North Dakota Administrative Code

In the event an emergency is found to exist by the commission which in its judgment requires the making, revoking, amending, modifying, altering, enlarging, renewing, or extending of a rule, regulation, or order without first holding a hearing after due notice, such emergency rul…

The commission, its agents, representatives, and employees are charged with the duty and obligation of enforcing all rules and statutes of the state of North Dakota relating to coal exploration and evaluation. 2 It shall be the responsibility of all permit applicants and permitho…

The commission recognizes that all persons exploring on United States government land or for United States government minerals shall comply with the federal regulations. Such persons shall also comply with all applicable state rules and regulations which are not in conflict with …

Forms for written notices, requests, and reports required by the commission will be furnished upon request. These forms shall be of such a nature as prescribed by the commission covering proposed work, work in progress, and the results of completed work. General Authority: NDCC 3…

The commission may from time to time enter into arrangements with state and federal government agencies, committees from industry, and individuals with respect to special projects, services, and studies relating to coal exploration. General Authority: NDCC 38-12.1-04 Law Implemen…

The state geologist shall maintain an official permit list in which shall be entered: 1. The name of the permitholder. 2. The permit number. 3 General Authority: NDCC 38-12.1-04 Law Implemented: NDCC 38-12.1-04

Any person engaged in coal exploration and evaluation, or who proposes to do so, shall submit to the commission and obtain its approval of a surety bond or cash bond. An alternate form of security may be approved by the commission after notice and hearing, as provided by law, and…

1. Except as provided in subdivisions a, b, and c, all information submitted to the commission with a permit application for coal exploration shall be made available for public inspection and copying at the office of the state geologist. a. The state geologist shall not make info…

Basic data developed by or for the person conducting the coal exploration or evaluation, consisting of testhole locations, testhole elevations, total depths, driller's logs, radioactivity, resistivity, or other types of electrical or mechanical logs shall be delivered free of cha…

Quarterly progress reports, listing locations of testholes completed and plugged, shall be filed by the twenty-fifth day of January, April, July, and October by all permitholders. If no drilling occurred during the quarter, a report so stating shall be filed. Completion reports s…

Before any testhole is abandoned, all of the cuttings possible must be returned to the testhole, and it shall be plugged in such a manner as to prevent the intrusion of any foreign material. Any cuttings not returned to the hole must be spread at the surface, if approved by the l…

When a testhole to be plugged may safely be used as a freshwater well, and such utilization is desired by the landowner, the testhole need not be filled above a sealing plug set below the freshwater aquifer; provided, that written authority and assumption of liability for such us…

During the drilling of any testhole, all freshwaters and waters of present or probable value for domestic, commercial, or stock purposes encountered shall be confined to their respective strata and shall be adequately protected by methods approved by the state geologist. Special …

The state geologist or the state geologist's representative shall have access to all drilling or exploration installations regulated under this chapter for the purpose of inspection and sampling. The state geologist may require the aid of the permitholder if the state geologist f…

A permit shall be required prior to commencement of operations for the exploration and evaluation of coal, except as provided in subsection 2 of North Dakota Century Code section 38-12.1-05. A permit shall be granted for one year upon receipt of a permit application, on a form pr…

1. So that the state geologist can decide if a permit is required, notice of all planned environmental data gathering activities, except for those specified in subsections 2 and 3, must be provided to the state geologist before beginning any such activities. The notice must inclu…

The permit application shall include: 1. The name, address, and telephone number of the person seeking to explore. 2. The name, address, and telephone number of the representative who will be present at and responsible for conducting the exploration activities. 3. A precise descr…

The performance standards in this section are applicable to coal exploration which substantially disturbs land surface and on land designated unsuitable for mining under North Dakota Century Code section 38-14.1-05. Whether the land surface will be substantially disturbed shall b…

No coal shall be extracted for commercial sale during a coal exploration operation. No other coal shall be extracted except for cores and samples necessary for testing and analysis. History: Effective August 1, 1980. General Authority: NDCC 38-12.1-04 Law Implemented: NDCC 38-12.…

The terms used throughout this chapter have the same meaning as in North Dakota Century Code chapter 38-12, except: 1. "Barrel" means forty-two United States gallons [158.99 liters] measured at sixty degrees Fahrenheit [15.56 degrees Celsius] and fourteen and seventy-three hundre…

This chapter contains general rules of statewide application which have been adopted by the industrial commission to conserve the natural resources of North Dakota, to prevent waste, and to provide for operation in a manner as to protect correlative rights of all owners of subsur…

Repealed effective July 1, 2013.

Repealed effective July 1, 2013.

development, and production of subsurface minerals. The commission, its agents, representatives, and employees are charged with the duty and obligation of enforcing all rules and statutes of North Dakota relating to the exploration, development, and production of subsurface miner…

All operators, contractors, drillers, carriers, gas distributors, service companies, pipe pulling and salvaging contractors, or other persons shall at all times conduct their operations in the mining, drilling, equipping, operating, producing, plugging, and site reclamation of su…

The commission recognizes that all persons drilling and producing on United States government land shall comply with the United States government regulations. Such persons shall also comply with all applicable state rules and regulations. Copies of the sundry notices, reports on …

Forms for written notices, requests, and reports required by the commission will be furnished upon request. These forms shall be of such nature as prescribed by the commission to cover proposed work and to report the results of completed work. General Authority: NDCC 38-12-02 Law…

The commission may from time to time enter into arrangements with state and federal government agencies, industry committees, and individuals with respect to special projects, services, and studies relating to subsurface minerals. History: Amended effective July 1, 2013. General …

Every person acting as principal or agent for another or independently engaged in the drilling for, or in the production, storage, transportation, refining, reclaiming, treating, marketing, or processing of subsurface minerals in North Dakota shall immediately file with the state…

By special order of the commission, periodic surveys may be made of the reservoirs in the state containing subsurface minerals. These surveys will be thorough and complete and shall be made using methods approved by the director. The condition of the reservoirs containing subsurf…

The state geologist shall maintain an official permit list and a record of official well names. 1. The official permit list must include: a. The name of the permitholder; b. The permit number; c. The date the permit was issued; and d. The location of the permit. 2. The record of …

The commission, director, and their representatives shall have access to all well records wherever located. All owners, operators, drilling contractors, drillers, service companies, or other persons engaged in drilling, completing, producing, or servicing wells shall permit the c…

Before any person receives a permit to explore for or produce subsurface minerals, the person shall submit to the commission and obtain its approval of a surety bond or cash bond. An alternate form of security may be approved by the commission after notice and hearing, as provide…

The principal on the bond covering a well is the operator of the well. The operator is responsible for compliance with all laws relating to the well and well site. A dispute over designation of the operator of a well may be addressed by the commission. In doing so, the factors th…

A permit shall be required prior to commencement of operations for the exploration or evaluation of subsurface minerals. The application for a permit to drill (form 1-sm) shall be filed with the director, together with a permit fee of one hundred dollars. In extenuating circumsta…

1. After notice and hearing, the commission may revoke a drilling, recompletion, or reentry permit or limit its duration. The commission may act upon its own motion or upon the application of an owner in the spacing or drilling unit. In deciding whether to revoke or limit a permi…

The operator shall submit plans and specifications to the director before constructing the following surface facilities: 1. Process or recovery plants and satellite facilities; 2. Ponds and impoundments; 3. Pipelines; 10 4. Well houses or transfer stations; 5. Fuel storage areas;…

1. The operator shall develop, for the department's approval, a construction quality assurance plan that addresses all aspects of constructing surface facilities. The plan must include the following: a. A description of the responsibilities and authorities of key personnel, inclu…

1. Topsoil must be removed before the installation of underground pipelines and replaced after pipelines are installed. 2. Pipeline systems must be constructed with materials that have the strength, thickness, and chemical properties that prevent failure due to pressure gradients…

All liquid waste streams must be: 1. Disposed of in a permitted class I or V underground injection control disposal well under a state department of health underground injection control program permit in accordance with chapter 33-25-01; 2. Land applied under a solid waste permit…

All well locations must be approved by the commission, after notification and hearing. No well drilled for solution mining of subsurface minerals shall be located closer than five hundred feet [152.4 meters] from the boundary line of property owned or leased by the operator excep…

An operator may apply for an exception to drill at a distance less than five hundred feet [152.4 meters] from the boundary line of a property owned or leased by the operator if the operator submits geological and other technical data to the commission which indicates that waste w…

When any well is drilled or deepened, tests to determine the deviation from the vertical shall be taken at least every one thousand feet [304.8 meters]. The director is authorized to waive the deviation test for a shallow gas well if the necessity therefor can be demonstrated to …

Every well associated with the exploration or mining of subsurface minerals shall be identified by a sign posted on the derrick or not more than twenty feet [6.10 meters] from the well. The sign shall be of durable construction and the lettering thereon shall be kept in a legible…

In the construction of a drill site, access road, and all associated facilities, topsoil shall be removed, stockpiled, and stabilized or otherwise reserved for use when the area is reclaimed. "Topsoil" means the suitable plant growth material on the surface; however, in no event …

Repealed effective July 1, 2013.

All open pits and ponds which contain saltwater must be fenced. All pits and ponds which contain oil must be fenced, screened, and netted. This is not to be construed as requiring the fencing, screening, or netting of a drilling pit or reserve pit used solely for drilling, comple…