change from producing well to abandoned well shall become necessary
for any well which has not produced, or which has not been used for subsurface
injection into the earth of oil, gas, salt water, or oil field waste for a period of nine
(9) months, unless permission to hold said well for a longer period of time is
obtained from the Texas Railroad Commission. The operator shall upon request
of the building official furnish verification of production for the purposes of this
section.
Section 26.
That Chapter 19, Subsections 19-45 (3) and (4), be and the same are
hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 19-45. Well abandonment requirements; removal of derricks when
production started.
(3) The building official shall determine that the drill site and all facilities
pertinent thereto have been restored to their original condition as
nearly as practicable and that all requirements of this section have
been satisfied.
(4) After abandonment of a well by the operator, the drilling permit will
be terminated if, to the satisfaction of the building official, all the
conditions stated in this chapter have been fulfilled.
Section 27.
That Chapter 19, Section 19-46, be and the same is hereby amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 19-46. Violations; suspension or revocation of permit, appeals.
Any drilling permit may be suspended or revoked for any material violation
of the conditions of the permit by the permittee or for persistent violation of any
law by the permittee in the operation of any such well. The building official shall
not revoke any permit without first giving the permittee ten (10) days' written
notice of the nature of the violations and of the intention to revoke such permit.
Permittee shall at once cease drilling operations after receipt of notice of intent to
revoke this permit. If, within such ten (10) day period, the permittee requests a
hearing before the building official, the building official shall grant such hearing
within fifteen (15) days after the date of such request. At such hearing, evidence
shall be presented to establish to the satisfaction of the building official the extent
and nature of the violation which constitutes grounds for the revocation, and
permittee shall be given an opportunity to cross-examine all witnesses testifying
at such hearing. The permittee shall thereafter be permitted at that hearing, or at
a continued hearing, if a continuance is requested by the permittee, to present
evidence to disprove or explain such alleged violations. The building official shall
thereupon, after hearing all the evidence, determine whether or not the permit
should be revoked, and his determination thereon shall be final. If the building
official determines that the permit should be revoked, permittee may appeal the
decision of the building official to the construction board of adjustment and
appeals in accordance with the ordinances of the city. In the event the
construction board of adjustment and appeals determines that said permit should
be revoked, permittee shall have recourse to the appropriate courts of this state
to review such action by said construction board of adjustment and appeals and
the substantial evidence rule shall apply.
Section 28.
That if any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
ordinance, or the application of same to a particular set of persons or
circumstances should for any reason be held to be invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance, and to such end the various
portions and provisions of this ordinance are declared to be severable.
Section 29.
That all ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are repealed
to the extent of the conflict only.
Section 30.
That any person who violates any provision of this ordinance shall, upon
conviction be punished, as provided in Section 1-8 of the Code of Ordinances of
Beaumont, Texas.
PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL of the City of Beaumont on this the
17th day of April, 2007.
%r 'UM0�11111 - Mayor Guy N. Goodson -
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