|
| |
| A |
| Acre - A unit of area equivalent
to 43,560 square feet. |
| Actual Production -
A federal oil and gas lease is considered in actual production
status when it contains one or more wells drilled on a lease
or unit or communization agreement basis, which are producing
or capable of producing oil or gas in paying quantities. |
| Acute Hazard - A hazard that
can have either an immediate or delayed effect (with short-term
or prolonged consequences) due to a single exposure to an accident,
such as exposure to a gas explosion, fireball, or a release
of an acutely toxic material. |
| Air Basin - An area with generally
similar meteorological and geographic conditions throughout.
To the extent possible, air basin boundaries are defined along
political boundary lines and include both the source and receptor
areas. California is currently divided into 15 air basins. Santa
Barbara County is located in the South Central Coast Air Basin,
along with San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties. |
| Air District - A political
body responsible for managing air quality on a regional or county
basis. California is currently divided into 35 air districts
(See Regulatory Agencies). |
| Air Pollution - Degradation
of air quality resulting from unwanted chemicals or other materials
occurring in the air. |
| Air Pollution Control District (APCD)
- The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District regulates
local sources of air pollution in accordance with state and
federal air pollution control laws for the purposes of attaining
all ambient air quality standards and minimizing public exposure
to airborne toxins and nuisance odors. |
| Air Quality Attainment Plan (AQAP)
- A comprehensive document required under the California Clean
Air Act (Health and Safety Code Section 40910 et. seq.), which
details the programs and control measures to be implemented
for the purpose of reducing emissions. Emissions ultimately
must be reduced to the extent the measured concentrations of
pollutants in the air will not exceed California ambient air
quality standards. |
| Ambient Air Quality Standard
- Health and welfare-based standards established by the state
or federal government for clean outdoor air that identify the
maximum acceptable average concentrations of air pollutants
during a specified period of time. |
| American Gas Association (AGA) -
The American Gas Association (AGA) represents local natural
gas utilities that deliver gas to U.S. homes and businesses.
AGA provides services to member natural gas pipelines, marketers,
gatherers, international gas companies and industry associates.
AGA acts as a clearinghouse for gas energy information and as
a catalyst in technical and energy policy matters. |
| American Petroleum Institute (API)
- The primary trade association representing all segments of
the petroleum industry from exploration through marketing in
the United States. API is the largest association in the petroleum
industry and API provides a forum for the oil and natural gas
industry to pursue public policy objectives and advance the
interests of the industry. |
| American Society For Testing And Materials
(ASTM) - ASTM provides a forum for the development and publication
of voluntary consensus standards for materials, products, systems,
and services. |
| Amine Unit - A natural gas
treatment unit for removing contaminants- H2S, COS, CO2 - by
the use of amines. Amine units are often skid-mounted so they
can be moved to the site of new gas production. Gas containing
H2S and other impurities must be cleaned up before it is acceptable
to gas transmission pipelines. |
| Amortization - A process
that allows for the eventual termination of a non-conforming
use, without compensation, by establishing a time period for
the owner to recoup its investment. |
| Approved Exploration
Plan Review Process (AEPRP) - The Minerals Management
Service (MMS) Pacific Region established this process in 1994
to review previously approved Exploration Plans (EP's) in
the Pacific Region. This process provides the opportunity
for MMS and state and local agencies to jointly investigate
and propose appropriate mitigation, which could be necessary
because of changes to a plan or to the environmental considerations
that may have occurred over the intervening years since the
original plan was approved. This process implements the MMS
regulatory requirement found at 30 CFR 250.33(n)(1) [Code
of Federal Regulations] for periodic reviews of approved EP's.
The MMS reviews an EP under this process when an operator
intends to drill an exploratory well pursuant to an approved
EP that is over 2 years old. |
| Aromatics - Hydrocarbons characterized
by unsaturated ring structures of carbon atoms. Commercial petroleum
aromatics are benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX). |
| Artificial Lift - Any
method used to raise oil to the surface through a well after
reservoir pressure has declined to the point at which the well
no longer produces be means of natural energy. Sucker rod pumps,
gas lift, hydraulic pumps, and submersible electric pumps are
the most common forms of artificial lift. |
| Asphalt - A solid hydrocarbon
found as a natural deposit. Crude oil of high asphaltic content,
when subjected to distillation to remove the lighter fractions
such as naphtha and kerosene, leaves asphalt as a residue. Asphalt
is a cement-like material containing bitumens as the predominant
constituent obtained by petroleum processing. It’s dark
brown or black in color and at normal temperatures is a solid. |
| Assessor's Parcel Number (APN) -
A unique number assigned by the County Assessor identifying
a property for tax assessment purposes only. It does not indicate
parcel legality or a valid building site. |
| Attainment Area - A geographic
region, which is in compliance with the National and/or California
Ambient Air Quality Standards for a criteria pollutant under
the Federal Clean Air Act or California Clean Air Act. |
| Authority to Construct (ACT) - The
ATC permit allows for the construction of a new facility or
installation as well as modification of equipment at an existing
facility. The ATC ensures that the equipment is designed, constructed,
and operated to meet local, state, and federal air quality requirements.
|
| Average Noise Levels Exceeded 10% of
Time (L10) - L10 is the noise level
exceeded for 10% of the total sample time when noise measurements
are conducted. |
| Average Noise Levels Over Specific Time
Period (LEQ) - LEQ is equivalent continuous
sound level during a period of sound monitoring and measurement.
|
|
| B |
| Barrel (bbl) - A measure of volume
for petroleum products. One barrel is equivalent to 42 U.S.
gallons or 0.1589 cubic meters. One cubic meter equals 6.293
barrels. |
| Barrels Per Calendar Day - The
maximum number of barrels of input that can be processed during
a 24-hour period after making allowances for the following
limitations:
- The capacity of downstream facilities to absorb the output
of crude oil processing facilities of a given refinery,
- The types and grades of inputs to be processed,
- The types and grades of products expected to be manufactured,
- The environmental constraints associated with refinery
operations,
- The reduction of capacity for scheduled downtime such
as routine inspection, mechanical problems, maintenance,
repairs and turnaround; and the reduction of capacity for
unscheduled downtime such as mechanical problems, repairs,
and slowdowns.
|
| Barrels Per Day (BPD) - In the United
States, a measure of the rate of flow of a well; total amount
of oil and other fluids produced, processed, or transported
per day. |
| Barrels Per Stream Day - The amount
a unit can process running at full capacity under optimal crude
oil and product slate conditions. |
| Basic Sediment and Water (BS&W)
- Impurities and foreign matter contained in oil produced from
a well. |
| Batch - A definite amount of oil,
mud, acid, or other liquid in a tank or pipe. |
| Benzene (C6H6)
- An aromatic hydrocarbon present in small proportion in some
crude oils and made commercially from petroleum by the catalytic
reforming of napthenes in petroleum naptha. Also made from coal
in the manufacture of coke. Used as a solvent, in manufacturing
detergents, synthetic fibers, and petrochemicals and as a component
of high-octane gasoline. |
| Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, Xylene
(BTEX) - Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, Xylenes (BTEX),
and substituted benzyne are the most common aromatic compounds
in petroleum, making up to a few percent of the total mass of
some crude oils. BTEX are the most soluble and mobile fraction
of crude oil. BTEX are also hazardous, carcinogenic, and neuro-toxic
compounds subject to hazardous materials regulations. |
Best Available Control Technology (BACT)
- BACT is a term used to describe up-to-date methods, systems,
techniques, and processes applied to new and modified sources
of air pollution in order to achieve the most feasible air pollution
emission control. BACT is a requirement stipulated in APCD Regulation
VIII (New Source Review), in both Rule 802 (Non-attainment Review)
and Rule 803 (Prevention of Significant Deterioration). Rule
802 governs the permitting and new and modified stationary sources
of air pollution that emit pollutants for which the County has
been designated as non-attainment for either the State or federal
ambient air quality health standards. Rule 803 governs the permitting
of new or modified stationary sources of attainment pollutants.
Each of these two rules contains its own emission rate thresholds
over which the BACT requirement is triggered. For sources permitted
under Rule 802, BACT is the more stringent of:
a) The most effective control device, emission unit, or
technique that has been achieved in practice for the type
of equipment comprising the stationary source; or
b) The most stringent limitation contained in any
State Implementation Plan; or
c) Any other emission control device or technique
determined after public hearing to be technologically feasible
and cost effective by the Control Officer.
For sources permitted under Rule 803, BACT is an emission
limitation based on the maximum degree of reduction for each
pollutant that would be emitted from any new or modified stationary
source, which on a case-by-case basis, taking into account
energy, environment, and economic impacts and other costs,
is achievable for such a source or modification through application
of production processes or available methods, systems, and
techniques, including fuel cleaning or treatment or innovative
fuel combustion techniques for control of such a pollutant. |
| Best Management Practice (BMP) -
BMPs are: 1) a practice or combination of practices that are
determined to be the most effective and practicable means of
controlling point and non-point pollutants at levels compatible
with environmental quality goals; and 2) methods, measures or
practices selected by an agency to meet pollution control needs.
BMPs include structural and non-structural controls, operation,
and maintenance procedures. |
| Billion (B) - (U.S.) denoting
a quantity consisting of one thousand million items or units;
(Britain) denoting a quantity consisting of one million million
items or units [syn: a billion] n 1: (in Britain) the number
that is represented as a one followed by 12 zeros [syn: one
million million, 1000000000000] 2: (in the United States) the
number that is represented as a one followed by 9 zeros [syn:
one thousand million, 1000000000] |
| Bioventing - Bioventing stimulates
the naturally occurring soil microorganisms to degrade compounds
in soil by providing oxygen. The rate of natural degradation
is generally limited by lack of oxygen in soil. In conventional
bioventing systems, oxygen is delivered by an electronic blower
to subsurface vent wells such that the airflow to provide oxygen
to sustain microbial activity. Passive bioventing systems use
natural air exchange to deliver oxygen to the subsurface via
bioventing wells. A one-way valve is installed on a vent well,
which allows air to enter the well when the pressure inside
the well is lower than atmospheric pressure. |
| Bit - The cutting or boring element
used in drilling oil and gas wells. The bit consists of a cutting
element and a circulating element. The circulating element allows
the passage of drilling fluid and employs the hydraulic force
of the fluid stream to improve drilling rates. In rotary drilling,
several drill collars are joined to the bottom end of the drill
pipe, and the bit is attached to the end of the sting of drill
collars. |
| Bleed - To drain off liquid or
gas, generally slowly, through a valve called a bleeder. To
bleed down, or bleed off, means to release pressure slowly from
a well or from pressurized equipment. |
| Blowdown - 1) The emptying or
depressurizing of material in a vessel. 2) The material thus
discarded. |
| Blowout - An uncontrolled flow
of gas, oil, or other fluids from a well to the atmosphere.
A well may blow out when formation pressure exceeds the pressure
overburden of a column of drilling fluid. |
| Blowout Preventer -
One of several valves installed at the wellhead to prevent the
escape of pressure either in the annular space between the casing
and drill pipe or in the open hole (i.e., hole with no drill
present) during drilling completion operations. Blowout preventers
on land rigs are located beneath the rig at the land's surface;
on jack-up or platforms rigs, at the water's surface; and on
floating offshore rigs, on the seafloor. |
| Board of Supervisors - A county’s
legislative body. Board members are elected by popular vote
and are responsible for enacting ordinances, imposing taxes,
making appropriations, and establishing county policy. The board
adopts the general plan, zoning, and subdivision regulations. |
| Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosions
(BLEVEs) - The violent rupture of a container of flammable
material and the rapid vaporization of the material, which may
result in a large rising fireball with intense thermal radiation
and potential "rocketing" of part of the container.
BLEVEs generally result from exposure of the container to external
source of high heat. |
| Bonuses - OCS leases in areas
thought to contain minerals are awarded through a competitive
bidding process. Bonuses represent the cash amount successfully
bid to win the rights to a lease. |
| British Thermal Unit (BTU) - The
amount of heat required to raise one pound of water one degree
Fahrenheit. |
| Brown Act - The Ralph M. Brown
open Meeting Act (commencing with Government Code Section 54950)
requires cities and counties to provide advanced public notice
of hearings and meetings of their councils, boards, and other
bodies. Meetings and hearings, with some exceptions, must be
open to the public. |
| Buffer Zone - A geographic area
between a potential pollution source and areas sensitive to
that potential pollution source. Buffer zones are intended to
control erosion, filter sediments, filter and absorb pollutants,
etc. |
| Bulk Terminal - A facility used
primarily for the storage and/or marketing of petroleum products
which has a total bulk storage capacity of 50,000 barrels or
more and/or receives petroleum products by tanker, barge or
pipeline. |
| Business,
Transportation and Housing Agency - The Business, Transportation
& Housing Agency is part of the Executive Branch of California
government and its Secretary is a member of the Governor's
cabinet. There are 14 departments within the Business, Transportation
and Housing Agency. The Agency oversees programs that plan,
build, and maintain California's transportation systems, that
ensure efficient and fair markets for the real estate industry,
and that assist state and community efforts to expand the
availability of affordable housing. The Agency also regulates
managed health care plans as well as the banking, and financial
and securities industries, and carries out the Governor's
vision for business, transportation and housing in California. |
| Butane (C4H10)
- A normally gaseous, paraffinic hydrocarbon (C4H10)
extracted from natural gas or refinery gas streams. It includes
isobutane and normal butane, and is used primarily for blending
into high-octane gasoline, for residential and commercial heating,
and for industrial purposes, especially the manufacture of chemicals
and synthetic rubber. |
| Bypass - 1) A pipe connection
around a valve or other control mechanism that is installed
to permit passage of fluid through the line while adjustments
or repairs are being made on the control. 2) A delivery of gas
to a customer's traditional supplier. For example, delivery
of gas to an end user directly off a transmission pipeline without
moving the gas through the end user's traditional local distribution
company supplier. |
|
| C |
| California Air
Resources Board (ARB or CARB) - The State's lead air quality
agency consisting of an eleven-member board appointed by the
Governor and several hundred employees. CARB is responsible
for attainment and maintenance of the state and federal air
quality standards, and is fully responsible for motor vehicle
pollution control. It oversees county and regional air pollution
programs. |
| California Ambient Air Quality Standards
(CAAQS) - A legal limit that specifies the maximum level
and time of exposure in the outdoor air for a given air pollutant
and which is protective of human health and public welfare (Health
and Safety Code 39606b). CAAQSs are recommended by the California
Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and adopted
into regulation by the CARB. CAAQSs are the standards which
must be met per the requirements of the California Clean Air
Act (State Act). |
| California Clean Air Act of
1988 - A California law passed in 1988, which provides the
basis for air quality planning and regulation independent of
federal regulations. A major element of the Act is the requirement
that local air districts in violation of the CAAQS must prepare
attainment plans which identify air quality problems, causes,
trends, and actions to be taken to attain and maintain California's
air quality standards by the earliest practicable date. |
| California Coastal Commission
(CCC) - This commission was established by voter initiative
in 1972 (Proposition 20) and made permanent by the Legislature
in 1976 (the Coastal Act). The primary mission of the Commission,
as the lead agency responsible for carrying out California's
federally approved coastal management program, is to plan for
and regulate land and water uses in the coastal zone consistent
with the policies of the Coastal Act. |
| California Department of Conservation,
Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) -
This division oversees the drilling, operation, maintenance,
and plugging of oil, natural gas, and geothermal wells, emphasizing
sound engineering practices that protect the environment, prevent
pollution, and ensure public safety. |
| California Department of Fish and Game
(CDFG) - This department manages California's diverse fish,
wildlife, and plant resources, and the habitats upon which they
depend, for their ecological values and for their use and enjoyment
by the public. |
| California Department of Fish and Game,
Division of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR). OSPR which
is housed within the Department Fish and Game is the lead State
agency charged with oil spill prevention and response within
California's marine environment. The Lempert-Keene-Seastrand
Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1990 established OSPR
and provides the OSPR Administrator with substantial authority
to direct spill response, cleanup, and natural resource damage
assessment activities. |
| California Department
of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) - The Department's mission
is to restore, protect and enhance the environment, to ensure
public health, environmental quality and economic vitality,
by regulating hazardous waste, conducting and overseeing cleanups,
and developing and promoting pollution prevention. |
| California Endangered Species Act (CESA)
- The California Endangered Species Act (CESA) (Fish &
Game Code §§ 2050, et seq.) generally parallels the
main provisions of the Federal Endangered Species Act and is
administered by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG).
Under CESA the term "endangered species" is defined
as a species of plant, fish, or wildlife which is "in serious
danger of becoming extinct throughout all, or a significant
portion of its range" and is limited to species or subspecies
native to California. |
| California Energy Commission (CEC)
- This commission is the state's primary energy policy and planning
agency. Created by the Legislature in 1974 and located in Sacramento,
the Commission has five major responsibilities: 1) forecasting
future energy needs and keeping historical energy data; 2) licensing
thermal power plants 50 MW or larger; 3) promoting energy efficiency
through appliance and building standards; 4) developing energy
technologies and supporting renewable energy; and 5) planning
for and directing state response to energy emergencies. |
| California Environmental Projection
Agency (Cal/EPA) - This agency is responsible for the restoration,
protection, and enhancement of the environment, to ensure public
health, environmental quality and economic vitality. |
| California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA) - The basic purpose of CEQA is: 1) to inform government
decision makers and the public about the potential environmental
effects of proposed activities; 2) to identify ways that a proposed
project's environmental damage can be avoided or significantly
reduced; 3) to prevent significant, avoidable damage by requiring
changes in projects, either by the adoption of alternatives
or imposition of mitigation measures; and 4) to disclose to
the public why a project was approved if that project would
have significant environmental effects. California lawmakers
enacted CEQA (Public Resources Code, § 21000 et. seq.)
in 1970, one year after the federal lawmakers enacted the National
Environmental Policy Act. CEQA applies to all governmental agencies
at all levels in California, but does not apply to the California
legislature. It affects the approval of projects subject to
CEQA that may result in one or more significant effects on the
environment. "CEQA compels government first to identify
the environmental effects of projects, and then to mitigate
those adverse effects through the imposition of feasible alternatives."
(Sierra Club v. State Board of Forestry, 1994.) |
| California Public Utilities Commission
(CPUC) - The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)
regulates privately owned telecommunications, electric, natural
gas, water, railroad, rail transit, and passenger transportation
companies. |
| California Public Utilities
Commission (Energy Division) - This Division drafts resolutions
for formal consideration by the California Public Utilities
Commission. These resolutions generally result from informal
utility requests called advice letters that are submitted
to request rate and tariff adjustments. The Energy Division
through its Federal Policy and Rate-making Section represents
the Commission in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
and court proceedings. The Energy Division assists the Commission
in its regulation of four types of Investor-Owned Utilities
(IOUs): Electric, Natural Gas, Steam and Petroleum Pipeline
Companies. Commission-approved tariffs (official rates and
terms of service) for these four types of IOUs are maintained
by the Energy Division. |
| California
Resources Agency - This agency is responsible for the conservation,
enhancement, and management of California's natural and cultural
resources, including land, water, wildlife, parks, minerals,
and historic sites. Among its departments, boards, conservancies,
commissions and programs, the following play a pre-dominate
role in development of offshore oil and gas reserves. |
| California State Lands Commission (SLC)
- This commission was established in 1938 with authority
detailed in Division 6 of the California Public Resources Code.
The members of the State Lands "Commission" include
the Lieutenant Governor, the State Controller and the State
Director of Finance. |
| California State
Water Resources Control Board - The State Water Resources
Control Board (SWRCB) was created by the Legislature in 1967.
The SWRCB ensures the quality for waters of the State, while
allocating those waters to achieve the optimum balance of beneficial
uses. The joint authority of water allocation and water quality
protection enables the SWRCB to provide comprehensive protection
for California's waters. The SWRCB consists of five full-time
salaried Members, each filling a different specialty position.
Board members are appointed to four-year terms by the Governor
and confirmed by the Senate. There are nine Regional Water Quality
Control Boards that develop and enforce water quality objectives
and implementation plans which will best protect the beneficial
uses of the State's waters, recognizing local differences in
climate, topography, geology and hydrology. Each RWQCB has nine
part-time Members also appointed by the Governor and confirmed
by the Senate. RWQCBs develop "basin plans" for their
hydrologic areas, govern requirements, issue waste discharge
permits, take enforcement action against violators, and monitor
water quality. The task of protecting and enforcing the many
uses of water, including the needs of industry, agriculture,
municipal districts, and the environment is an ongoing challenge
for the SWRCB and RWQCBs. |
| Capacity (idle) - The component
of operable capacity that is not in operation and not under
active repair, but capable of being placed in operation within
30 days; and capacity not in operation but under active repair
that can be completed within 90 days. |
| |
| Capacity (operable)
- The amount of capacity that, at the beginning of the period,
is in operation; not in operation and not under active repair,
but capable of being placed in operation within 30 days; or
not in operation but under active repair that can be completed
within 90 days. Operable capacity is the sum of the operating
and idle capacity and is measured in barrels per calendar day
or barrels per stream day. |
| Capacity (production) -
The maximum amount of product that can be produced from processing
facilities. |
| Capping - A process to close
a well to prevent the escape of gas. |
| Casing - The large-diameter steel
pipe placed in an oil and gas well as drilling progresses to
prevent the wall of the hole from caving in during drilling,
to prevent seepage of fluids, and to provide a means of extracting
hydrocarbons if the well is productive. |
| Casing Head - The top of
the casing set in a well; the part of the casing that protrudes
above the surface and to which the control valves and flow pipes
are attached. |
| Casing Head Gas - Gas produced
from an oil well as distinguished from gas produced from a gas
well. The casing head gas is taken off at the top of the well
or at the separator. |
| Cathodic Protection
- A method of preventing corrosion by applying a low-voltage
electrical charge on a metal pipeline, which causes the pipeline
to behave as a cathode |
| Caustic Soda - Caustic Soda
(sodium hydroxide) is a strong, highly poisonous and corrosive
alkali |
| Cellar - A hole dug, usually before
drilling of a well, to allow working space for the casing head
equipment. |
| Christmas Tree - The assembly
of control valves, pressure gauges, and chokes at the top of
a well to control the flow of oil and gas after the well has
been drilled and completed. |
| Clean Air Act (CAA) - A federal law
passed in 1970 and amended in 1977 and 1990, which forms the
basis for the national pollution control effort. Basic elements
of the act include national ambient air quality standards for
major air pollutants, air toxicity standards, acid rain control
measures, and enforcement provisions. |
| Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA)
- Passed by Congress in 1972, CZMA encourages effective management
of coastal zone resources. This act established a federal and
state coordinated regulatory process known as "consistency
review," which grants to coastal states that elect to participate
in the CZMA program and whose coastal programs have been federally
approved, the ability to regulate federal activities that affect
their coastal zones - including Outer Continental Shelf oil
and gas activities. The CZMA provides federal funding to support
state coastal zone management programs that meet certain CZMA
policy objectives. California's Coastal Management Plan was
certified in 1978 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
giving the State consistency review over federal activities
that affect its coastal zone. |
| Cogeneration Plant
- A coal- or gas-fired plant that generates both steam and electricity
for in-plant use or for sale. |
| Commingled - Mixed. With respect
to oil, it is the mixture of oil and gas from different sources
into a common stream. |
| Community Noise Equivalent Level (CNEL)
- The CNEL is a calculated noise average over a 24 hour period.
It attempts to differentiate the intrusiveness of daytime and
nighttime noises by applying a weighting factor to nighttime
noise. |
| Community Plan - Community plans
are often used by cities and counties to plan the future of
an area at a finer level of detail than that provided in the
comprehensive plan. A portion of the comprehensive plan focusing
on the issues pertinent to a particular area or community within
a city or county. It supplements the policies of the comprehensive
plan. |
| Comprehensive (General) Plan
- The local comprehensive plan can be described as a city's
or county's "blueprint" for future development.
The comprehensive plan and its diagrams and maps have a long-term
outlook, identifying the types of development that will be
allowed, the spatial relationships among land uses, and the
general pattern of future development. State law mandates
seven elements in a county's or general law city's comprehensive
plan (though other elements may be added as a jurisdiction
deems necessary). These seven elements are:
- Land Use Element - Designates the general location and
intensity of housing, business, industry, open space, education,
public buildings and grounds, waste disposal facilities,
and other land uses.
- Circulation Element - Identifies the general location
and extent of existing and proposed major roads, transportation
routes, terminals, and public utilities and facilities.
It must be correlated with the land use element.
- Housing Element - A comprehensive assessment of current
and projected housing needs for all economic segments of
the community and region. It sets forth local housing policies
and programs to implement those policies.
- Conservation element - Addresses the conservation, development,
and use of natural resources including water, forests, soils,
rivers, and mineral deposits.
- Open-space Element - Details plans and measures for preserving
open space for natural resources, the managed production
of resources, outdoor recreation, public health and safety,
and the identification of agricultural land.
- Noise Element - Identifies and appraises noise problems
within the community and forms the basis for distributing
new noise-sensitive land uses.
- Safety Element - Establishes policies and programs to
protect the community from risks associated with seismic,
geologic, flood, and wildfire hazards.
|
| Condensate - A natural gas
liquid with a low vapor pressure, compared with natural gasoline
and liquefied petroleum gas. It is produced from a deep well
where the temperature and pressure are high. Gas condenses as
it rises up the well bore and reaches the surface as condensate.
Similarly, condensate separates out naturally in pipelines or
in a separation plant by the normal process of condensation. |
| Condensate (plant) - One
of the natural gas liquids, mostly pentanes and heavier hydrocarbons,
recovered and separated as liquids at gas inlet separators or
scrubbers in processing plants. |
| Conditional Use Permit (CUP) - Most
zoning ordinances identify certain uses that do not precisely
fit into existing zones, but which may be allowed upon approval
of a conditional use permit. The local zoning ordinance specifies
those uses for which a conditional use permit may be requested,
which zones they may be requested in, and the public hearing
procedure. If the local planning commission or board of supervisors
approves the use, it will usually do so subject to certain conditions
being met by the permit applicant. |
| Control Measure - A strategy
to reduce the emissions of air pollution caused by a specific
activity or related group of activities. An existing control
measure is a measure, which is currently being implemented as
a rule. A proposed for adoption control measure is a measure
that the APCD will be mandated to make into a rule if the plan
is approved by the Board. A further study control measure is
a measure that has the potential of being proposed for adoption,
but warrants further study. |
| Corrosion Inhibitor -
A chemical substance that minimizes or prevents corrosion in
metal equipment. |
| Coupon - A small metal strip which
is exposed to corrosive systems for purpose of determining the
nature and severity of corrosion. |
| Crude Oil - An unrefined liquid
petroleum consisting of a mixture of hydrocarbons. It ranges
in gravity from 9 degrees API to 55 degrees API and in color
from yellow to black. Crude oils may be referred to as heavy
or light, according to API gravity, with lighter weight oil
exhibiting the higher gravity. Viscosity varies with gravity;
crude oils with lower gravity are more viscous and oils with
higher gravity are less viscous. |
| Crude Oil (domestic) - Crude
oil produced in the United States or from its "outer continental
shelf" as defined in 43 USC 1331. |
| Crude Oil (foreign) - Crude
oil produced outside of the United States. Imported Athabasca
hydrocarbons (tar sands from Canada) are included. |
| Crude Oil (Heavy) -
Crude oil of 20º API gravity or less. There are perhaps
billions of barrels of heavy crude oil still in place in the
U.S. that require special production techniques, notably steam
injection or steam soak, to extract them from the underground
formations. |
| Crude Oil (Sour) -
Oil containing hydrogen sulfide or other acidic gases. |
| Crude Oil Production - The
volume of crude oil produced from oil reservoirs during given
periods of time. The amount of such production for a given period
is measured as volumes delivered from lease storage tanks (i.e.,
the pint of custody transfer) to pipelines, trucks, or other
media for transport to refineries or terminals with adjustments
for (1) net differences between opening and closing lease inventories,
and (2) basic sediment and water (BS&W). |
| Crude Oil Qualities - Refers
to two properties of crude oil, the sulfur content and API gravity,
which affect refinery processing complexity and product characteristics. |
| Cubic Foot (cu ft) - The volume
of a cube, all edges of which measure 1 foot. Natural gas in
the United States is usually measured in cubic feet, with the
most common standard cubic foot being measured at 60 degrees
Fahrenheit and 14.65 pounds per square inch absolute, although
base conditions vary from state to state. |
| Cultural Resources Management Plan (CRMP)
- A CRMP is formulated to preserve and protect cultural resources
from project impacts. Cultural resources include, but are not
limited to, 1) archaeological materials and sites that are currently
located on or beneath the ground surface; 2) standing structures
that are over 50 years of age or are important because they
represent a major historical theme or era; 3) cultural and natural
places, certain natural resources, and sacred objects that have
importance for Native Americans; and 4) American folklore traditions
and arts. A CRMP must reflect an understanding of the historical,
architectural, cultural and landscape characteristics that make
a resource eligible for listing on the National Register, and,
if not already prepared, provide an inventory of such resources.
The CRMP must also justify the removal or alteration of a resource. |
| Cumulative Effect - The incremental
effect(s) of an individual project in connection with the effects
of past projects, the effects of other current projects, and
the effects of probable future projects (Public Resources Code
Section 30105.5). |
| Cuttings - The fragments of
rock dislodged by the bit and brought to the surface in the
drilling mud. Washed and dried cuttings samples are analyzed
by geologists to obtain information about the formations drilled.
|
|
| D |
| Dead Weight Tons (DWT) - The carrying
capacity of a vessel is the total weight of cargo, bunkers,
dunnage, provisions, water, stores and spare parts, expressed
in tons which a vessel can lift when loaded in salt water to
her maximum draft, either winter, summer or tropical load-line,
as the case may be. |
| Decibel (dB) - The decibel (dB) is
a unit of a logarithmic scale of power or intensity used to
describe the amplitude of sound called the power level or intensity
level. The decibel is defined as one tenth of a bel where one
bel represents a difference in level between two intensities
I1, I0 where one is ten times greater than the other. |
| Decline Curve - An analysis
of established trends of oil and gas production and analogous
production data from other sources to project future production. |
| Dehydrate - To remove water
from a substance. Dehydration of crude oil is normally accomplished
by treating with emulsion breakers. The water vapor in natural
gas must be removed to meet pipeline requirements; a typical
maximum allowable water vapor content is 7 pounds per million
cubic feet per day. |
| Department of Commerce (DOC) - A
cabinet-level department in the Executive Branch of the Federal
Government responsible for promoting a sustainable national
economy. |
| Department of Energy (DOE) - A Cabinet-level
department in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government
responsible for coordinating a comprehensive and balanced national
energy plan. |
| Department of the Interior (DOI)
- A Cabinet-level department in the Executive Branch of the
Federal Government, responsible for the administration of most
of the nationally owned public lands and natural resources.
|
| Department
of Transportation (Caltrans) - The State of California,
Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is responsible for
the design, construction, maintenance, and operation of the
California State Highway System, as well as that portion of
the Interstate Highway System within the state's boundaries.
Alone and in partnership with Amtrak, Caltrans is also involved
in the support of intercity passenger rail service in California,
and is a leader in promoting the use of alternative modes
of transportation. The current framework of Caltrans was set
down by Assembly Bill 69 in 1972. |
| Department of Transportation (DOT)
- The Department of Transportation touches the public through
its mission of ensuring that our various modes of transportation
operate safely on an individual basis and together as an inter-linked
transportation system. |
| Department of Water Resources - This
department prepares and updates California's Water Plan every
five years to reflect changes in water demand and suggest ways
of managing demand and augmenting supplies. The Department also
maintains the State Water Project, regulates dams, provides
flood protection through a Flood Management Program, and assists
in emergency management through the emergency response functions
established in the California State Emergency Plan and the California
Water Code. |
| Derrick - The tower component
of a drilling rig that supports the cables and blocks, which
in turn raise and lower the frill stem and bit. |
| Development Fees - Fees charged
to developers or builders as a prerequisite to construction
or development approval. |
| Diluent - Liquid added to dilute
or thin a solution; sometimes added to heavy crude oil to aid
transportation via pipeline. |
| Discretionary Action
- An action which requires the public agency to exercise judgement
in deciding whether to approve or disapprove the particular
activity, as distinguished from situations where the public
agency merely has to determine whether there has been conformity
with applicable ordinances or other laws. Pub. Res. Code §
21080(a). |
| Dispersant - Dispersants are
chemicals that are applied directly to an oil slick. The key
components of chemical dispersants are active agents called
surfactants (also known as detergents). Chemical dispersants
assist with breaking up an oil slick on the surface of water. |
| Distillate (No. 1) - A petroleum
distillate which meets the specification for No. 1 heating or
fuel oil as defined in ASTM D 396 and/or the specifications
for No. 1 diesel fuel as defined in ASTM Specification D 975. |
| Distillate (No. 2) - A petroleum
distillate which meets the specifications for No. 2 heating
or fuel oil as defined in ASTM D 396 and/or the specifications
for No. 2 diesel fuel as defined in ASTM Specification D 975. |
| Distillate (No. 4 ) - A fuel oil
for commercial burner installations not equipped with preheating
facilities. It is used extensively in industrial plants. This
grade is a blend of distillate fuel oil and residual fuel oil
stocks that conforms to ASTM Specifications D396 or Federal
Specifications VV-F-815C. |
| Distillate Fuel Oil - A general
classification for one of the petroleum fractions produced in
conventional distillation operations. It is used primarily for
space heating, on-and-off-highway diesel engine fuel (including
railroad engine fuel and fuel for agricultural machinery), and
electric power generation. Included are products known as No.1,
No. 2, and No. 4 diesel fuels. Distillate fuel oil is reported
in the following categories: 0.05% sulfur and under, for use
in on-highway diesel engines which could be described as meeting
EPA regulations; and greater than 0.05% sulfur, for use in all
other distillate applications. |
| Distillation - The process
of driving off gas or vapor from liquids or solids usually by
heating, and condensing the vapor back to liquid to purify,
fractionate, or form new products. |
| Division of Spill Prevention and Response
(OSPR). OSPR which is housed within the Department Fish
and Game is the lead State agency charged with oil spill prevention
and response within California's marine environment. The Lempert-Keene-Seastrand
Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1990 established OSPR
and provides the OSPR Administrator with substantial authority
to direct spill response, cleanup, and natural resource damage
assessment activities. |
| Division Of Oil, Gas, And Geothermal
Resources (DOGGR) - A division of the Department of Conservation
that regulates the drilling, operation, maintenance, and plugging
of oil, natural gas, and geothermal wells. |
| Downstream - Refers to facilities
or operations performed after those at the point of reference.
For example, refining is downstream from production operations;
marketing is downstream from refining. |
| Downzone - This term refers
to the rezoning of land to a more restrictive zone district
(for example, from multi-family residential to single-family
residential). |
| Drill ship - A ship constructed
with a derrick amidships to permit a well to be drilled at an
offshore location, often in deep water. A drill ship may have
a ship hull, a catamaran hull, or a trimaran hull. |
| Drilling (directional
or extended reach) - Directional drilling is the intentional
deviation of a well bore from the vertical. Although well bores
are normally drilled vertically, it is sometimes necessary or
advantageous to drill at an angle from the vertical. Controlled
directional drilling makes it possible to reach subsurface areas
laterally remote from the point where the bit enters the earth.
It often involves the use of turbo-drills, Dyna-Drills, whipstocks,
or other deflecting rods. Extended reach drilling is drilling
horizontally from a bore hole that is begun as a vertical bore.
By the use of angle-building assemblies, the drill gradually
assumes a horizontal attitude and drills laterally the productive
formation. Extended reach drilling is used principally on offshore
platforms to cover a large area of an outer continental shelf
(O.C.S.) lease. As many as 60 wells have been drilled from a
large platform. With the advances in angle-building techniques,
using mud motors, extended reach drilling has made significant
progress. Some operators have plugged close-in wells and used
the platform drilling slots for extended reach wells. |
| Drilling (Horizontal)
- A modern directional-drilling technique using mud motors to
begin a well, drilling vertically then diverting the bore hole
a few degrees from vertical every 50 to 100 feet (angle building)
until the well bore is horizontal. The procedure is very effective
in producing from thin but porous and permeable formations.
To produce from the long axis of a 30 or 60-foot interval is
markedly more efficient than vertically across the formation. |
| Drilling (Slant Hole) -
A procedure for drilling at an angle from the vertical by means
of special downhole drilling tools to guide the drill assembly
in the desired direction. Slant holes are drilled to reach a
formation or reservoir under land that cannot be drilled on,
such as beneath a town site, a water supply lake, a cemetery,
or industrial property wehre direct, on-site drilling would
be impractical or unsafe. Slant holes are also drilled to flood
a formation with water or mud to kill a wild or burning well. |
| Drilling Island - A man-made
island constructed in water 10 to 50 feet deep by dredging up
the lake or bay bottom to make a foundation from which to drill
wells. This procedure is used for development drilling, rarely
in wildcatting. |
| Drilling Slots - Positions
on an offshore drilling platform for additional wells. When
a successful well is drilled offshore, other wells are put down
slanted put at an angle from the platform by directional drilling.
On large offshore platforms, there may be as many as 40, even
60, wells drilled into the reservoir. If all of the multiple
wells are successful and the total daily production warrants,
the drilling platform will be converted to a producing platform.
Drilling equipment is removed, a manifold of well-control valves
is built, and pumping equipment installed to move the crude
to a production platform where the oil is separated from the
produced water, treated with chemicals (if necessary), measured,
and pumped to a shore station. (Note the difference between
producing and production installations; they are related but
quite different in function.) |
| Dry Hole - An exploratory or
development well found to be incapable of producing either oil
or gas in sufficient quantities to justify completion as a production
well. |
|
| E |
| Easement - The right of a person,
government agency, or public utility company to use public or
private land owned by another for a specific purpose, such as
to access power lines. |
| Economic Limit - The production
level at which a producing facility no longer generates sufficient
revenue to represent an acceptable rate of return to the owner/operator
of that facility. |
| Economically Recoverable
Resource Estimate - An assessment of hydrocarbon potential
that takes into account (1) physical and technological constraints
on production and (2) the influence of exploration and development
costs and market price on industry investment in OCS exploration
and production. |
| Emergency Response Plan (ERP) -
The purpose of an ERP is to provide specific emergency operations
procedures for various emergency scenarios. The success of this
plan is dependent upon individuals' familiarity with the contents
of the plan prior to an actual emergency. Preplanning is essential
to such a plan's success. |
| Emergency Shutdown Device (ESD) -
Activated during an emergency to instantly or quickly shutdown
all or part of a system in order to avoid fire, explosion, or
some other undesired outcome. An emergency shutdown device is
usually used during a crisis to prevent damage to various components,
equipment, or the environment, depending on the function and
location of the device |
| Emission Offsets - A
rule-making concept whereby approval of a new or modified stationary
source of air pollution is conditional on the reduction of emissions
from other existing stationary sources of air pollution. These
reductions are required in addition to reductions required by
BACT. |
| Emission Standard -
The maximum amount of a pollutant that is allowed to be discharged
from a polluting source such as an automobile or smoke stack. |
| Emulsion - A mixture in which
one liquid is uniformly distributed in another liquid. Water-oil
emulsion is a typical product of oil wells. |
| Endangered Species Act (ESA)
- The Endangered Species Act of 1973 protects animal and plant
species currently in danger of extinction (endangered) and those
that may become endangered in the foreseeable future (threatened).
It requires the conservation of ecosystems upon which threatened
and endangered species of fish, wildlife, and plants depend,
both through Federal action and by encouraging the establishment
of state programs. |
| Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) - The
introduction of an artificial drive and displacement mechanism
into a reservoir to produce oil that is not recoverable by primary
recovery methods. The purpose of EOR is to restore formation
pressure and fluid flow to a substantial portion of a reservoir
by injecting fluids into injection wells located in a rock that
has fluid communication with production wells. Water flooding,
chemical flooding, gas injection, and thermal recovery represent
principal EOR methods. Chemical flooding, most types of gas
injection, and thermal methods are often called advanced EOR
methods because they not only restore formation pressure but
also improve displacement of oil by overcoming forces that keep
the oil trapped in rock pores. |
| Entrained Liquids -
Heavier liquid hydrocarbons, often in the form of mist-sized
liquid droplets, occurring in a gas stream. Specially designed
separators or processing facilities are used to remove the liquid
from the gas stream. |
| Environmental Assessment (EA) - A
concise public document that a lead federal agency prepares
when a project is not covered by a categorical exclusion, and
the lead agency does not know if the impacts will be significant. |
| Environmental Impact Report (EIR)
- CEQA requires a CEQA-lead agency to prepare an EIR whenever
it determines that a proposed project subject to CEQA may produce
significant environmental effects (Public Resources Code, §
21080 & 21082.2). |
| Environmental Impact Report (Master
EIR) - A master EIR is used as a first step in environmental
review for broad-based programs where a series of related actions
may occur under one project. The master EIR covers all of the
potential environmental impacts that can be feasibly analyzed
at the time the overall project plan is designed. |
| Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
- A detailed statement that describes the environmental impacts
of a proposed action and its alternatives. The EIS and the procedures
surrounding its preparation and review form the cornerstone
of NEPA's system of environmental protection. |
| Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- A cabinet-level agency in the Executive Branch of the Federal
Government responsible for protecting human health by safeguarding
the natural environment. |
| Environmental Quality Assurance Plan
(EQAP) - The Environmental Quality Assurance Program (EQAP)
entails field-monitoring to enforce compliance with environmentally
protective permit conditions, particularly during construction
of the major facilities. The EQAP process entails two steps:
First, permittees submit Environmental Quality Assurance Programs
to the County for approval prior to construction. These programs
describe how permittees would ensure compliance with all permit
conditions during both the construction and operations phases
of the projects. EQAPs also have been required for projects
entailing abandonment of oil and gas facilities and sites. Second,
the County closely monitors compliance in the field. Aside from
ensuring compliance with conditions, such monitoring provides
two additional benefits. 1) EQAP monitors are able to anticipate
environmental impacts, including some not identified during
the environmental review of a project, and recommend measures
to avoid or reduce such impacts. 2) Monitoring during construction
gives added insight as to the effectiveness of measures designed
to mitigate significant adverse effects on the environment.
|
| Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area
(ESHA) - Any area in which plant or animal life or their
habitats are either rare or especially valuable because of their
special nature or role in an ecosystem and which could be easily
disturbed or degraded by human activities and developments (Public
Resources Code Section 30107.5). |
| Environmentally Superior Alternative
(ESA) - CEQA requires that an EIR shall describe a range
of reasonable alternatives to a proposed project, or to the
location of the project, which would feasibly attain most of
the basic objectives of the project but would avoid or substantially
lessen adverse significant effects of the project, and evaluate
the comparative merits of the alternatives (CEQA Guidelines
Sec. 15126.6(a)). The environmentally superior alternative is,
therefore, the project alternative identified in the EIR as
feasibly attaining the majority of project's objectives in the
least environmentally damaging manner. Should the "no project"
alternative meet this definition, then the EIR also must identify
an environmentally superior alternative among the remaining
alternatives. |
| Ethane (C2H6)
- A normally gaseous straight-chain hydrocarbon. It is a colorless
paraffinic gas extracted from natural gas and refinery gas streams. |
| Exclusion, Categorical
- A category of proposed actions, which a federal agency
identifies in its NEPA procedures, that do not individually
or cumulatively have a significant effect on the environment.
|
| Exemption (Categorical) - A
categorical exemption is “an exemption from CEQA for a
class of projects based on a finding by the Secretary of Resources
that the class of projects does not have a significant effect
on the environment.” CEQA Guidelines § 15354 |
| Exemption (Statutory) - Statutory
exemptions are “exemptions from CEQA granted by the legislature.
The exemptions take several forms. Some exemptions are complete
exemptions from CEQA. Other exemptions apply to only part of
the requirements of CEQA, and still other exemptions apply only
to the timing of CEQA compliance.” CEQA Guidelines §
15260 |
| Expansion Loop - A circular
loop (360º bend) put in a pipeline to absorb expansion
and contraction caused by heating and cooling without exerting
a strain on pipe or valve connections. |
| Exploration - The process
of searching for minerals preliminary to development. Fluid
mineral exploration include activities such as geophysical surveys,
drilling to locate an oil or gas reservoir, and drilling of
additional wells to delineate a reservoir. |
| Exports (petroleum) - Shipments
of crude oil and petroleum products from the 50 States and the
District of Columbia to foreign countries, Puerto Rico, the
Virgin Islands, and other U.S. possession and territories. |
| External Force - A leading
cause of pipeline failures that refers to third-party intrusions
into the pipeline corridor such as a backhoe, or earth movements
such as erosion and scouring, landslides, and seismic events.
|
|
| F |
| Fatigue - Failure of a metal
under repeated loading. |
| Fault - A break in subsurface strata.
Often strata on one side of the fault line have been displaced
(upward, downward, or laterally) relative to their original
positions. |
| Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) - An independent regulatory agency
within the Department of Energy that regulates the transmission
and sale of natural gas for resale in interstate commerce; regulates
the transmission of oil by pipeline in interstate commerce;
regulates the transmission and wholesale sales of electricity
in interstate commerce; licenses and inspects private, municipal
and state hydroelectric projects; oversees environmental matters
related to natural gas, oil, electricity and hydroelectric projects;
administers accounting and financial reporting regulations and
conduct of jurisdictional companies; and approves abandonment
and location of interstate pipeline facilities. The Commission
recovers all of its costs from regulated industries through
fees and annual charges. |
| Feedstock - Crude oil (wet
or dry) or natural gas input to a processing facility. |
| Field - A geographical area in
which one or more oil or gas wells produce. A field may refer
to surface area only or to an underground productive formation.
A single field may include several reservoirs separated either
horizontally or vertically. |
| Field, Oil - The surface
area overlying an oil reservoir or reservoirs. The term usually
includes not only the surface area, but also the reservoir,
the wells, and the production equipment. |
| Field Production - Represents
crude oil production on leases, natural gas liquids production
at natural gas processing plants, new supply of other hydrocarbons/oxygenates
and motor gasoline blending components, and fuel ethanol blended
into finished motor gasoline. |
| Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI)
- A public document that briefly describes why an action that
is otherwise not excluded from NEPA will not have any significant
environmental effects and will not, therefore, require an EIS.
An agency preparing an EA must write a FONSI if it decides not
to prepare an EIS. |
| Fire Protection Plan (FPP) - A document
prepared for a specific project or development. It describes
ways to minimize and mitigate the fire problems created by the
project or development, with the purpose of reducing impact
on the community's fire protection delivery system. The plan
may utilize components of land use, building construction, vegetation
management, and other design techniques and technologies. |
| First Purchase (of crude oil)
- An equity (not custody) transaction involving an arms-length
transfer of ownership of crude oil associated with the physical
removal of crude oil from a property (lease) for the first time.
A first purchase normally occurs at the time and place of ownership
transfer where the crude oil volume sold is measured and recorded
on a run ticket or other similar physical evidence of purchase.
The reported cost is the actual amount paid by the purchaser,
allowing for any adjustments (deductions or premiums) passed
on to the producer or royalty owner. |
| Flammable - Term describing
material that can be easily ignited. Petroleum products with
a flash point of 80ºF or lower are classed as flammable. |
| Flange - A projecting rim or edge
(as on pipe fittings and openings in pumps and vessels), usually
drilled with holes to allow bolting to other flanged fittings. |
| Flaring - A process to dispose
of surplus combustible vapors by igniting and burning them in
the atmosphere. |
| Flow Lines - The surface pipes
through which oil travels from a well to storage. |
| Fluid Phases - Refers to
the two kinds of fluid - liquids and gases; liquid phase and
gaseous phase. Both are capable of flowing, so they are fluids,
although gases are commonly not thought of as fluids. Geologists
customarily refer to "multiple fluid gases" meaning
oil, condensate, and water as well as gases: natural gas (CH4),
carbon dioxide (CO2), and hydrogen sulfide (H2S). |
| Formation - A rock unit that
possesses distinctive characteristics. Formations are often
given names as a result of the study of the formation outcrop
at the surface or based on fossils found in the formation. |
| Formation (Monterey)
- The Monterey Formation is a vast area of marine deposits
rich in fossils. It covers both a large area of California and
an extended period of time. This formation is both a reservoir
and a source of hydrocarbons. |
| Formation Breakdown
- An event occurring when bore hole pressure is of such magnitude
that the exposed formation cannot withstand applied pressure. |
| Formation Fracturing
- A method of stimulating production by opening new flow channels
in the rock surrounding a production well. Often called a frac-job.
Under extremely high hydraulic pressure, a fluid (such as distillate,
diesel fuel, crude oil, dilute hydrochloric acid, water, or
kerosene) is pumped downward through production tubing or drill
pipe and forced out below a packer or between two packers. The
pressure causes cracks to open in the formation, and the fluid
penetrates the formation through the cracks. Sand grains, aluminum
pellets, walnut shells, or similar materials (propping agents)
are carried in suspension by the fluid into the cracks. When
the pressure is released at the surface, the fracturing fluid
returns to the well. The cracks partially close on the pellets,
leaving channels for oil to flow around them into the well. |
| Free-Water Knockout (FWKO) - A vertical
or horizontal vessel into which oil or emulsion is run to allow
any water not emulsified with the oil (free water) to drop out.
|
|
| G |
| Gas - Any fluid, either combustible
or noncombustible, that has neither independent shape nor volume
and tends to expand indefinitely if unconfined. Gas is any substance
that exists in a gaseous state at the surface under normal conditions.
Gas includes methane (CH4), carbon dioxide, other gaseous hydrocarbons,
and nitrogen. |
| Gas (Acid) - A gas that forms
an acid when mixed with water. In petrol production and processing,
the most common acid gases are hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide.
They both cause corrosion, and hydrogen sulfide is very poisonous. |
| Gas (Associated) - Gas
combined with oil. It provides the drive mechanism needed to
force oil to the surface of a well. |
| Gas (Dry) - Natural gas
from the well that is free of liquid hydrocarbons; gas that
has been treated to remove all liquids. |
| Gas (Entrained) -
Gas suspended in bubbles in a stream of liquid such as water
or oil. |
| Gas (Inert) - Any one
of six gases that, under normal conditions, are not inclined
to react with any of the other elements. The inert or inactive
gases are neon, helium, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon. |
| Gas (Liquefied Petroleum) - A gaseous
byproduct of petroleum refining that is compressed to a liquefied
form for sales. LPG consists of ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene,
normal butane, butylene, isobutane, and isobutylene produced
at refineries or natural gas processing plants, including plants
that fractionate raw natural gas plant liquids |
| Gas (Natural) - Natural
Gas is a mixture of hydrocarbons and small quantities of various
non-hydrocarbons existing in the gaseous phase or in solution
with crude oil in underground reservoirs. A compressible and
expansible mixture of hydrocarbons having a low specific gravity
and occurring natural in a gaseous form. Natural gas ordinarily
consists principally of methane and heavier entrained hydrocarbons,
and may contain appreciable quantities of nitrogen, helium,
carbon dioxide, and contaminants such as hydrogen sulfide and
water vapor. |
| Gas (Non-Associated)
- Natural gas which is in reservoirs that do not contain
significant quantities of crude oil. |
| Gas (Sour) - Gas containing
more than trace amounts of toxic compounds, including hydrogen
sulfide and other chemicals. |
| Gas (Sweet) - Natural
gas that does not contain hydrogen sulfide (H2S), or only contains
trace amounts of H2S. |
| Gas (Wet) - Natural gas
prior to the removal of water. |
| Gas lift - The process of raising
or lifting fluid from a well by injecting gas down the well
through tubing or through the tubing-casing annulus. Injected
gas aerates the fluid to make it exert less pressure than the
formation does; consequently, the higher formation pressure
forces the fluid out of the well bore. Gas may be injected continuously
or intermittently, depending on the producing characteristics
of the well and the arrangement of the gas-lift equipment. |
| Gas Oil - A semi-refined petroleum
product somewhat heavier than kerosene which may be used directly
as a fuel oil or further refined into other products. |
| Gas Plant - A physical plant
through which raw gas is processed to remove heavier hydrocarbons
and other chemical components. |
| Gas Plant Products -
Natural gas liquids and other products such as carbon dioxide
and sulfur recovered from processing raw gas. Finished natural
gas liquids are processed through a fractionation plant. Gas
plant products include ethane, propane, normal butane, isobutane,
and pentane. They may also include other finished petroleum
products such as motor gasoline, aviation gasoline, special
naphthas, kerosene, distillate fuel oil, and other miscellaneous
products. |
| Gas/Oil Ratio (GOR) - The measure
of the volume of gas produced with oil, expressed in cubic feet
per barrel or cubic meters per ton. |
| Gasohol - A blend of finished
motor gasoline and alcohol (generally ethanol but sometimes
methanol), limited to 10 percent by volume of alcohol. |
| Gasoline (motor, finished) -
A complex mixture of relatively volatile hydrocarbons, with
or without small quantities of additives, that has been blended
to form a fuel suitable for use in spark-ignition engines -
motor gasoline as given ASTM Specification D-4814 or Federal
Specification VV-G-1690C. “Motor gasoline” includes
reformulated gasoline, oxygenated gasoline, and other finished
gasoline. Blendstock is excluded until blending has been completed. |
| Gasoline (Natural)
- Drip gasoline; a light, volatile liquid hydrocarbon mixture
recovered from natural gas. A water-white liquid similar to
motor gasoline, but with a lower octane number. Natural gasoline,
the product of a compressor plant or gasoline plant, is much
more volatile and unstable than commercial gasoline because
it still contains many lighter fractions that have not been
removed. |
| Gasoline (oxygenated) - Gasoline
formulated for use in motor vehicles that has an oxygen content
of 1.8 percent or higher, by weight. Includes gasohol. Excludes
reformulated gasoline, oxygenated fuels program reformulated
gasoline (OPRG) and reformulated gasoline blendstock for oxygenate
blending (RBOB). |
| Gasoline (reformulated) - Gasoline
formulated for use in motor vehicles, the composition and properties
of which meet the requirements of the reformulated gasoline
regulations promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency under Section 211K of the Clean Air Act. Includes oxygenated
fuels program for reformulated gasoline (OPRG). Excludes reformulated
gasoline blendstock for oxygenated blending (RBOB). |
| Gathering Lines - Pipelines
and other equipment normally used to transport oil or gas from
a well on a lease to a central accumulation point on or near
the lease site where production is measured for royalty purposes. |
| Geographic Information System (GIS)
- A computer database designed to display information in graphic
form on a geographic base. |
| Geo-hazard Monitoring Program (GHMP)
- The geologic hazards program helps identify where land movement
might be a threat to pipeline safety, and implements activities
that are designed to prevent failures in these locations. |
| Geology - The science of the
history of the Earth and its life as recorded in rocks. |
| Geology (Petroleum)
- The study of hydrocarbon-bearing rock formations. Petroleum
geology addresses the origin, occurrence, movement, and accumulation
of hydrocarbon fluids. It is an important branch of geology
for the petroleum industry since it concerns itself with the
origin, migration, and accumulation of oil and gas deposits
in commercial quantities. It involves that application of geochemistry,
geophysics, paleontology, structural geology, and stratigraphy
to the problems of discovering oil and gas deposits. Petroleum
geologists are also intimately involved in the greasy day-to-day
work of drilling by advising, identifying, and counseling on
handling down-hole problems such as lost circulation, acidizing,
setting pipe, and hydro-fracing. |
| Geomorphology - The science
that concerns itself with the general features on the Earth's
surface; specifically, the study of the classification, description,
origin, and development of present day landforms and their relationship
to underlying, subsurface structures. |
| Geophysics - The application
of certain familiar physical principles - magnetic attraction,
gravitational pull, speed of sound waves, the behavior of electric
currents - to the science of geology. |
| Global Positioning System (GPS) -
The Global Positioning System is used for navigational purposes.
This system can be used to determine your exact position on
the Earth anytime, in any weather, anywhere. GPS satellites,
24 in all, orbit at 11,000 nautical miles above the Earth. They
are continuously monitored from five ground stations worldwide.
The satellites transmit signals that are detected by a GPS receiver.
Using the receiver, you can determine your location to within
about 300 feet. Even greater accuracy, usually within less than
three feet, can be obtained with corrections calculated by a
GPS receiver at a known fixed location. |
| Grading - Any activity which
involves the physical movement of earth material, including
any excavating, filling, stockpiling, movement of material,
compaction of soil, creation of borrow pits, land reclamation,
surface mining operations exempted from the County’s Surface
Mining and Reclamation Ordinance, or combinations thereof. Grading
does not include surface mining or quarrying operations (including
the extraction and stockpiling of excavated products and the
reclamation of mined lands) carried out under a vested rights
determination or a permit issued pursuant to the County’s
SMARA Ordinance (Sec.14.6 a). (Santa Barbara County Code, Chapter
14, Grading Ordinance No. 4477, June 2003) |
| Gravity
(API) - The standard adopted by the American Petroleum
Institute for measuring the density or gravity of liquid petroleum
products on the North American Continent, derived from a specific
gravity in accordance with the following equation:
| API Gravity= |
141.5
Specific
Gravity |
-131.5 |
A unit of measurement which describes oil characteristics related
to viscosity and flow properties. In general, oil with a low
gravity is heavier and more viscous than oil with a high gravity.
|
| Gravity (Specific) - Density
expressed as the ratio of the weight of a volume of substance
to the weight of an equal volume of another standard substance.
In the case of liquids and solids, the standard is water. In
the case of natural gas or other gas materials, the standard
is air. |
|
| H |
| Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) -
HCPs are land use plans that allow nonfederal land owners to
obtain an “incidental take permit” for species that
are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered
Species Act in return for conservation commitments. Incidental
take permits allow landowners to carry out specified economic
activities on their land that destroy habitats or otherwise
harm, or “take,” threatened or endangered species.
HCPs must be approved by the Secretary of the Interior or the
Secretary of Commerce. Before this happens, the appropriate
Secretary must determine that the landowner’s activities
will not reduce the likelihood of species survival and recovery,
that the adverse impacts of those activities will be mitigated
to the maximum extent practicable, and the landowner has ensured
that there will be adequate funding to carry out the HCP. |
| Hazardous Material - A substance
or combination of substances that, because of quantity, concentration,
or physical, chemical, or infections characteristics, may either:
1) cause or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality
or an increase in serious, irreversible, or incapacitating illness;
or 2) pose a substantial present or potential hazard to human
health or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported,
or disposed of, or otherwise managed. |
| Hazards and Operability Study
(HAZOPS) - These studies establish the hazardous states
or conditions of a system and their effect by means of a methodical
examination of the system and its elements. The analysis should
be carried out by a team with a broad knowledge of the system
and its operation. Prior to the study being carried out agreed
checklists containing guide words relevant to the system should
be compiled in order to provide a basis for the study. The
degree of depth of the checklist should be dependent on the
knowledge of the system at the time the study is carried out.
This technique can therefore be applied at any stage of the
project lifecycle. In order to carry out a HAZOPS a system
description is necessary. The HAZOPS can then be used to identify
hazards which can subsequently be analyzed further by hazard
analysis techniques such as Failure Modes Effects and Criticality
Analysis and Fault Tree Analysis. |
| Header - A large-diameter pipe
into which a number of smaller pipes are perpendicularly welded
or screwed; a collection point for oil or gas gathering lines. |
| Heater-Treater - A vessel that
heats an emulsion and removes water and gas from the oil to
raise it to a quality acceptable for a pipeline or other means
of transport. A heater-treater is a combination of a heater,
free-water knockout, and oil and gas separator. |
| Hydrocarbons - Compounds
consisting of molecules of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons
exist in a variety of compounds because of the strong affinity
of the carbon atom for other atoms and for itself. The smallest
molecules of hydrocarbons are gaseous while the largest are
solids. Both oil and unprocessed "wet" natural gas
are mixtures of many hydrocarbons. |
| Hydrogen - The lightest of all
gases, occurring chiefly in combination with oxygen in water;
exists also in acids, bases, alcohols, petroleum, and other
hydrocarbons. |
| Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S)
- A colorless, acidic gas, almost as toxic as hydrogen cyanide.
H2S may be present in crude oil and natural gas produced from
oil and gas wells. Inhalation of large doses can cause immediate
death. Inhalation of smaller doses can cause injury or death. |
| Hydrostatic Testing
- Filling a pipeline or tank with water under pressure to test
for tensile strength, its ability to hold a certain pressure
without rupturing. |
|
| I |
| Impact (Class I) - A term used
in Santa Barbara County environmental reports to identify a
significant, unavoidable environmental impact resulting from
a proposed project, that cannot be mitigated to a level of insignificance. |
| Impact (Class II) - A term used
in Santa Barbara County environmental reports to identify a
significant, but avoidable environmental impact resulting from
a proposed project, that can be mitigated to a level of insignificance.
|
| Impact (Class III) - A term
used in Santa Barbara County environmental reports to identify
an insignificant environmental impact resulting from a proposed
project. |
| Impact Fee (also called a Development
Fee) - A fee levied on a developer of a project by a city,
county, or other public agency as compensation for otherwise
unmitigated impacts the proposed project will produce. |
| Imports - Receipts of crude oil
and petroleum products into the 50 States and the District of
Columbia from foreign countries, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,
and other U.S. possessions and territories. |
| Independent Producer
- 1) A person or corporation that produces oil for the market,
having no pipeline system or refinery. 2) An oil-country entrepreneur
who secures financial backing and drills his own well. |
| Infrastructure - A general
term describing public and quasi-public utilities and facilities
such as roads, bridges, sewers and sewer plants, water lines,
power lines, fire stations, etc. |
| Initial Study (IS) - The preliminary
analysis that a CEQA-lead agency prepares to determine and document
whether to prepare a negative declaration or an environmental
impact statement. |
| Initiative - A ballot measure
placed on the election ballot as a result of voter signatures
that addresses a legislative action. The right to initiative
is guaranteed by the California Constitution. |
| Internal Corrosion
- Any form of corrosion that occurs on the inside wall of the
pipe or internal surfaces of any pipeline component. |
| Isobutane (C4H10)
- A normally gaseous branch-chain hydrocarbon. It is extracted
from natural gas or refinery gas streams. |
| Isohexane (C6H14)
- A saturated branch-chain hydrocarbon that is a colorless liquid.
|
|
| J |
| Joint Powers Authority (JPA) - A
legal arrangement that enables two or more units of government
to share authority in order to carry out a program or set of
programs that serves both units. |
| Joint Review Panel (JRP) - The purpose
of a joint review panel is to coordinate multi-agency or multi-jurisdictional
review of proposed projects. The JRP includes representatives
of those agencies/jurisdictions potentially affected by a proposed
project. A JRP is created to avoid duplication in the review
process, improve efficiency, and provide for public participation
in the review of a project. Upon completion of a project's review,
the joint review panel issues recommendations and/or a report
with respect to the proposed project which may then be reviewed
by the public. |
| J-Tube - The vertical section of
pipe, shaped like the letter J, the connects an offshore production
platform's pipeline to a seabed pipeline. The J-Tube is only
the guide or mandrel for the seabed pipeline, the end of which
is pulled into the curved tube and up to the platform level.
This procedure eliminates the need to make underwater connections
between the seabed pipeline and the riser pipe. The pipeline
is forcibly pulled up through the J-tube to the platform where
it can be connected to the platform piping. |
|
| K |
| Kerosene - A petroleum distillate.
Included are the two grades designated in ASTM D3699: No. 1-K
and No. 2-K, and all grades of kerosene called range or stove
oil. Kerosene is used in space heaters, cook stoves and water
heaters and is suitable for use as an illuminant when burned
in wick lamps. |
|
| L |
| Landman - A person whose primary
duties are managing an oil company's relations with its landowners.
Such duties include securing oil and gas leases, lease amendments,
and other agreements. A lease hound. |
| Lay Barge - A barge used in
the construction and placement of underwater pipelines. Joints
of pipe are welded together and then lowered off the stern of
the barge as it moves ahead. |
| Lead Agency - The public
agency which has the principal responsibility for carrying out
or approving a project. |
| Lease (Producible)
- An OCS lease where one well or several wells have discovered
hydrocarbons in paying quantities, but for which there is no
production during the reporting period. |
| Lease (Producing) -
An OCS lease that is producing oil, gas, or other minerals in
quantities sufficient to generate royalties. |
| Lease Automatic Custody Transfer (LACT)
Unit - An automated system for measuring, testing, and transferring
oil. |
| Lease Condensate - A
natural gas liquid recovered from gas well gas (associated and
non-associated) in lease separators or natural gas field facilities.
Lease condensate consists primarily of pentanes and heavier
hydrocarbons. |
| Level of Service (LOS) - Level of
Service is a qualitative description of operating efficiency
which a government agency or industry identifies as appropriate
for various services or facilities. As a tool, "LOS"
standards can be applied to public service systems; e.g., municipal
water systems, sewer collection and processing systems, students
per classroom, acres of park land per unit of population, roadways,
etc. LOS is generally represented on a scale with gradations
of "A" to "F", much like a student's report
card, based on the criteria used to assess the particular service
or facility. |
| Lifting Costs - The costs
of producing from a well or a lease. |
| Local Coastal Program
- A plan for coastal development required by the state Coastal
Commission before land use permitting power in the coastal zone
granted to local governments. The local coastal program is comprised
of a local land use plan and implementation plan that complies
with the California Coastal Act. The land use plan is based
on data collection, research and analysis of existing conditions,
coastal resources, the County’s existing development control
framework, and public input during the process. |
| Lot - A unit of land created under
the provisions of the Subdivision Map Act or any prior law regulating
the division of land or was created prior to the time any local
or state law regulated divisions of land or which were not subject
to any local or state regulation at the time of its creation. |
| Lower Flammability Limit (LFL) -
The minimum concentration of a vapor or gas in air that will
ignite and propagate flame. Also expressed as lower explosive
limit (LEL). |
| Lowest Achievable Emission Rate (LAER)
- Under the Federal Clean Air Act, the rate of emissions that
reflects (1) the most stringent emission limitation in the State
Implementation Plan of any state for a given source unless the
owner or operator demonstrates such limitations are not achievable;
or (2) the most stringent emissions limitation achieved in practice,
whichever is more stringent. |
Lubricants - A substance
used to reduce friction between bearing surfaces or as process
materials either incorporated into other materials used as
processing aids in the manufacturing of other products, or
as carries of other materials. Petroleum lubricants may be
produced either from distillates or residues. Other substances
may be added to impart or improve certain required properties.
Lubricants do not include byproducts of lubricating oil refining
such as aromatic extracts derived from solvent extraction
or tars derived from deasphalting. “Lubricants”
includes all grades of lubricating oils from spindle oil to
cylinder oil and those used in greases. Reporting categories
include:
- Paraffinic – Includes all grades of bright stock
and neutrals with a Viscosity Index > 75.
- Napthenic – Includes all lubricating oil base stocks
with a Viscosity Index < 75.
Note: The criterion for categorizing the lubricants is based
solely on the Viscosity Index of the stocks and is independent
of crude sources and type of processing used to produce the
oils.
Exceptions: Lubricating oil base stocks that have been historically
classified as napthenic or paraffinic by a refiner may continue
to be so categorized irrespective of the Viscosity Index criterion. |
|
| M |
| Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure
(MAOP) - The highest pressure at which a pipeline can be
operated, considering design and regulatory factors. |
| Mercaptans - Chemical compounds
containing sulfur, present in certain refined products that
impart objectionable odor to the product. |
| Merchant Oxygenate Plants
- Oxygenate production facilities that are not associated with
a petroleum refinery. Production from these facilities is sold
under contract or on the spot market to refiners or other gasoline
blenders. |
| Migration (Primary)
- The movement of hydrocarbons upward from the source beds or
source rocks where the oil and gas were formed. The gases and
liquids percolate upward to permeable reservoir rocks where
they are trapped by impermeable layers, a cap rock. There they
remain until discovered by some intrepid wildcatter. |
| Migration (Secondary)
- The movement of hydrocarbons within the porous and permeable
reservoir rocks that results in the segregation of the oil and
gas in different parts of the formation. Lighter hydrocarbon
fractions (gas) break out or separate from the liquids (oil)
to form gas caps or gas reservoirs. If the formation pressure
is extremely high, the gas may not be able to break out of solution.
In this case, the gas remains in solution until the reservoir
pressure is reduced by drilling. An example of gas remaining
in solution until the pressure is releases is the opening of
a carbonated soft drink bottle; the fizzing is the CO2 escaping
or breaking out of the solution. |
| Million (MM) - In Roman numerals;
M written with a macron over it, denoting a quantity consisting
of 1,000,000 items or units [syn: a million] n : the number
that is represented as a one followed by 6 zeros [syn: 1000000,
one thousand thousand, meg] |
| Minerals Management Service (MMS)
- A bureau in the U.S. Department of the Interior, is the federal
agency that manages the nation's natural gas, oil and other
mineral resources on the outer continental shelf (OCS). The
agency also collects, accounts for and disburses more than $5
billion per year in revenues from federal offshore mineral leases
and from onshore mineral leases on federal and Indian lands. |
| Minimum Royalty - An annual
payment to the federal government, on a per-acre bases, required
to maintain the rights to an OCS lease until production exceeds
a minimum value. Once annual production exceeds the minimum
value, minimum royalty payments are no longer required in that
lease year. Not all OCS leases have minimum royalty provisions. |
| Mitigation Measure
- The California Environmental Act requires that when an environmental
impact or potential impact is identified as resulting from a
proposed project, measures must be proposed that will mitigate
(eliminate, avoid, rectify, compensate for, or reduce) those
environmental effects. These measures may include actions or
project design features that reduce environmental impacts. |
| Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MODU)
- A drilling rig that is used exclusively to drill offshore
exploration and development wells and that floats upon the surface
of the water when being moved from one drill site to another.
It may or may not float once drilling begins. Two basic types
of mobile offshore drilling units are used to drill most offshore
wildcat wells: bottom-supported drilling rigs and floating drilling
rigs. |
| Motor Gasoline Blending -
Mechanical mixing of motor gasoline blending components and
oxygenates to produce finished motor gasoline. Mechanical mixing
of finished motor gasoline with motor gasoline blending components
or oxygenates which results in increased volumes of finished
motor gasoline, and/or changes in the classification of finished
motor gasoline (e.g., other finished motor gasoline mixed with
MTBE to produce oxygenated motor gasoline), is considered motor
gasoline blending. |
| Mud - The liquid circulated through
the well bore during rotary drilling and workover operations.
In addition to its function of bringing cuttings to the surface,
drilling mud cools and lubricates the bit and drill stem, protects
against blowouts by holding back subsurface pressure, and deposits
a mud cake on the wall of the bore hole to prevent loss of fluids
to the formation. |
| Mud (Drilling) - A
specially compounded liquid circulated through the well bore
during rotary drilling operations. See mud. |
| Mud (Oil-Based) -
Drilling mud whose liquid component is an oil rather than water,
which is the most common fluid used to mix with the various
clays to make drilling mud. Oil-based muds are used in very
deep wells where the bottom-hole temperatures of 300° to
400°F preclude the use of water-base muds. Also, oil-base
muds are often used when drilling through clay formations, which
have a tendency to absorb the water from water-base muds and
swell to the extent that the drill-pipe becomes stuck. |
| Muriatic Acid - An acid that
causes severe irritation or burns to the skin and eyes. Vapors
may irritate the respiratory tract. |
|
| N |
| Naptha - A volatile, colorless
liquid obtained from petroleum distillation used as a solvent
in the manufacture of paint, as a dry-cleaning fluid, and for
blending with casinghead gasoline in producing motor gasoline. |
| National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS) - Standards established by the United States EPA
that apply for outdoor air throughout the Country. There are
two types of NAAQS. Primary standards set limits to protect
public health and secondary standards set limits to protect
public welfare. |
| National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
- The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was signed into
law on January 1, 1970. It applies to all federal agencies and
most of the activities they manage, regulate, or fund that affect
the environment. It requires all agencies to disclose and consider
the environmental implications of their proposed actions. |
| National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
- The NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service recommends
ways to rebuild and maintain sustainable fisheries, promote
the recovery of protected species, and protect and maintain
the health of coastal marine habitats. |
| National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) - NOAA describes and predicts changes in the Earth's
environment, and recommends methods to conserve and manage the
Nation's coastal and marine resources. |
| National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) - A point source control program under the
Clean Water Act. |
| National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) - The National Transportation Safety Board is an
independent Federal agency charged by Congress with investigating
every civil aviation accident in the United States and significant
accidents in the other modes of transportation - railroad, highway,
marine and pipeline - and issuing safety recommendations aimed
at preventing future accidents. The rules of the Board are located
in Chapter VIII, Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations. |
| Natural Gas Field Facility -
A field facility designed to process natural gas produced from
more than one lease for the purpose of recovering condensate
from a stream of natural gas; however, some field facilities
are designed to recover propane, normal butane, pentanes plus,
etc., and to control the quality of natural gas to be marked. |
| Natural Gas Liquid (NGL) - Natural
Gas Liquids (NGLs) refer to those hydrocarbons which are liquefied
at the surface in field facilities or in gas processing plants,
and include liquefied petroleum gases (LPGs) such as propane
and butanes, and heavier gas liquids (pentanes and heavier)
such as natural gasoline. |
| Natural Gas Processing Plant
- A facility designed (1) to achieve the recovery of natural
gas liquids from the stream of natural gas which may or may
not have been processed through lease separators and field facilities,
and (2) to control the quality of the natural gas to be marketed.
Cycling plants are classified as gas processing plants. |
| Negative Declaration (mitigated) - MND
- An CEQA document prepared when a project would have significant
environmental effects as originally proposed, but the developer
can and will eliminate those effects by changing the project
or adopting mitigation measures, meaning that certain steps
must be taken but no further environmental review is necessary. |
| Negative Declaration (ND) - A written
analysis by a CEQA-lead agency to describe the reasons that
a proposed project subject to CEQA will not have a significant
effect on the environment and, therefore, does not require the
preparation of an environmental impact report. |
| New Source Review (NSR) - A program
used in development of permits for new or modified industrial
facilities which are in a non-attainment area, and which emit
non-attainment criteria air pollutants. The two major requirements
of the NSR are Best Available Control Technology and Emissions
Offsets. |
| Nitrogen Oxides (Oxides of Nitrogen,
NOx) - A general term pertaining to compounds of nitric
acid (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and other oxides of nitrogen.
Nitrogen oxides are typically created during combustion processes,
and are major contributors to smog formation and acid deposition.
NO2 is a criteria air pollutant, and may result in numerous
adverse health effects; it absorbs blue light, resulting in
a brownish-red cast to the atmosphere and reduced visibility. |
| Non-attainment Area - A
geographic area identified by the United States Environmental
Protection Agency and/or the Air Resources Board as not meeting
wither the National Ambient Air Quality Standards or the California
Ambient Air Quality Standards for a given pollutant. |
| Non-Conforming Use - Any use
which does not conform to the use regulations of the zoning
ordinance for a particular zone district in which the use is
located. |
| Notice of Completion (NOC) - The
CEQA-lead agency must file a NOC with California's Office of
Planning and Research as soon as it completes a draft EIR for
public review. The NOC must contain a brief description of the
proposed project, including its location, and it must contain
an address(es) where copies of the draft EIR are available for
review. |
| Notice of Determination (NOD) -
The CEQA-lead agency shall file a NOD after approving a project
for which a ND or EIR was prepared. |
| Notice of Exemption (NOE) - The CEQA-lead
agency may file a NOE when it has decided a proposed project
is exempt from CEQA and has further approved or otherwise determined
to carry out the project. |
| Notice of Intent (NOI) - The CEQA-lead
agency shall provide a NOI to the public, responsible agencies,
trustee agencies, and the county clerk sufficiently prior to
adoption of a negative declaration for the purpose of providing
a period of review prior to such adoption (CEQA Guidelines §
15072). |
| Notice of Preparation (NOP) - Upon
deciding to prepare an EIR, the CEQA-lead agency sends a NOP
to all responsible agencies, trustee agencies, and federal agencies
involved in approving or funding a proposed project for purpose
of initiating interagency coordination. |
|
| O |
| Odorant - A chemical compound
added to natural gas to produce a detectable, unpleasant odor
to alert households should they have even a small leak in the
house piping. Odorants are also used in liquids or gases being
stored or transported to detect leaks. |
| Office of Emergency Services (OES)
- The Office of Emergency Services (OES) is responsible for
assuring the state's readiness to respond to and recover from
natural, manmade, and war-caused emergencies, and for assisting
local governments in their emergency preparedness, response
and recovery efforts. |
| Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) -
This office regulates the safe, reliable, and environmentally
sound operation of the nation's pipeline system. |
| Offshore Lease - An area
designated by an authorized agency (MMS or California State
Lands Commission) for the exploration and potential development
of mineral resources such as oil and gas. Lease are sold by
competitive bid processes, and have specific conditions regarding
their term and activity required to maintain lease rights. They
do not convey an ownership interest in the land itself, and
do not include a right to develop. |
| Oil (Dry) - Crude oil with
little or no water content. |
| Oil (unfinished) - Includes all
oils requiring further processing, except those requiring only
mechanical blending. Includes napthas and lighter oils, kerosene
and light gas oils, heavy gas oils, and residuum. |
| Oil (Wet) - A mixture of
crude oil and water which requires further processing to remove
the water. |
| Oil Patch - A term referring
broadly to the oil field, to areas of exploration, production,
and pipelining. |
| Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90)
- OPA90 amended the Clean Water Act to strengthen the nation's
ability to prevent and respond to oil spills. It applies to
oil-carrying vessels, offshore facilities, onshore facilities,
and deepwater ports that could potentially spill oil into U.S.
navigable waters or the adjoining shorelines. |
| Oil Pool - An underground reservoir
or trap containing oil. A pool is a single, separate reservoir
with its own pressure system so that wells drilled in any part
of the pool affect the reservoir pressure throughout the pool.
An oil field may contain one or more pools. |
| Oil Slick - An oil spill on
water. A small amount of oil can spread into a sizeable slick.
|
| Oil Spill - A mishap in which
oil escapes from a tank, an oil well, an oil tanker, or a pipeline.
|
| Oil Spill Boom - Any of
various devices or contraptions to contain and prevent the spread
of oil spilled on water until it can be picked up. A curtain-like
device deployed around or across the path of a drifting oil
spill. The curtain is weighted on the bottom edge to hold it
at a foot or two below the surface and has floats on the upper
edge to hold the curtain a foot or more above the surface. Once
surrounded, the oil is sucked up by a vacuum cleaner-like suction
pump. |
| On Stream - Term use for a processing
plant, a refinery, or a pumping station that is operating. |
| Operating Agreement
- A written document between parties holding operating rights
with one of the parties normally designated as the operator.
The agreement contains detailed provisions for the drilling
of a well, the sharing of expenses, and acceptable accounting
methods. |
| Other Finished or Conventional Gasoline
- Motor gasoline not included in the oxygenated or reformulated
gasoline categories. Excludes reformulated gasoline blendstock
for oxygenate blending (RBOB). |
| Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) - All
submerged lands lying seaward and outside of the area of lands
beneath navigable waters commencing three nautical miles seaward
of the coastline (or three marine leagues seaward of the coastlines
of Texas and western Florida). |
| Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA)
of 1953, as amended, 43 U.S.C. 1331 et. seq. - An act that
establishes procedures for federal jurisdiction over Outer Continental
Shelf lands and authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to
issue exploration permits and leases for oil, gas, sulfur, and
other mineral resources on those lands. |
| Override System - A backup
system; controls that take over should the primary system of
controls fail or be taken out for adjustment or repair; a redundancy
built in for safety and operational efficiency. |
| Oxygenated Fuels Program Reformulated
Gasoline (ORPG) - This is reformulated gasoline intended
for use in an oxygenated fuels program control area during an
oxygenated fuels program control period. |
| Oxygenates - Any substance
which, when added to gasoline, increases the amount of oxygen
in that gasoline blend. Through a series of waivers and interpretive
rules, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined
the allowable limits for oxygenates in unleaded gasoline. The
“Substantially Similar” Interpretive Rules (56 FR
(February 11, 1991)) allows blends of aliphatic alcohols other
than methanol and aliphatic ethers, provided the oxygen content
does not exceed 2.7 percent by weight. The “Substantially
Similar” Interpretive Rules also provides for blends of
methanol up to 0.3 percent by volume exclusive of other oxygenates,
and butanol or alcohols of a higher molecular weight up to 2.75
percent by weight. Individual waivers pertaining to the use
of oxygenates in unleaded gasoline have been issued by the EPA,
including fuel ethanol, methanol and MTBE. |
| Ozone - A strong smelling, pale
blue, reactive toxic chemical gas consisting of three oxygen
atoms. It is a product of the photochemical process involving
the sun's energy. Ozone exists in the upper atmosphere ozone
layer as well as at the earth's surface. Ozone at the earth's
surface causes numerous adverse health effects caused and is
a criteria air pollutant. It is a major component of smog. |
| Ozone Precursors - Chemicals
such as reactive organic compounds and oxides of nitrogen, occurring
either naturally or as a result of human activities, which contribute
to the formation of ozone, a major component of smog. |
|
| P |
| Particulate Matter (PM) - Any material,
except pure water, that exists in the solid or liquid state
in the atmosphere, such as soot, dust, smoke, fumes, and aerosols.
The size of particulate matter can vary from coarse, wind-blown
dust particles to fine particle combustion products. |
| Particulate Matter less than 10 microns
(PM10) - A criteria air pollutant consisting of small particles
with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal
10 microns (about 1/7 the diameter of a single human hair).
Their small size allows them to make their way to the air sacs
deep within the lungs where they may be deposited and result
in adverse health effects. PM10 also causes visibility reduction. |
| Particulate Matter less than 2.5 microns
(PM2.5) - A major air pollutant consisting of tiny solid
or liquid particles, generally soot and aerosols. The size of
the particles (2.5 microns or smaller, about .0001 inches or
less) allows them to easily enter the air sacks deep in the
lungs where the may cause adverse health effects, as noted in
several recent studies. PM2.5 also causes visibility reduction. |
| Parts Per Million (PPM) - A unit
of concentration often used when measuring levels of pollutants
in air, water, body fluids, etc. One ppm is 1 part in 1,000,000.
The common unit mg/liter is equal to ppm. Four drops of ink
in a 55-gallon barrel of water would produce an "ink concentration"
of 1 ppm. |
| Pentanes Plus - A mixture
of hydrocarbons, mostly pentanes and heavier, extracted from
natural gas. Includes isopentane, natural gasoline, and plant
condensate. |
| Perforating - To make holes
through the casing opposite the producing formation to allow
the oil or gas to flow into the well. Shooting steel bullets
through the casing walls with a special downhole "gun"
is a common method of perforating. |
| Performance Bond - A form of
guarantee, given by the seller in a contract that the seller
will faithfully perform contractual obligations to another party,
and that in the event of the terms of the contract not being
fulfilled, the buyer will be able to claim compensation in the
form of money. |
| Performance Standards - Regulations
that permit uses based on a particular set of standards of operation.
Performance standards provide specific criteria limiting noise,
air pollution, emissions, odors, vibration, dust, dirt, glare,
heat, fire hazards, wastes, traffic impacts, and visual impacts. |
| Permit to Operate (PTO) - The PTO
allows for ongoing operation of the facility in accordance with
all permit conditions and local, state, and federal air quality
requirements. |
| Persistent - A term used to
describe a substance that will remain in the environment for
a long period of time without being broken down into simpler
chemicals or reduced to acceptable levels by natural physical
or chemical biological processes. |
| Petrochemical Feedstocks
- Chemical feedstocks derived from petroleum principally for
the manufacture of chemicals, synthetic rubber, and a variety
of plastics. |
| Petroleum - A naturally occurring
complex, liquid hydrocarbon that may contain varying degrees
of impurities. Petroleum is obtained from rocks below the surface
of the Earth by drilling down into a reservoir rock and piping
the minerals to the surface. |
| Petroleum Administration For Defense
(PAD) Districts - Geographic aggregations of the 50 States
and the District of Columbia into five districts by the Petroleum
Administration for Defense in 1950. These districts were originally
defined during World War II for purposes of administering oil
allocation. |
| Petroleum Coke - A residue, the
final product of the condensation process in cracking. This
product is reported as marketable coke or catalyst coke. The
conversion factor is 5 barrels per short ton. |
| Petroleum Products - Petroleum
products are obtained from the processing of crude oil (including
lease condensate), natural gas, and other hydrocarbon compounds.
Petroleum products include unfinished oils, liquefied petroleum
gases, pentanes plus, aviation gasoline, motor gasoline, naptha-type
jet fuel, kerosene-type jet fuel, kerosene, distillate fuel
oil, residual fuel oil, petrochemical feedstocks, special napthas,
lubricants, waxes, petroleum coke, asphalt, road oil, still
gas, and miscellaneous products. |
| Pig - A device designed to move through
a pipeline for purposes of cleaning, gathering information,
separating products, or batching shipments of the same product.
A pig is usually propelled by gas or liquid pressure behind
the pig. The name "pig" is said to have originated
from the sound the device makes as it moves through the pipeline.
(W. Kent Muhlbauer, Pipeline Risk Management Manual, Houston:
Gulf Publishing Co., 1996.) |
| Pig Launcher and Receiver
- A facility on a pipeline for inserting and launching a pig,
scraper, or batching pig. The launcher essentially is a breech-loading
cylinder isolated from the pipeline by a series of gate valves.
After the pig is loaded into the launching cylinder like a shell
into a shotgun, a hinged plug or cap is closed behind it. Then
oil under pressure from the pipeline is admitted to the cylinder
behind the pig. The pig is launched; it is pushed into the pipeline
and moved along and about 3 or 4 miles an hour by the oil pressure
behind it. To receive a pig approaching the station manifold,
a valve is opened on the bypass line, permitting the pig to
be pushed into the receiving cylinder or trap along with the
sludge ahead of it. The valves are closed, isolating the pig,
at which time the end cap of the receiver is unlatched. The
sludge drains into a sump and the pig is removed for cleaning
and reconditioning. |
| Pipeline (petroleum) - Crude
oil and product pipelines used to transport crude oil and petroleum
products respectively, (including interstate, intrastate, and
intracompany pipelines) within the 50 States and the District
of Columbia. |
| Pipeline (Two-Phase)
- Two-phase pipeline is one capable of carrying a liquid
and a gas stream simultaneously. |
| Planning Commission - A
group of residents appointed by a city council or board of supervisors
to consider land use planning matters. The commission’s
duties are established by the city council or board of supervisors. |
| Platform (Tension-Leg)
- A semisubmersible drilling platform held in position by
multiple cables anchored to the ocean floor. The constant tension
of the cables makes the platform immune to heave, pitch, and
roll caused by wave action and conditions that affect conventional
submersibles. |
| Platform Jacket - A supporting
structure for an offshore platform consisting of a large-diameter
pipe welded together with pipe braces to form a four-legged
offshore stool-like structure (stool without a seat). The jacket
is secured to the seafloor with pilings driven through the legs.
The four-legged offshore platform is then slipped into legs
of the jacket and secured with pins and by the weight of the
platform and equipment. |
| Plugged and Abandoned
- Wells in which casings have been removed, and the well bore
sealed with mechanical or cement plugs. |
| Pollution (Mobile Source)
- A mobile source of pollution such as automobiles, motorcycles,
trucks, buses, off-road vehicles, boats and airplanes. (Contrast
with stationary source.) |
| Pollution (Non-point Source)
- Pollution that is spatially diffuse and discharged from one
or more unidentified sources. |
| Pollution (Point Source)
- Pollution discharged from a fixed, identifiable, location. |
| Pollution (Stationary Source)
- A non-mobile structure, building, facility, equipment installation
or operation. Examples include oil production facilities, industrial
coating operations, a rock crushing facility, and factories
that use large amounts of solvents. A stationary source is classified
as having a common production process, located on one or more
adjacent properties, and is under the same or common ownership,
operation, or control. (Contrast with mobile sources.) |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)
- A group of synthetic, organic chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons
having various industrial applications. They are highly toxic,
poisonous and potentially carcinogenic environmental pollutants
known to cause skin diseases. They tend to accumulate in animal
tissues and are suspect of causing birth defects and cancer.
|
| Pool - In general, a reservoir.
In certain situations a pool may consist of more than one reservoir. |
| Posted Price - The price
an oil purchaser will pay for crude of a certain A.P.I. gravity
and from a particular field or area. Once literally posted in
the field, the announced price is now published in newspapers. |
| Pounds Per Square Inch, Absolute (PSIA)
- An absolute measure of pressure where zero psia refers to
a complete absence of pressure such as one might find in a perfect
vacuum of outer space. The 14.7 psi is the atmospheric pressure
at sea level is an absolute measurement and is more properly
expressed as 14.7 pound per square inch absolute (psia). |
| Pounds Per Square Inch, Gauge (PSIG)
- The most common relative scale of measuring pressure in the
United States where zero psig equals an absolute pressure of
one standard atmosphere (i.e., 1.0 psig = 14.7 psia) and 1.0
psig equals 15.7 psia. |
| Pour Point - The temperature
at which a liquid ceases to flow or at which it congeals. |
| Pressure - The force that a
fluid (liquid or gas) exerts uniformly in all directions within
a vessel, pipe, hole in the ground, and so forth, such as that
exerted against the inner wall of a tank or that exerted on
the bottom of the well bore by a fluid. Pressure is expressed
in terms of force exerted per unit of area, as pounds per square
inch, or in kilopascals. |
| Pressure Gauge - Used on
gas or liquid lines to make instantly visible the pressure in
the lines. Some gauges have damping devices to protect the delicate
mechanisms from the transient pulses of line pressure. |
| Pressure Relief Valve
- Also called a "pop valve" or a "safety valve,"
this class of mechanical safety device is designed to operate
at a predetermined pressure to reduce the internal pressure
of a vessel. The valve is often designed to close again when
the vessel pressure is again below the set point. (W. Kent Muhlbauer,
Pipeline Risk Management Manual, Houston: Gulf Publishing Co.,
1996.) |
| Pressure Vessel - A cylindrical
or spherical tank so constructed as to hold a gas or a liquid
under pressure. Pressure vessels are used to hold air for air-actuated
valves, air starting of engines, and other pneumatic applications.
In a refinery or chemical plant, pressure vessels are integral
parts of the processing chain where feedstock is subjected to
both heat and pressure as part of the refining process. |
| Primary Production
- Primary recovery; production from a reservoir by natural energy
(gas cap, solution gas, or water drive) that results in flowing
wells, or wells on the pump with the oil flowing freely by gravity
to the well bore. |
| Process Hazards Analysis
(PHA) - This study must address the hazards of a process,
previous hazardous incidents, engineering and administrative
controls, the consequences of the failure of engineering and
administrative controls, human factors, and an evaluation
of effects of failure of controls on employees. This element
requires that the PHA be performed by one or more of the following
methods or any other equivalent method:
- What-if
- Checklist
- What-if/Checklist
- Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) studies
- Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
- Fault Tree Analysis
The standard suggests a performance oriented requirement
with respect to the PHA so that the facility will have the
flexibility to choose the type of analysis that will best
address a particular process. |
| Produced Water - Water,
usually salt water or brine, produced with oil in a pumping
well. Small amounts of salt water can be separated out at the
well site and put in an earthen evaporation pit. Large volumes
must be dealt with by pumping it back into disposal wells, which
force the super-salt brine into a porous formation isolated
by impervious strata above and below. |
| Product - The resulting components
of chemical or physical processes implemented to produce different
hydrocarbon fractions. These products may be directly marketable
(such as asphalt pitch, fuel oil, propane, etc.), or may be
marketed primarily to refineries for further processing (such
as gas oil). |
| Propane (C3H6)
- A normally gaseous straight-chain hydrocarbon. It is a colorless
paraffinic gas that is extracted from natural gas or refinery
gas streams. It includes all products designated in ASTM Specifications
D1835 and Gas Processors Association Specifications for commercial
propane and HD-5 propane. Propane is used primarily for residential
and commercial heating and cooling, and as fuel for transportation.
It is used in industry as a petrochemical feedstock. |
|
| Q |
| Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA)
- Quantitative risk assessment (QRA) is a systematic approach
for developing estimated frequencies and/or consequences of
accidents for a facility or operation. |
| Quitclaim - An instrument or
document releasing a certain interest in land owned by a grantor
at the time the agreement takes effect. The key phrase of a
quitclaim is: "... to release, remise, and forever quitclaim
all right, title, and interest in the following described land."
|
|
| R |
| Reactive Organic Compound (ROC) -
A reactive chemical gas, composed of hydrocarbons, that react
with nitrogen oxides and contribute to the formation of ozone.
Also known as Volatile Organic Compounds (see VOC), or as Non-Methane
Organic Compounds (NMOCs). The APCD considers all volatile compounds
containing carbon except the following to be reactive: ethane,
methane, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, carbonic acid, metallic
carbides or carbonates, ammonium carbonates, methyl chloroform
(TCA), methylene chloride (dichloromethane), CFC-11, CFC-12,
HCFC-22, FC-23, CFC-113, CFC-114, CFC-115, HCFC-123, HCFC-134a,
HCFC-141b, HCFC-142b. |
| Reasonably Available Control Measures
(RACM) - A broadly defined term referring to technologies
and other measures that can be used to control pollution. They
include Reasonably Available Control Technology and other measures.
In the case of PM10, RACM refers to approaches for controlling
small or dispersed source categories such as road dust, wood
stoves, and open burning. |
| Reasonably Available Control Technology
(RACT) - Process changes or devices to minimize air pollution
from mobile and stationary sources that are cost-effective and
readily available. |
| Reclamation Bond - Reclamation
bonds are used to ensure that sites affected by a project are
reclaimed (restored) in a manner that returns the affected area
to the conditions defined in the reclamation standards at the
time the bond is issued. |
| Referendum - A ballot measure
challenging a legislative action by the city council or the
county board of supervisors. Referenda petitions must be filed
before the action becomes final and may lead to an election
on the matter. The California Constitution guarantees the right
to referendum. |
| Refinery - A modern refinery
is a large plant of many diverse processes. A refinery receives
its charge stock, or crude oil, from the field via pipeline
or from a tanker if the plant is located on a waterway. By processes
that include heating, fractionating, pressure, vacuum, re-heating
in the presence of catalysts, and washing with acids, the crude
is divided into hundreds of components: from exotic light gases
to volatile liquids down through gasoline, naptha, kerosene,
gas oils, and light and heavy lubricating oil stocks to heavy
bunker fuel, residual oil, and finally petroleum coke, the bottom
of the barrel. |
| Reformulated Gasoline Blendstock For
Oxygenated Blanding (RBOB) - RBOB is a motor gasoline blending
component which, when blended with a specified type and percentage
of oxygenate, meets the definition of reformulated gasoline. |
| Regional Water Quality Control Board
(RWQCB) - Formed by the Dickey Water Pollution Act, these
regional boards are responsible for protecting the surface,
ground and coastal waters of their regions. Under the Porter-Cologne
Water Quality Control Act (1969), the Boards together became
the principal state agencies with primary responsibility for
the coordination and control of water quality. |
| Remedial Action Plan
- A remedial action plan is a work plan for reducing site contamination
to minimize the health risks or negative environmental impact. |
| Rent - Periodic payments made by
the holder of a lease for the right to use the land or resources
for purposes established in the lease. |
| Reserves - Oil and/or natural
gas existing in producible quantities within an identified oil
field. |
| Reserves (proved, of
crude oil) - Proved reserves of crude oil as of December
31 of a given year are the estimated quantities of all liquids
defined as crude oil, which geological and engineering data
demonstrated with reasonable certainty to be recoverable in
future years from known reservoirs under existing economic and
operating conditions. Reservoirs are considered proved if economic
producibility is supported by actual production or conclusive
formation tests (drill stem or wire line), or if economic producibility
is supported by core analyses and/or electric or other log interpretations.
The area of an oil reservoir considered proved includes (1)
that portion delineated by drilling and defined by gas-oil and/or
oil-water contacts, if any; and (2) the immediately adjoining
portions not yet drilled, but which can be reasonable judged
as economically productive on the basis of available geological
and engineering data. In the absence of information on fluid
contacts, the lowest known structural occurrence of hydrocarbons
is considered to be the lower proved limit of the reservoir.
Volumes of crude oil placed in underground storage are not to
be considered proved reserves. Reserves of crude oil which can
be produced economically through application of improved recovery
techniques (such as fluid injection) are included in the “proved”
classification when successfully testing by a pilot project,
or the operation of an installed program in the reservoir, provides
support for the engineering analysis on which the project or
program was based. Estimates of proved crude oil reserves do
not include the following: (1) oil that may become available
from known reservoirs but is reported separately as “indicated
additional reserves”; (2) natural gas liquids (including
lease condensate); (3) oil, the recovery of which is subject
to reasonable doubt because of uncertainty as to geology, reservoir
characteristics, or economic factors; (4) oil that may occur
in undrilled prospects; and (5) oil that may be recovered from
oil shales, coal. gilsonite, and other such sources. It is not
necessary that production, gathering or transportation facilities
be installed or operative for a reservoir to be considered proved. |
| Reserves
(proved, of natural gas liquids) - Proved reserves of natural
gas liquids as of December 31 of a given year are those volumes
of natural gas liquids (including lease condensate) demonstrated
with reasonable certainty to be separable in the future from
proved natural gas reserves, under existing economic and operating
conditions. |
| Reserves (Proven) -
As defined by the Society of Petroleum Engineers, reserves that
can be estimated with reasonable certainty to be recovered under
current economic conditions. Such reserves either must have
facilities that are operational at the time of the estimate
to process and transport those reserves to market, or a commitment
of reasonable expectation to install such facilities in the
future. |
| Reservoir - A subsurface,
porous, permeable rock body containing oil, gas, or water. Most
reservoir rocks consist individually or collectively of limestone,
dolomites, or sandstone. |
| Residual Fuel Oil - The
heavier oils that remain after the distillate fuels oils and
lighter hydrocarbons are distilled away in refinery operations
and the conform to ASTM Specification D396. Included are No.
5, a residual fuel oil of medium viscosity; Navy Special, for
use in steam-powered vessels in government service and in shore
power plants; No. 6, which includes Bunker C fuel oil, and is
used for commercial and industrial heating, electricity generation
and to power ships. |
| Rig - The derrick and surface equipment
of a drilling unit |
| Rig (Jack-Up) -
A mobile bottom-supported offshore drilling structure with columnar
or open-truss legs that support the deck and hull. When positioned
over the drilling site, the bottoms of the legs rest on the
seafloor. A jack-up rig is towed or propelled to a location
with its legs up. Once the legs are firmly positioned on the
bottom, the deck and hull height are adjusted and leveled. Also
called self-elevating drilling unit. |
| Rig (Platform) - An
immobile offshore structure from which development wells are
drilled and produced. Platform rigs may be built of steel or
concrete and may be either rigid or complaint. Rigid platform
rigs, which rest on the seafloor, are the caisson-type platform,
the concrete gravity platform, and the steel-jacket platform.
Complaint platform rigs, which are used in deeper water and
yield to water and wind movements are the guyed-tower platform
and the tension-leg platform. |
| Rig (rotary) - A machine, used
for drilling wells, that employs a rotating tube attached to
a bit for boring holes through rock. |
| Right-of-Way - A strip of
land occupied or intended to be occupied by a street, crosswalk,
railroad, electric transmission line, oil or gas pipeline, water
main, sanitary or storm sewer, street trees, or other specific
use. |
| Risk - As applied to hazardous oil
and gas facilities, a compound measure of the probability and
number of fatalities or serious injuries that is due to a deviation
from normal operating conditions. |
| Road Oil - Any heavy petroleum
oil, including residual asphaltic oil used as a dust palliative
and surface treatment on roads and highways. It is generally
produced in six grades from 0, the most liquid, to 5, the most
viscous. |
| Royalty - Payment, in value (money)
or in kind (a volume of the commodity), of a stated proportionate
interest in production from mineral deposits by the lessees
to the lessor. The royalty may be an established minimum, a
step-scale, or a sliding-scale. A step-scale rate increases
by steps as the average production on the lease increases. A
sliding-scale rate is based on the average production and applies
to all production from the lease. |
|
| S |
| Safety Inspection, Maintenance and
Quality Assurance Plan (SIMQAP) - The purpose and scope
of the SIMQAP is to identify procedures that will be used during
the operation of a facility and to insure that all equipment
will function as designed. The SIMQAP identifies items to be
inspected, maintained or tested, defines the procedure for such
inspection, maintenance or testing, and establishes the frequency
of inspection, maintenance or testing. |
| Sales Value - The proceeds
received for the sale of a mineral. |
| Seismic Survey - An exploratory
method in which strong low-frequency sound waves are generated
on the surface or in the water to find subsurface rock structures
that may contain hydrocarbons. The sound waves travel through
the layers of the earth's crust, however, at formation boundaries
some of the waves are reflected back to the surface where sensitive
detectors pick them up. Reflections from shallow formations
arrive at the surface sooner than reflections from deep formations,
and since the reflections are recorded, a record of the depth
and configuration of the various formations can be generated.
Interpretation of the record can reveal possible hydrocarbon-bearing
formations. |
| Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR)
- A post-combustion technology used in the operation of gas
turbines as a means of reducing NOX emissions. |
| Semi-Submersible
- A floating offshore drilling structure that has hulls submerged
in the water but not resting on the sea floor. |
| Separator (oil and gas) - Production
equipment used to separate liquid components of the well stream
from gaseous elements. Separators are either vertical or horizontal
and either cylindrical or spherical in shape. Separation is
accomplished primarily by gravity, with the heavier liquids
falling to the bottom and the gas rising to the top. |
| Setback - A minimum distance
required by zoning to be maintained between structures, or between
structures and property lines. |
| Single Anchor Leg Mooring (SALM)
- In single-anchor-leg mooring (SALM), a ship or other vessel
is attached to the seabed at a single point by use of a small
jacket structure with a rotating head on the end of an anchor
chin or similar device. A very simple SALM consists of a single
vertical chain connected to a base. The chain remains tensioned
and essentially vertical because of buoyancy forces generated
by a tank either atop the chain or attached under the mooring
yoke of the vessel. |
| Slurry - 1) In drilling, a plastic
mixture of cement and water that is pumped into a well to harden.
There it supports the casing and provides a seal in the well
bore to prevent migration of underground fluids. 2) A mixture
in which solids are suspended in a liquid. |
| Societal Risk - Risk to
a group of people, expressed in terms of the distributed frequency
of events that cause multiple casualties or, when appropriate,
the frequency of casualties at a specific location. |
| Species of Special Concern (SSC)
- The terms "Species at Risk" or "Species of
Concern" should be considered as terms-of-art that describe
the entire realm of taxa whose conservation status may be of
concern to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, but neither term
has official status. (http://www.fws.gov/r9endspp/norqa.html) |
| Specific Plan - Specific
plans are often used by cities and counties to plan the future
of an area at a finer level of detail than that provided in
the comprehensive plan. They describe allowable land uses, identify
open space, and detail infrastructure availability and financing
for a portion of the community. Specific plans implement, but
are not technically a part of the local comprehensive plan.
In some jurisdictions, specific plans take the place of zoning.
Zoning, subdivision, and public works decisions must be in accordance
with the specific plan. |
| Spot Price - A transaction
price concluded “on the spot”, that is, on a one-time,
prompt basis to sell or buy one shipment of a commodity, such
as crude oil. |
| Spud Date - Date of first boring
of the hole in the drilling of a well. |
| Spud In - The first boring of
the hole in the drilling of a well. |
| SSRRC Systems Safety and Reliability
Review Committee of Santa Barbara County - An organization
of representatives from the Air Pollution Control District,
Fire Department, Office of Emergency Services, Building and
Safety Division, and Energy Division, which has been charged
by the Board of Supervisors with the task of mitigating the
risk of oil and gas projects |
| Standard Cubic Feet Per Day (SCFD)
- In the United States, a measure of the rate of flow of a well;
total amount of natural gas and other constituents produced,
processed, or transported per day. |
| Statement of Overriding
Considerations - CEQA requires a decision-making agency
to balance the economic, legal, social, technological, or other
benefits of a proposed project against its unavoidable environmental
impacts when determining whether to approve the project. Thus,
a decision-making agency will issue a written statement explaining
the specific reasons why it finds a proposed project’s
specific economic, legal, social, technological, or other benefits
override its environmental impacts, as identified in an EIR,
and will therefore be approved. |
| Steam Injection - A method
of recovering very heavy crude oil from underground formations. |
| Stimulation - Any process
undertaken to enlarge old channels or to create new ones in
the producing formation of a well (e.g., acidizing or formation
fracturing). |
| Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR)
- Petroleum stocks maintained by the federal government for
use during periods of major interruptions in oil supplies. |
| Stream - A stream (whether oil,
gas, or product) is what is being pumped through a pipeline,
moved from one process unit into another. |
| Stream Day - An operating day
on a process unit as opposed to a calendar day. Stream day includes
an allowance for regular downtime. |
| Subdivision - In general,
land cannot be divided in California without local approval.
Dividing land for sale, lease or financing, is regulated by
local ordinances based on the State Subdivision Map Act (commencing
with Government Code Section 66410). The local general plan,
zoning, subdivision, and other ordinances govern the design
of subdivision, size of its lots, and the types of improvements
(street construction, sewer lines, drainage facilities, etc.).
A city or county may impose a variety of fees upon the subdivision,
depending on local and regional needs, such as school impact
fees, park dedications, etc. There are basically two types of
subdivision: parcel maps, which are limited to divisions resulting
in fewer than five lots (with certain exceptions), and final
map subdivisions (also called tract maps), which apply to subdivisions
resulting in five or more lots. |
| Subdivision (final map –
also called tract map or major subdivision) - Final map
subdivisions are land divisions which create five or more lots.
They must be consistent with the comprehensive (general) plan
and are generally subject to stricter requirements than parcel
maps. |
| Subdivision (parcel map)
- Parcel map subdivisions are land divisions that create fewer
than five lots. A parcel map may be approved when it meets the
requirements of the comprehensive (general) plan, zoning ordinance,
and all applicable ordinances and regulations. |
| Subdivision (tentative map)
- A map or drawing illustrating a subdivision proposal. A city
or county may approve or deny a proposed subdivision based on
the design depicted by the tentative map. A subdivision is not
complete until the conditions of approval imposed on the tentative
map have been satisfied and a final map has been certified by
the city or county and recorded with the county recorder. |
| Subdivision Map Act - The Subdivision
Map Act commences with California’s Government Code Section
66410. This act vests in local legislative bodies the regulation
and control of the design and improvement of subdivisions, including
the requirement for tentative and final maps. |
| Sulfur - A pale yellow nonmetallic
element occurring widely in nature in several free and combined
allotropic forms. It is used in black gunpowder, rubber vulcanization,
the manufacture of insecticides and pharmaceuticals, and in
the preparation of sulfur compounds such as hydrogen sulfide
and sulfuric acid. Atomic number 16; atomic weight 32.066; melting
point (rhombic) 112.8°C, (monoclinic) 119.0°C; boiling
point 444.6°C; specific gravity (rhombic) 2.07, (monoclinic)
1.957; valence 2, 4, 6. |
| Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) -
A strong smelling, colorless gas that is formed by the combustion
of fossil fuels. Power plants, which may use coal or oil high
in sulfur content, can be major sources of SO2. SO2
and other sulfur oxides contribute to the problem of acid deposition.
SO2 is a criteria pollutant. |
| Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
(SCADA) - A system to gather information such as pressures
and flows from remote field locations and regularly transmit
this information to a central facility where the data can be
monitored and analyzed. Through this same system, the central
facility can often issue commands to the remote sites for actions
such as opening and closing valves and starting and stopping
pumps. (W. Kent Muhlbauer, Pipeline Risk Management Manual,
Houston: Gulf Publishing Co., 1996.) |
| Surface Water Quality Management Program
(SWQMP) - The Clean Water Act requires regulated jurisdictions
to address six components of a surface water quality management
program to obtain an NPDES permit. These include: (1) public
outreach and education; (2) public involvement and participation;
(3) illicit discharge detection and elimination; (4) construction
site storm-water runoff control; (5) post-construction storm-water
management; and (6) pollution prevention, or "good housekeeping,"
for municipal operations. |
| Surge Tank - A vessel on a
flow-line whose function is to receive and cushion sudden rises
or surges in the stream of a liquid. |
| Suspended Solid - Small
solid particles that do not settle of water, bur remain suspended
in the water column. |
| Suspension - A lease temporarily
rendered inactive due to forces of nature, environmental impact
studies, or other reasons, as defined in the OCSLA. Wells are
shut in if both operations and production are suspended, royalty
reporting and payments are held in abeyance during this period,
and the term of the lease is extended for the period of suspension.
If either operations or production (but not both) is suspended,
rent and minimum royalty obligations continue. |
|
| T |
| Tank Bottoms - Oil-water
emulsion mixed with free water and other foreign matter that
collect in the bottoms of stock tanks and large crude storage
tanks. Periodically, tank bottoms are cleaned out by physically
removing the material or by the use of chemicals that separate
oil from water, permitting both to be pumped out. |
| Tank Farm - An installation
used by gathering and trunk pipeline companies, crude oil producers,
and terminal operators (except refineries) to store crude oil. |
| Tanker and Barge - Vessels
that transport crude oil or petroleum products. |
| Tariff - A schedule of rates or
charges permitted a common carrier or utility; pipeline tariffs
are the charges made by common carrier pipelines for moving
crude oil or products. |
| Thresholds of Significance
- CEQA Guidelines encourage each public agency to develop and
publish thresholds of significance that it uses to determine
the significance of environmental effects pursuant to its responsibilities
under CEQA. |
| Toluene (C6H5CH3)
- Colorless liquid of the aromatic group of petroleum hydrocarbons,
made by the catalytic reforming of petroleum napthas containing
methyl cyclohexane. A high-octane gasoline-blending agent, solvent,
and chemical intermediate, base for TNT. |
| Total Organic Gases (TOG) - Reactive
organic gases plus non-reactive organic gases. |
| Transmission Lines
- Pipelines that transport crude oil, natural gas, or other
hydrocarbons from final processing or, when no processing is
required, downstream of the Lease Custody Transfer meter to
a refinery, gas storage or distribution systems, injection well,
or end use. |
| Tri-Counties - The counties
of Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo, located on California's
southern central coast. |
| Two-Phase Flow - The transportation
of a liquid or gas by a single pipeline. In some instances,
notably in an offshore environment, crude oil and natural gas
are moved to shore stations through the same line. In this type
of transportation, there can be different flow patterns depending
upon a number of parameters, such as flow rates of the two phases,
liquid and gaseous, line characteristics, and physical properties
of the liquid phase. |
|
| U |
| Ultrasonic Thickness (UT) - Characterizing
material thickness, integrity, or other physical properties
by means of high-frequency sound waves. |
| Undiscovered Recoverable
Resources (crude oil and natural gas) - Those economic
resources of crude oil and natural gas, yet undiscovered, that
are estimated to exist in favorable geologic settings. |
| Unfractionated Streams
- Mixtures of unsegregated natural gas liquid components excluding
those in plant condensate. This product is extracted from natural
gas. |
| United States Coast Guard (USCG)
- The U.S. Coast Guard is a military, multi-mission, maritime
service. The Coast Guard is charged with a broad scope of regulatory,
law-enforcement, humanitarian, and emergency-response duties.
The Coast Guard provides a variety of information with respect
to the prevention of offshore oil spills and contingency plans
that are activated should an offshore oil spill occur. |
| United States Code (USC) - All federal
laws of a general and permanent nature arranged into an official
code of laws of the United States. |
| United States Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS) - A bureau in the U.S. Department of the
Interior that works to conserve, protect and enhance fish,
wildlife, plants and their habitats, with a particular focus
on migratory birds, endangered species, certain marine mammals,
and freshwater and anadramous fish. |
| United States Geologic Survey (USGS)
- A bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior that provides
maps, databases, and descriptions and analyses of the water,
energy and minerals, land surface, underlying geologic structure,
and dynamic processes of the Earth. |
| Upper Flammability Limit (UFL) -
The maximum concentration of a vapor or gas in air that will
ignite and propagate flame. Also expressed as upper explosive
limit (UEL). |
| Upstream - Facilities or operations
performed before those at the point of reference. Oil production
is upstream from pipeline transportation, and transportation
is upstream from refining. |
|
| V |
| Valve - A device used to control
the rate of flow in a line, to open or shut a line, or to serve
as an automatic or semiautomatic safety device. |
| Valve (bleeder) - A small
valve on a pipeline, pump, or tank from which samples are drawn
or to vent air or oil; sample valve. |
| Valve (block) - A large heavy-duty
valve on a crude oil or products trunk line placed on each side
of a pipeline river crossing to isolate possible leaks at the
crossing. |
| Valve (relief) - A valve
that is set to open when pressure on a liquid or gas line reaches
a predetermined level; a pop-off valve. |
| Valve (Remotely
Operated) - A mechanical device that prevents flow of a
product within a pipeline and is designed to operate upon receipt
of a signal transmitted from another location. |
| Vapor - A substance in the gaseous
state, capable of being liquefied by compression or cooling. |
| Vapor Recovery Systems
- Mechanical systems that collect and recover chemical vapors
resulting from transfer of gasoline from operations such as
tank-to-truck systems at refineries, tanker-to-pipeline systems
at offshore oil operations, and pump-to-vehicle systems at gasoline
stations. |
| Variance - A variance is a limited
waiver of development standards. A city or county may grant
a variance in special cases where: (1) application of the zoning
regulations would deprive property of the uses enjoyed by nearby,
similarly zoned lands; and (2) restrictions have been imposed
to ensure that the variance will not constitute a grant of special
privilege. A city or county may not grant a variance that would
permit a use that is not otherwise allowed in that zone (for
example an industrial use could not be approved in a residential
zone by variance). Typically, variances are considered when
the physical characteristics of the property make it impossible
for a landowner to enjoy the same or similar use of the property
as other owners of land in the same zone district. Variance
requests require a public hearing. |
| Vertical Integration
- Refers to the condition in which a company produces raw material,
transports it, refines or processes it, and markets the product,
all as one integrated operation. Specifically, an oil company
is said to be vertically integrated when it finds and produces
oil and gas, transports it in its own pipelines, refines it,
and markets its products under its brand name. According to
the critics of the industry, this is not in the country's best
interest. |
| Viscosity - A measure of the
resistance of a liquid flow. Resistance is brought about by
the internal friction resulting from the combined effects of
cohesion and adhesion. The viscosity of petroleum products is
commonly expressed in terms of the time required for a specific
volume to flow through an orifice of a specific size. |
| Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) -
This term is generally used similarly to the term "reactive
organic compounds" but excludes ethane, which the federal
government does not consider to be reactive. VOCs are hydrocarbon
compounds that exist in the ambient air and contribute to the
formation of smog and/or may themselves be toxic. VOCs often
have an odor, and some examples include gasoline, alcohol, and
the solvents used in paints. |
| Volatility - The tendency
of a liquid to assume a gaseous state. |
|
| W |
| Wall Thickness - The dimension
measurement between a point on the inside surface of a pipeline
and the closest point on the outside surface. This measurement
is the thickness of the pipeline material. |
| Wax - A solid or semi-solid material
consisting of a mixture of hydrocarbons obtained or delivered
from petroleum fractions in which the straight chained paraffin
wax series predominates. The conversion factor is 280 pounds
per 42 U.S. gallons per barrel. |
| Well - A hole drilled or bored
into the Earth, usually cased with metal pipe, for the production
of gas or oil. A hole for the injection, under pressure, of
water or gas into a subsurface rock formation. |
| Well (active) - A well in
mechanical condition for production or service use. |
| Well (Completed) - A well
that has been mechanically completed for production or service
use. There may be more than one completed zone in the well. |
| Well (Delineation)
- A well that is drilled to determine the extent of a reservoir. |
| Well (development) -
A well drilled within the proved area of an oil or gas reservoir
to the depth of a stratigraphic horizon known to be productive. |
| Well (Disposal) -
A well through which water is returned to subsurface formations. |
| Well (Exploratory)
- A well drilled in an unexplored area where no oil or gas
production exists. Also known as a wildcat well. |
| Well (Gas Injection)
- A well used to introduce gas under high pressure into
a formation as part of pressure maintenance, a secondary recovery
effort, a recycling operation, or for gas storage. |
| Well (Gas) - A well completed
for production of natural gas from one or more gas zones or
reservoirs. |
| Well (Marginal) -
A low-producing well. Profit from continued production may be
doubtful. |
| Well (Oil) - A well completed
for the production of crude oil from one or more zones or reservoirs.
Oil wells typically produce associated gas. |
| Well (Service) - A
non-producing well used for injecting liquids or gas into the
reservoir for enhanced recovery. A service well may also serve
as a salt water disposal well or a water supply well. |
| Well (Shut-in) - A
producing well that has been closed for repairs, cleaning, or
re-pressuring, or due to a decline in the market. The well has
not been plugged with cement and abandoned. |
| Well (Stripper) -
A well nearing depletion that produces a very small amount of
oil or gas, usually ten barrels per day or less. |
| Well Bore - The bore hole or
hole made by drilling or boring. A well bore may contain casing,
it may be open, or it may have portions that are cased and portions
that are open. |
| Wellhead - The equipment installed
at the surface of the well bore. A wellhead includes the casing
head and tubing head. |
| Western States Petroleum Association
(WSPA) - Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) is
a non-profit trade association representing petroleum exploration,
production, refining, transportation, and marketing companies. |
| Work Boat - A boat or self-propelled
barge used to carry supplies, tools, and equipment to job sites
offshore. Work boats have large areas of clear deck space which
enable them to carry a variety of loads. |
|
| X Y Z |
| Xylene (C6H4(CH3)2)
- Colorless liquid of the aromatic group of hydrocarbons made
by the catalytic reforming of certain napthenic petroleum fractions.
Used as high-octane motor and aviation gasoline blending agents,
solvents, and chemical intermediates. Isomers are metaxylene,
orthoxylene, and paraxylene. |
| Zone - A rock stratum that is different
from or distinguished from another stratum. |
| Zone (Oil) - A formation
or horizon of a well from which oil may be produced. The oil
zone is usually immediately under the gas zone and on top of
the water zone if all three fluids are present and segregated. |
| Zoning - The purpose of zoning
is to implement the policies of the comprehensive (general)
plan. Zoning regulates present development through specific
standards such as lot size, building setback, and a list of
allowable uses. The land uses reflected in the comprehensive
plan's diagrams and maps will usually be reflected in local
zoning maps as well. Zoning groups various kinds of land uses
into general categories or "zones" such as agricultural,
residential, commercial, indusrial, etc. Each piece of property
in the community is assigned a zone listing the kind of uses
that will be allowed on that land and setting standards such
as minimum lot size, maximum building height, etc. The distribution
of residential, commercial, industrial, and other zones will
be based on the pattern of land uses established in the community's
comprehensive plan. |
| Zoning (overlay) - In addition
to the zoning applied to each property, many cities and counties
use "overlay zones" to further regulate development
in areas of special concern. For example, lands in historic
districts, downtowns, floodplains, near earthquake faults or
on steep slopes are often subject to having additional regulations
"overlain" upon the basic zoning requirements. Development
of land subject to overlay zoning requires compliance with the
regulations of both the base and overlay zones. |
| Zoning (rezone) - If a landowner
or a city or county proposes a change of zone district on a
property, such a change must be reviewed by a city council or
county planning commission and county board of supervisors and
approved by those bodies. The proposed change of zone district
must not result in a conflict with the land use patterns outlined
in the city or county comprehensive plan. Therefore, such a
zoning change must conform to the existing comprehensive plan's
specified pattern of land use for an area, or the comprehensive
plan must be amended to accomodate such a change if that change
is deemed to be warranted. |
| Zoning Administrator - A
planning department staff member responsible for hearing minor
zoning permits. Typically, the zoning administrator considers
variances and conditional use permits and may interpret the
provisions of the zoning ordinance when questions arise. The
zoning administrator's decision on a matter may be appealed
to the local legislative body. |
