(a) 
In each case of drilling or redrilling, the distance from any well hole to any occupied structure shall be a minimum of six hundred feet (600’), unless permittee obtains written consent from the owners of said occupied structure and furnishes said written consent to the code enforcement administrator prior to issuance of said permit, but in no event shall a well be drilled closer than four hundred feet (400’) to a structure. No well shall be drilled within one thousand feet (1,000’) of the property line of any school in the Katy Independent School District or any hospital, convalescent home or nursing home whether such school, hospital, convalescent home or nursing home is located within or outside the city.
(b) 
It is hereby declared a nuisance for any person to conduct any drilling operation or to construct any storage tank or tanks within one thousand feet (1,000’) of the property line of any school of the Katy Independent School District or any hospital, convalescent home or nursing home located either within or outside the city limits.
(c) 
Subsection (a) does not apply in master planned communities.
(Ordinance 2599, sec. III, adopted 11/11/13)
In each case the distance from any storage tank or tanks in conjunction with any well to any occupied structure shall be a minimum of four hundred feet (400’), unless the distance requirements of section 4.07.091 are reduced to four hundred feet (400’) in which case the minimum shall be two hundred feet (200’). This section does not apply in master planned communities.
(Ordinance 2599, sec. III, adopted 11/11/13)
In each case the distance from the center of a well hole drilled under a permit issued under this article and from all storage tanks installed after the effective date of this article to the nearest traveled public or private street right-of-way shall be a minimum of two hundred feet (200’). This section does not apply in master planned communities.
(Ordinance 2599, sec. III, adopted 11/11/13)
A vehicular access route to the site shall be established by the code enforcement administrator 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.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.212)
(a) 
The oil and 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 code enforcement administrator to cause such well to pass through other properties.
(b) 
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 article.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.213)
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. A 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 code enforcement administrator may require to carry out the provisions of the permit.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.214)
(a) 
Marking of drill site.
The well location shall be clearly marked by staking or other suitable means and identified as the “drill site.”
(b) 
Surfacing of private roads.
Prior to commencement of any drilling operations, all private roads used for access to the drill site and the drill site itself shall be surfaced so as to prevent excessive dust and mud and in a manner adequate to support the weight of mobile firefighting equipment. Surfacing may be by boards, rock, gravel, or shell and maintained so as to prevent excessive dust and mud.
(c) 
Storage of waste liquids.
Earthen pits shall not be dug on the drill site. Drilling mud, water, and other liquids shall be handled in steel tanks and removed from the drill site for disposal.
(d) 
Cleaning of site at conclusion of operations.
At the conclusion of any drilling or rework operations, the drill site shall be cleaned of all equipment and machinery not needed to produce the well.
(e) 
Plugging of well and restoration of surface.
Upon abandonment of any well, the well shall be promptly plugged in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of the state railroad commission and the well site cleared of all machinery, equipment, and other materials, and the surface restored as near as practical to its original condition.
(f) 
Fence.
Each drilling site and production site from which oil and gas may be produced shall, with its surface facilities and storage tanks, be enclosed by a substantial, smooth eleven (11) gauge or heavier galvanized steel net wire fence a minimum of six feet (6’) in height and provided with barbed wire supporting arms and a minimum of three (3) strands of barbed wire installed at the top of each post and properly built so as ordinarily to prevent the entry of unauthorized persons into the enclosure, with all gates thereto to be kept locked when the permittee or his employees are not within the enclosure. Within six (6) months of the effective date of this article, each producing drill site in the city together with its surface facilities and storage tanks will be enclosed by a fence as defined in this subsection.
(g) 
Refuse and surplus material.
Each site shall be kept free of discarded and surplus material, supplies and refuse, to the end that the premises shall at all times present an orderly and well-kept appearance.
(h) 
Portable sanitation facilities.
Portable sanitation facilities (toilets) shall be provided on each drill site while operations are underway.
(i) 
Surface casing.
Surface casing shall be set at a minimum of twenty-five hundred feet (2,500’) or to any greater depth required by the railroad commission below ground level or to a depth sufficient to protect all fresh water zones as directed by the state commission on environmental quality, whichever is the greater. Surface casing shall be cemented to the surface and the cement allowed to stand a minimum of twelve (12) hours before drilling the plug. Surface pipe shall be pressure tested to fifteen hundred (1500) psi before drilling the plug. A greater pressure may be required if set deeper than two thousand five hundred feet (2,500’).
(j) 
Casing rams.
Proper sized casing rams designed to fit the pipe or tubing or casing on which they are installed shall be installed in the blowout preventer stack prior to running intermediate or production casing.
(k) 
Blowout preventers.
Double ram and annular blowout preventers shall be installed and tested to their full working pressure prior to drilling below surface pipe. The blowout preventers shall be tested with clear water upon initial installation and shall be operated once each day thereafter to insure good working order.
(l) 
Public alarm system.
Every drilling, completion, and rework rig shall be equipped with a public alarm system capable of being heard at a distance of one thousand feet (1,000’). All residents within a one thousand foot radius of the well shall be notified of the alarm and be provided a demonstration of the system prior to commencing operations, and instructed in the action to take upon hearing the alarm.
(m) 
No smoking signs.
Permanent weatherproof signs reading “Dangerous, No Smoking Allowed” shall be posted at the entrance to each fenced well site, tank battery, etc.
(n) 
Master valve Christmas tree.
All wells shall be equipped with a master valve Christmas tree, except that wells with a 3000 psi or greater shut-in well head pressure shall be equipped with a double master valve Christmas tree.
(o) 
Safety shut-in devices.
On all flow lines where pressures are less than one thousand (1,000) psi, safety shut-in devices shall be installed at the well heads that will stop flow from the well head if the pressure in the flow line rises or falls below predetermined operating limits. On all lines of one thousand (1,000) psi or more, a second safety shut-in device shall be installed on the line.
(p) 
Pressure relief valves.
Two (2) pressure relief valves shall be installed on all pressure vessels with discharge pipes no closer than fifteen feet (15’) to the ground and placed so that all discharge is vertical.
(q) 
Gas flaring.
There shall be no gas flaring except in case of emergency and to allow necessary cleanup. In all cases of flaring, except emergency, the permittee shall give twentyfour (24) hour written notice to the code enforcement administrator stating the reason for the flaring. Flaring shall be done only between the hours of sunup and sundown. In case of emergency flaring, the requirement for notification will be waived provided the permittee submits a sworn statement stating in detail the circumstances which required the emergency flaring. The statement shall be submitted within forty-eight (48) hours of the emergency to the code enforcement administrator for review.
(r) 
Tripping of pipe.
No tripping of the pipe shall be permitted between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
(s) 
Hydrogen sulfide detector.
At all times during drilling operations or maintenance, the permittee shall maintain on the derrick, as near the well hole as possible, a hydrogen sulfide (H2S) detection device designed to sound an alarm in the event hydrogen sulfide is released into the atmosphere.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.215)
(a) 
All drilling and production equipment installed or operated upon any drill site in the city during drilling operations, or upon completion of a well, followed by production, shall be so constructed, operated, and maintained that no noise, vibration, odor, or other harmful or annoying substances or effects are emitted therefrom which can be eliminated or diminished by the use of modern and approved types of equipment and silencers.
(b) 
At any drill site, the operation of oilfield, drilling, or production equipment shall not generate an A-weighted noise level which, when combined with the ambient noise level, will produce a combined noise level greater than 68 dB(A) at six hundred feet (600’) over a 24-hour period using a community noise monitor instrument approved by the code enforcement administrator.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.221)
(a) 
All of the operations at the drill site shall be conducted in a careful and orderly manner, and the premises shall at all times be maintained in a neat, clean, and orderly manner.
(b) 
All fire suppression equipment and prevention required at the drill site shall be the responsibility and at the cost of the permittee.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.222)
(a) 
All casing, including surface protection and production strings, shall meet or exceed the minimum internal pressure yield strength established under American Petroleum Institute standards.
(b) 
Each joint and length of each particular casing string shall have prior to setting unconditionally passed a complete cold water test, and the code enforcement administrator shall be furnished a copy of said test results.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.223)
It shall be unlawful for any person in connection with the drilling or reworking operations of any well within the city limits to complete any tests required by this article except during daylight hours. No tests shall be conducted without giving prior written notice to the code enforcement administrator twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the test stating the exact date, time, and place the test is to be conducted. Failure to notify or conduct the test at the specified time and place is a violation for which the permit granted hereunder may be revoked.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.224)
All tubing used in any well shall meet American Petroleum Institute standards for minimum internal pressure yield strength.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.225)
A maximum of four (4) 500-barrel tanks not exceeding a height of ten feet (10’) for storage may be constructed in connection with any one producing well within the city limits. There shall be no limitation on the size or number of storage tanks that may be constructed in the area more than one thousand feet (1,000’) from any occupied structure. Each tank shall be equipped with flame arresters and shall be so constructed and maintained as to be vapor-tight. Each tank or tank battery shall also be surrounded with an earthen firewall which shall at all times be free of vegetation and which shall be at such distance from the tank as will under any circumstances hold and retain at least one and one-half (1-1/2) times the maximum capacity of such tank. The area outside each tank but contained within the earthen firewall shall be properly drained at all times. A permittee may use, construct, and operate a steel conventional separator, and such other steel tanks and appurtenances as are necessary for treating oil, with each of such facilities to be so constructed and maintained as to be vapor-tight. Each oil gas separator shall be equipped with both a regulation pressure relief safety valve and a bursting head.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.226)
When a well is abandoned, it shall be the obligation of the permittee and the operator of the well to plug said well in accordance with the requirements of the state railroad commission.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.227)
The permittee shall make adequate provision for the disposal of all salt water or other impurities which he may bring to the surface. Disposal shall be made in a manner that will not contaminate the water supply, present or prospective, or injure surface vegetation.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.228)
A well site inspector to be designated by the code enforcement administrator shall be responsible for the monitoring of drilling and production activities both at scheduled intervals and at any times he may deem necessary to ensure the public safety and to ensure compliance with the terms of this article.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.229)
If a well is placed in production, it shall be inspected periodically by the code enforcement administrator in accordance with the requirements of this article. 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 or gas for a period of nine (9) months, unless permission to hold said well for a longer period of time is obtained from the state railroad commission. The operator shall upon request of the code enforcement administrator furnish verification of production for the purposes of this section.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.230)
If a well is to be abandoned, the following requirements are applicable:
(1) 
Within ninety (90) days after the completion of drilling operations or abandonment of further drilling, the derrick shall be removed from the drill site. Well abandonment shall be in accordance with the requirements of all applicable laws and ordinances. Upon such well abandonment, the permittee shall restore the property as nearly as possible to its original condition and shall remove all concrete foundations, oil-soaked soil, and debris. All holes or depressions shall be filled to the natural surface.
(2) 
The code enforcement administrator 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 article have been satisfied.
(3) 
After abandonment of a well by the operator, the drilling permit will be terminated if, to the satisfaction of the code enforcement administrator, all the conditions stated in this article have been fulfilled.
(1999 Code, sec. 4.231)