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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11567 ORD - 07/11/1973s AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 8294, AS AMENDED, COMMONLY CALLED THE "BAY DRILLING ORDINANCE ", REGULATING OPERATIONS•FOR PRODUCTION OF OIL AND GAS, SO AS TO PROVIDE SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATIVE TO CORPUS CHRISTI BAY, NUECES BAY, LAGUNA MADRE, AND CERTAIN NEWLY ANNEXED TERRITORY OF THE CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI; REPEALING ORDINANCE NO. 10,048; PROVIDING A SEVER - ABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION: WHEREAS, operations for the production of oil and gas within the City limits of the City'of Corpus Christi, Texas, are regulated by the pro- visions of the "Bay Drilling Ordinance ", Ordinance No. 8294, as amended; and WHEREAS, such operations in certain bay areas have been regulated by said ordinance, as the same has been amended from time to time; and WHEREAS, developments in these bay areas and in the City of Corpus Christi and its environs require that these provisions for regula- tion of operations for such production be further amended; and WHEREAS, it is recognized that lessees of oil and gas leases in the area covered by this Ordinance own the rights to search for and pro- duce oil and /or gas underlying such leases and are entitled to reasonable s, means of extracting such substances; and WHEREAS, the City Council desires and intends by this Ordinance to protect the public health, safety, morals and general welfare within its jurisdiction, and in so doing to regulate the use of property and the conduct of persons to any required extent within its municipal powers, with due regard for the legal rights of others; and WHEREAS, this Ordinance governs the exploration, drilling and production of oil, gas and other hydrocarbons, but it is intended, insofar as applicable to the area covered herein to be primarily applicable to the exploration, drilling and production of gas and gas condensate, and it is recognized that in ;the event additional oil is discovered or annexed in i commercial quantities in the area covered by this ordinance,;conditions may arise which will necessitate a revision of the provisions of this Ordinance but until such other or different classification and regulation is adopted, shall be governed by the provisions hereof; and J-1 567 A, a, }s WHEREAS, it is recognized that certain bay areas, and par- ticularly those annexed to the City of Corpus Christi by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, present peculiar problems for regulation because of differing development history, subsurface conditions and avail- able facts as to subsurface conditions with the result that reasonable classification of such differing areas is now required, and.may hereafter N require other or different classification and regulation; and WHEREAS, the City Council has made extensive investigation in the premises, directly and through its authorized agents, and has afforded ample opportunity for all segments of the economy and of the public to be heard prior and subsequent to the publication of this Ordinance; and WHEREAS, certain bay areas, and particularly those annexed by Ordinance No. 11,201, December 13, 1972, consist of older production wells and secondary recovery wells and said area is not comparable to the situation in the other areas governed by this Ordinance; and WHEREAS, the City Council, therefore, finds that adoption of the following Ordinance is in the public interest, and intending in this act to exercise any and all governmental powers of whatever nature vested in it by law: NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF .CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS: SECTION 1. Ordinance No. 10,048, which provides for interim enforcement of certain city ordinances and rules and regulations governing the exploration for, drilling, operation, and shutting -in (plugging) of oil and gas wells, and pipeline transport of the products thereof, in the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by the City's Ordinance No. 10,007, November 18, 1970, is hereby.repealed. SECTION 2. Subsection 2.1 of Ordinance No. 8294 is hereby amended by adding a new.sentence at the end thereof: "Wherever in this ordinance reference is made to Corpus Christi Bay, such reference shall not apply to the area annexed to the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, except as specifically hereinafter included." -2- A F SECTION 3. Section 3, of Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, -is hereby amended by adding at the end of subsection 3.19 the following new clause: "This definition does not apply to the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City of Corpus Christi by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972. A 'regular location' in the area annexed by Ordinance No. 119201 is defined as any location approved by any Federal or State regulatory agency having jurisdiction thereover." SECTION 4. Section 6 of Ordinance No. 8294 as amended, is hereby amended by adding a new subsection 6.7: "Extend the line from its termination as described in subsection 6.6 to the bisection of the lines comprising the southeastern- most side of State Tract 95 and the southwesternmost side of State Tract 95. Thence in a southwesterly direction along the southeasternmost line of State Tract 98 to where this line intersects with the northeasternmost line of State Tract 39. Thence in a northwesterly direction along the northeastern- most line of said State Tract 39 to the northwesternmost corner of State Tract 39 which is also the northeasternmost x corner of State Tract 38. Thence in a southwesterly ' direction along the southeasternmost lines of State Tracts 38, 37, and 36, to the southeasternmost corner of State Tract 36 which is also the northeasternmost corner of State Tract 35. Thence in a northwesterly direction along the northeasternmost lines of State Tracts 35 and 6 to the shoreline." SECTION 5. Section 7 of Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by adding at the end of Subsection 7.1 the following new sentence: "The provisions of this section shall not apply to the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972 except as hereinafter stated." -3- SECTION 6; Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by'adding to Subsection 7.6 the following new Subsection "E ": "E. The regulations contained in this Subsection shall h apply to the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay -annexed to the City by the City.'s Ordinance No. .11,201,• dated December 133 1972, where those areas are subject to United States Coast Guard regulations and jurisdiction." SECTION 7. Amending Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, by amending Subsection 7.11A to hereafter read as follows: "7.11A With respect to state leases which cover only an area_ approximately 320 acres in size, the term 'State Lease Tract' as used in paragraphs 7.10 and 7.11 of Section 7 hereof shall be deemed to mean and require an area approximately 640 acres in size which shall be formed by combining two of said state leases along the abutting long sides thereof, with such combinations to be commenced on the most westerly side of Corpus Christi Bay where said leases are found and to be carried forward contiguously in an eastwardly direction so as to form areas of approximately 640 acres in size in the' shape of a square. Specifically, but not by way of limitation each pair of the following listed pairs of State Lease Tracts shall be deemed to constitute but one State Lease Tract for purposes of-paragraphs 7.10 and 7.11 of this Section 7, to -wit: 1. .State Lease Tracts Nos. 419 and 420 2. State Lease Tracts Nos. 445 and 446 3. ' State Lease Tracts Nos. 447 and 448 4. State Lease Tracts Nos. 449 and 450 5. State Lease Tracts Nos. 451 and 452 6. State Lease Tracts Nos. 453 and 454 7. State Lease Tracts Nos. 469 and 470 8. State Lease Tracts Nos. 471 and 472 9. State Lease Tracts Nos. 473 and 474 10. State Lease Tracts Nos. 475 and 476 The following State Lease Tract numbers are hereby declared exempt from the cluster requirements of Subsection 7.10 of Ordinance No. 8294, as amended:. 1. State Lease Tracts Nos. 415 and 416 2. State Lease Tracts Nos. 417 and 418 -4- 4 3. State Lease Tracts Nos. 421 and 422 4. State Lease Tracta Nos. 443 and 444 5. State Lease Tract Nos. 455 and 456." SECTION 8. Ordinance No. 8294 as amended by Ordinance No. 9965; is hereby amended by amending Subsection 7.14 by adding at•the beginning thereof the following sentence: "This Subsection shall apply in all areas, including the areas of Nueces Bay, Laguna Madre, and Corpus Christi Bay, including,• areas annexed to the City by the City'-s Ordinance No. 11,201, " dated December 13, 1972." SECTION 9. Ordinance No. 82943 as amended, is hereby amended by amending the title to Section 9 by adding the following words after the word 'Bay': 'And other areas', and by amending Subsection 9.1 by striking the period at the end thereof and inserting in lieu thereof the following clause: "and the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by the City's Ordinance No. 11,201,' dated December 13, 1972." SECTION 10. Section 9 of Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by adding the following new sentence after the first sentence but before the second sentence in Subsection 9.4: '!The effective date of this Subsection for the area of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, shall be the effective date of this amendment to Ordinance No. 8294, this amendment being Ordinance No. SECTION 11. Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by adding the following clause at the beginning of Subsections 14.1 and 14.2: "This Section shall apply to that portion of Corpus Christi Bay which was within the corporate limits of the City of Corpus Christi immediately prior to final passage of the City's Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972." SECTION 12. Section 14 of Ordinance No. 8294,.as amended, , is hereby amended by adding the following new Subsection 14.3 thereto: -5- 1114.3 All well surface structures, production platforms • and other structures, and facilities located above the water in the area annexed to the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, and composed of materiale- generally protected or painted, shall be protected and painted in an appropriate color and shall be repainted at ' sufficiently frequent intervals to maintain same in good condition." SECTION 13. Section 14 of Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by adding the following new Subsection 14.4 thereto: "14.4 In that area annexed to the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, well surface struc -. tures and platforms are required to have adequate and appropriate lighting in accordance with and conformable to the applicable United States Coast Guard requirements and regulations." SECTION 14. Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by amending Section 19 thereof by adding a new Subsection 19.19; entitled and reading as follows: "Subsection 19.19 Prohibition Against Pumping Units. " In all the area within the corporate limits of-the City of Corpus Christi encompassing Corpus Christi Bay, Nueces Bay, Laguna Madre and the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by the City's Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972, lying below the line of mean high tide (as that line exists on the effective date hereof), and within the boundaries of the City of Corpus Christi (as such boundaries may exist from time to time), in all water areas, those units commonly referred to as pumping units employing so- called sucker rods whether beam or hydraulic type are hereby prohibited and there is hereby declared a prohibition against such pumping units." -6- ,o c� SECTION 15. Ordinance No. 82949 as amended, is-hereby amended by amending Subsection 20.4 by adding at the end thereof the following' new sentence: "Provided, however, this, subsection does not apply to the areas of Laguna Madre and Corpus Christi Bay annexed to the City by the City's Ordinance No. 11,201, dated December 13, 1972." SECTION 16. Ordinance No. 8294, as amended, is hereby amended by amending Subsection 20.5 by adding at the end of Subsection 20.5 (d) a new Subsection 20.5 (e) to read as follows: "(e) In Corpus Christi Bay within the City of Corpus Christi corporate limits as they existed in December, 1966, no storage of oil or petroleum products shall be allowed. However, with the approval of the City Council, upon the recommendation of the Bay Drilling Committee, in all other areas of Nueces Bay, Corpus Christi Bay and Laguna Madre, production platforms may contain storage of oil or petroleum products limited as follows: (a) no more than one thousand (1000) barrels in a single container or (b) if a container is of more than one thousand (1000) barrel capacity, it must be compartmentalized so that each compartment does not exceed one thousand (1000) barrels in capacity. Provided, however, that this Subsection •20.5 (e) shall apply only to new or replacement tanks installed after the effective date of this Ordinance." SECTION 17. Ordinance No.•8294, as amended, is hereby amended by amending Subsection 25.1 by deleting the following clause: "made of some permanent material, which shall reflect the name of the permittee and the number of the permit issued therefor" and inserting in lieu thereof the following language: "conformable to the requirements of the Railroad Commission of Texas." SECTION 18. Ordinance No. 8294, passed and approved on December 21, 1966, be and the same is hereby amended by amending Section 2 thereof to add a new Subsection 2.4 to read as follows: -7- cr` 's • "Those areas annexed to,the City by Ordinance No. 11,201, passed and approved by the City Council on December 13, 1972, included certain land areas used for storage of petroleum products which areas are entirely surrounded by water and thereby present no real danger of fire to the rest'of the ' City. In addition to the lack of a real danger to the City, compliance with the existing fire standards on those land areas would present an undue and unreasonable economic bur- den on the owners thereof to bring such areas into conformity with existing fire standards. Therefore, those land areas annexed to the City by the aforesaid Ordinance No. 11,201 are exempted from the requirements of the Fire Prevention Code for a period of three' (3) years from the effective date of this Ordinance and exempted for a period of five (5) years from the fire wall requirements of said code as follows: 0 1. Said areas are specifically exempted from the require- ments of Article 16, Division II and VI, Fire Prevention Code, 1970 edition, as adopted by Ordinance No. 11,239, passed and approved on January 3, 1973, for a period of three (3) years from the effective date of this Ordinance. , 2. Said areas are specifically exempted from the diking and drainage requirements of Article 16, Section 16.22(h) Division II, Fire Prevention Code, 1970 edition, as adopted by the aforementioned Ordinance No. 11,239 for a period of five (5) years from the effective date of this Ordinance." SECTION 19. If for any reason any section, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase, or provision of this Ordinance shall be held invalid by final .judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, it shall not affect any valid provisions of this or'any other Ordinance of the City of Corpus Christi to which these rules and regulations relate. SECTION 20. Publication shall be made one time in the official publication of the City of Corpus Christi, by publishing the caption of this Ordinance, stating in substance the purpose of the Ordinance. That the foregoing ordinance was read for the first time and passed to its second reading on this the a i,PCA� day of 6r , 19 '?_, by the following vote: U Jason Luby ll le- James T. Acuff GU 1L Rev. Harold T. Branch dfiP- ,� u Thomas V. Gonzales (L�11t U Ricardo Gonzalez1� w Gabe Lozano, Sr. 0--lN u J. Howard Stark That the foregoing ordinance was read for the second time and passed to its third reading on this the ?eO day of UL4 A< , 19'x, by the following vote: Jason Luby CG�1ti ,James T. Acuff Q c 1L Rev. Harold T. Branch /C- Thomas V. Gonzales Cx Ricardo Gonzales Gt -'-f- Gabe Lozano, Sr.1� J. Howard Stark Cis c� That the foregoing ordinance was read for the third time and passed finally on this the day of (�,-&u , 19 7 3 , by the following vote: U � Jason Luby • p _ James T. Acuff _: e t y Rev. Harold T. Branch Thomas V. Gonzales Ricardo Gonzales Q t� Gabe Lozano, Sr. x J. Howard Stark CLtvL U PASSED AND APPROVED, this the - day of 19 . Q ATTEST: r -tom �°" City Secre ary / (/ (/ MAY THE CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS APPROVED: _ 2� DAY OF,,, iWU IQ: hd City'-'Attorney X PUBLISHER'S AFFIDAVIT STATE OF TEXAS, �ss: County of Nujeces. Before me, the undersigned, a Notary Public, this day personally came .................................. Laulse ... V.Izk .................................... who being first duly sworn, according to law, says that he is the u .......... M-a2 B. -SUIX—rV.1 Zar ................. of the Corpus Christi Caller and The Corpus Christi Times, Daily Newspapers published at Corpus Christi, Texas, in said County and State, and that the publication of T.Legs2 H.Q.tirnamn.Natlae ... of . ......... .A§.p a&g jg_.�gg.cj .7 ..................... .. of which the annexed is a true copy, was published in ........................... T. Imes............_..: .................. . ..... . .. on the ... 1.4:LNay of ........ ..... Tw-y ................ 19._73, amkm==arJt --------------------------- At9EftFRm-&r ....................... . cowerfte .......... . ............................................. ............ I .................. Times. ................... ................ ----- 2 ... ........... Lo se Vick, Class. Adv. Supervisor Subscribed and sworn to before me this day of. ............................... Zul-y ........... 19-7-3. ...... /' .. Woodrow Glenn o ay Public, .Nueces County, Texas k