§ 8175-5.7.7. Oil development design standards.

The general standards that follow shall be used in the development of conditions that will help ensure that oil development projects generate minimal negative impacts on the environment. The standards shall be applied whenever physically and economically feasible and practicable, unless the strict application of a particular standard(s) would otherwise defeat the intent of other standards. An applicant should use the standards in the design of the project and anticipate their use as permit conditions, unless the applicant can demonstrate that they are not feasible or practicable. More restrictive requirements may be imposed on a project through the conditions of the permit.

(a)

Permit areas and drill sites shall generally coincide and shall be only as large as necessary to accommodate typical drilling and production equipment.

(b)

The number of drill sites in an area shall be minimized by using centralized drill sites, directional drilling, and other techniques.

(c)

Drill sites and production facilities shall be located so that they are not readily seen. All permanent facilities, structures, and aboveground pipelines on the site shall be colored so as to mask the facilities from the surrounding environment and uses in the area. Said colors shall also take into account such additional factors as heat buildup and designation of danger areas. Said colors shall be approved by the Planning Director prior to the painting of facilities.

(d)

Permittees and operators shall share facilities such as, but not limited to, permit areas, drill sites, access roads, storage, production and processing facilities and pipelines.

(e)

The following standards apply to the installation and use of oil and gas pipelines:

(1)

Pipelines shall be used to transport petroleum products offsite to promote traffic safety and air quality. Transshipment of crude oil through an onshore pipeline for refining shall be a condition of approval for expansion of existing processing facilities or construction of new facilities.

i.

Where pipeline connections are not available or feasible, oil products may be removed by truck. All tanker trucking shall be limited to Monday through Saturday, between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. of the same day. Except under emergency circumstances, as determined by the Planning Director, no more than two (2) equivalent round-trip tanker truck trips per day shall be permitted to haul oil and waste products generated from an area under an oil permit through residential streets unless the Planning Director authorizes additional trips.

(2)

New pipeline corridors shall be consolidated with existing pipeline or electrical transmission corridors where feasible, unless there are overriding technical constraints or significant social, aesthetic, environmental, or economic reasons not to do so. Installation of pipelines and utility lines (as applicable) shall be within the road prism of project access roads, to the extent practicable, to prevent additional loss of habitat.

(3)

When feasible, pipelines shall be routed to avoid important coastal resource areas, such as recreation, sensitive habitats and archaeological areas, as well as geological hazard areas. Unavoidable routing through recreation, habitat, or archaeological areas, or other areas of a significant coastal resource value, shall be done in a manner that minimizes the impacts of potential spills by considering spill volumes, duration, and projected paths. New pipeline segments shall be equipped with automatic shutoff valves, or suitable alternatives approved by the Planning Director, so that each segment will be isolated in the event of a break.

(4)

Upon completion of pipeline construction, the site shall be restored to the approximate previous grade and condition. All sites previously covered with native vegetation shall be reseeded with the same, or recovered with the previously removed vegetative materials, and shall include other measures as deemed necessary to prevent erosion until the vegetation can become established, and to promote visual and environmental quality.

(5)

All offshore to onshore pipelines shall, where feasible, be located at existing pipeline landfall sites, and shall be burled from a point where wave action first causes significant bottom disturbance. In addition, landfall sites are prohibited from areas designated as "Residential" or shown as "environmentally sensitive habitat area."

(6)

Except for pipelines exempted from permit requirements under Section 30610 of the Coastal Act as defined by the State Coastal Commission's Interpretive guidelines, a survey by a qualified expert in biological resources shall be conducted along the route of any pipeline in the coastal zone to determine what, if any, coastal resources may be impacted by construction and operation of a pipeline and to recommend any feasible mitigation measures. The costs of this survey shall be borne by the applicant, and may be conducted as part of environmental review if an EIR or Mitigated Negative Declaration is required for a particular project; or otherwise conducted prior to the issuance of any permit pursuant to this Chapter. The recommended mitigation measures shall be incorporated as part of the permit.

(7)

Prior to issuance of any permit pursuant to this Chapter, a geologic investigation shall be performed by a qualified geologist or engineering geologist where a proposed petroleum pipeline route crosses potential faulting zones, seismically active areas, or moderately high to high risk landslide areas. This report shall investigate the potential risk and recommend such mitigation measures as pipeline route changes and/or engineering measures to help assure the integrity of the pipeline and minimize erosion, geologic instability, and substantial alterations of the natural topography. The recommended measures shall be incorporated as conditions of the permit.

(f)

Cuts or fills associated with access roads and drill sites shall be kept to a minimum to avoid erosion and visual impacts. They shall be located in inconspicuous areas, and generally not exceed ten (10) vertical feet. Cuts and fills shall be restored to their original grade once the use has been discontinued.

(g)

Gas from wells shall be piped to centralized collection and processing facilities, rather than being flared, to preserve energy resources and air quality, and to reduce fire hazards and light sources. Oil shall also be piped to centralized collection and processing facilities, in order to minimize land use conflicts and environmental degradation, and to promote visual quality.

(h)

Wells shall be located a minimum of eight hundred (800) feet from occupied sensitive uses. Private access roads to drill sites shall be located a minimum of three hundred (300) feet from occupied sensitive uses, unless this requirement is waived by the occupant.

(i)

Oversized vehicles shall be preceded by lead vehicles, where necessary for traffic safety.

(j)

In the design and operation of new or modified oil and gas production facilities, best accepted practices in drilling and production methods shall be utilized, to eliminate or minimize to the maximum extent feasible any adverse impact on the physical and social environment. To this end, dust, noise, vibration, noxious odors, intrusive light, aesthetic impacts and other factors of nuisance and annoyance shall be reduced to a minimum or eliminated through the best accepted practices incidental to the exploration and production of oil and gas.

(k)

Any production shipping tanks(s) installed on the subject permit site shall have a collective rated capacity only as large as necessary to service any particular drill pad(s).

(l)

All proposed energy and industrial facilities shall be so sited and designed in compliance with CEQA requirements to eliminate or reduce, to the maximum extent feasible, impacts to biological, geological, archaeological, paleontological, agricultural, visual, recreational; air and water quality resources, and any other resources that may be identified.

(m)

In sensitive resource areas, the extent of construction and ground surface disturbance shall be reduced to a minimum by restricting construction activities and equipment within narrow, limited, and staked work corridors and storage areas.

(Rep. & Reen. Ord. 4249—11/20/01; Ord. No. 4451, § 9, 12-11-2012)