Utah Admin. Code R317-7-3 - Classification of Injection Wells
Injection wells are classified as follows:
3.1 Class I
A. Hazardous Waste Injection Wells: wells
used by generators of hazardous wastes or owners or operators of hazardous
waste management facilities to inject hazardous waste beneath the lowermost
formation containing, within two miles of the well bore, an underground source
of drinking water;
B. Nonhazardous
Injection Wells: other industrial and municipal waste disposal wells which
inject nonhazardous fluids beneath the lowermost formation containing, within
two miles of the well bore, an underground source of drinking water; this
category includes disposal wells operated in conjunction with uranium mining
activities.
C. Radioactive waste
disposal wells which inject fluids below the lowermost formation containing an
underground source of drinking water within two miles of the well
bore.
3.2 Class II.
Wells which inject fluids:
A. which are
brought to the surface in connection with conventional oil or natural gas
production and may be commingled with wastewaters from gas plants which are an
integral part of production operations, unless those waters are classified as a
hazardous waste at the time of injection;
B. for enhanced recovery of oil or natural
gas; and
C. for storage of
hydrocarbons which are liquid at standard temperature and pressure.
Class II injection wells are regulated by the Division of Oil, Gas and Mining under Oil and Gas Conservation General Rules, R649-5.
3.3 Class III. Wells which
inject for extraction of minerals, including:
A. mining of sulfur by the Frasch
process;
B. in situ production of
uranium or other metals. This category includes only in situ production from
ore bodies which have not been conventionally mined. Solution mining of
conventional mines such as stopes leaching is included in Class V;
and
C. solution mining of salts or
potash.
3.4 Class IV
A. Wells used by generators of hazardous
wastes or of radioactive wastes, by owners or operators of hazardous waste
management facilities, or by owners or operators of radioactive waste disposal
sites to dispose of hazardous wastes or radioactive wastes into a formation
which, within two miles of the well, contains an underground source of drinking
water;
B. wells used by generators
of hazardous wastes or of radioactive wastes, by owners or operators of
hazardous waste management facilities, or by owners or operators of radioactive
waste disposal sites to dispose of hazardous wastes or radioactive wastes above
a formation which, within two miles of the well, contains an underground source
of drinking water;
C. wells used by
generators of hazardous wastes or by owners or operators of hazardous waste
management facilities, to dispose of hazardous wastes which cannot be
classified under Section 7-3.1(A) or 7-3.4(A) and (B) of these rules (e.g.
wells used to dispose of hazardous wastes into or above a formation which
contains an aquifer which has been exempted).
3.5 Class V. Injection wells not included in
Classes I, II, III, or IV. Class V wells include:
A. air conditioning return flow wells used to
return to the supply aquifer the water used for heating or cooling in a heat
pump;
B. large capacity cesspools,
including multiple dwelling, community or regional cesspools, or other devices
that receive untreated sanitary wastes, containing human excreta, which have an
open bottom and sometimes have perforated sides. The UIC requirements do not
apply to single family residential cesspools nor to non-residential cesspools
which receive solely sanitary wastes and have a design flow rate of less than
or equal to 5,000 gallons per day;
C. cooling water return flow wells used to
inject water previously used for cooling;
D. drainage wells used to drain surface
fluid, primarily storm runoff, into a subsurface formation;
E. dry wells used for the injection of wastes
into a subsurface formation;
F.
recharge wells used to replenish the water in an aquifer;
G. salt water intrusion barrier wells used to
inject water into a fresh water aquifer to prevent the intrusion of salt water
into the fresh water;
H. sand
backfill and other backfill wells used to inject a mixture of water and sand,
mill tailings or other solids into mined out portions of subsurface mines,
whether what is injected is radioactive waste or not;
I. large underground domestic wastewater
disposal systems (as defined in R317-1-1.16 ) used to inject effluent from a
domestic wastewater treatment system associated with a multiple family
dwelling, business establishment, community, or regional business
establishment. The UIC requirements do not apply to single family residential
onsite wastewater systems (as defined in R317-1-1.13 ), nor to non-residential
onsite wastewater systems which are used solely for the disposal of treated
domestic waste and have a design flow rate of less than or equal to 5,000
gallons per day. Any subsurface fluid distribution system or other type of
injection well designed for any flow rate and used to dispose of industrial
wastewater is not an underground wastewater disposal system as defined by
R317-1-1.32.
J. subsidence control
wells (not used for the purpose of oil or natural gas production) used to
inject fluids into a non-oil or gas producing zone to reduce or eliminate
subsidence associated with the overdraft of fresh water;
K. stopes leaching, geothermal and
experimental wells;
L. brine
disposal wells for halogen recovery processes;
M. injection wells associated with the
recovery of geothermal energy for heating, aquaculture and production of
electric power; and
N. injection
wells used for in situ recovery of lignite, coal, tar sands, and oil
shale.
O. motor vehicle waste
disposal wells that receive or have received fluids from vehicular repair or
maintenance activities, such as an auto body repair shop, automotive repair
shop, new and used car dealership, specialty repair shop (e.g., transmission
and muffler repair shop), or any facility that does any vehicular repair work.
Fluids disposed in these wells may contain organic and inorganic chemicals in
concentrations that exceed the maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) established by
the primary drinking water rules (see 40 CFR Part 141 and Utah Primary Drinking
Water Standards
R309-200-5
). These fluids also may include waste petroleum products and may contain
contaminants, such as heavy metals and volatile organic compounds, which pose
risks to human health.
Notes
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