IN 1992, the Pennsylvania Legislature Amended the Oil and Gas Act to Establish the Current Well Plugging…

Description

IN 1992, the Pennsylvania Legislature Amended the Oil and Gas Act to Establish the Current Well Plugging Program, Which Provided Pennsylvania S Department of the Environmental Protection Dep the Authority to Permanently Plug Abandoned or Orphan Oil and Gas Wells When No Viable Well Owner or Operator Exists Dep S Bureau of Oil and Gas Planning and Program Management Is Tasked with Executing the Well Plugging Work, in Coordination with District Oil and Gas Operations Staff as Part of This Work, Dep Has Developed and Executed Well Plugging Contracts in Conjunction with the Procurement Code and All Contracting Guidance Set Forth in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Generally, the Well Plugging Contracts Developed by Dep Are All Inclusive, in Such That During Well Plugging and Final Abatement, Contractors Are Responsible for Access Egress, Site Preparation, Erosion and Sedimentation Controls on Site, Well Plugging Per Commonwealth Regulations, Produced Waste Disposal, and Site Restoration Around the Well Dep May Request Removal of Well Related Infrastructure, But This Is Not Always the Case by Plugging These Abandoned and Orphaned Oil and Gas Wells in Accordance with Commonwealth Regulations, the Environmental and Health and Safety Impact of These Wells Is Greatly Lessened or Removed These Contracts Have a Formal Bid Process Which Includes, Development of Technical Specifications, Maps and Other Well Related Data, Conducting a Preliminary Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory Pndi Search to Identify Threatened and Endangered or Species of Special Concern, and a Preliminary Plugging Cost Estimate Upon Review of the Bid Document by Dep S Construction Contracts and General Counsel, an Invitation for Bids Is Issued Publicly These Bid Packages Are Either Time and Materials or Lump Sum Bid Packages and Are Generally Issued to the Lowest Qualified Bidder Qualified Bidders Must Have Well Plugging Capabilities and Experience as Determined by the Bid Review and Evaluation Once This Process Is Complete, the Qualified Low Bidder Is Issued an Award Notification and Contract Bonds, Insurance Information, Tax Information and Contract Agreement Paperwork Are Requested Upon Review and Finalization of the Requested Documentation, a Final Contact Is Issued and Signed Once the Final Contract Is Signed, a Notice to Proceed Will Be Issued to the Contractor Which Must Be Acknowledged by the Contractor and Contains a Request for the Scheduling of a Pre Job Conference and Extends a Ten 10 Day Window to Start Work as Part of the Contracted Work, the Well Plugging Contractor Needs to Notify the Dep Plugging Inspector and Furnish the Department a Completed Notice of Intention Noi to Plug Wells at a Minimum of One 1 Week Prior to Beginning Each Individual Well Plugging Operation Additionally, the Contractor Is Expected to Maintain a Daily Activity Report That Consists of Crew Actives for the Full Shift Drilling, Fishing, Cementing, Moving, Etc with a Record of the Time Spent at Each Activity the Contractor S Daily Report Should Also Contain a Short Narrative Outlining the Day S Events and Progress a Copy of This Report Is Always to Be Kept on Site and Be Available for Inspection During the Project at the End of Each Week, a Copy of the Week S Daily Log Will Be Emailed to the Plugging Inspector and or the Project Manager Upon Completion of the Well Plugging, a Certificate of Well Plugging Cowp Will Be Furnished to Dep by the Contractor the Dep Will Use 90 Percent of the Initial Grant Dollars to Fund Competitive Orphan and Abandoned Well Plugging Contracts and Associated Field Personnel with 10 Percent Being Applied to Permissible Administrative Personnel Fees Contract Obligations Have the Ability to Remain Active for a Maximum of Five Years Per Pennsylvania Procurement Code

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