Underground Injection Control Program
The program maintains a database of all underground injection wells on the Navajo Nation and conducts compliance inspections of mechanical integrity tests (which ensure through pressure testing that a well is operating appropriately).
The Navajo Nation Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program is a program within the Surface and Ground Water Protection Department of the Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency. The program regulates and issues permits to UIC facilities operating on the Navajo Nation pursuant to its authorities under the Navajo Nation Safe Drinking Water Act (NNSDWA) and its implementing regulations. The UIC Program also has been approved by USEPA for primary enforcement authority (primacy) under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act for Class II UIC activities, meaning that its regulation of underground injection of fluids in connection with oil and gas production satisfies federal as well as Navajo requirements. The UIC office is located in Shiprock, NM.
UIC regulation ensures the protection of underground sources of drinking water from various contaminants, including hazardous and radioactive wastes. The Navajo Nation UIC Program focuses on underground injection by petroleum companies operating on the Navajo Nation. Brine solutions used to recover oil and gas are buried deep within the ground, as allowed by a permitted Class II injection well. These wells are drilled through geologic layers and through drinking water sources. The cement casing used in developing a Class II injection well is required to protect underground sources of drinking water (USDWs). These Class II underground injection wells are primarily located in the northern part of the Navajo Nation, in the Shiprock Agency and the Eastern Agency.
The UIC Program monitors and enforces the proper closure of unlined pits used for discharge of oil and gas waste and engages in other related groundwater protection activities (e.g., monitoring the plugging and abandonment of wells) under the NNSDWA and the Navajo Nation Clean Water Act. The program also investigates oil and produced water releases and ensures that the responsible party initiates appropriate action to clean up the contaminated area.
In addition, the UIC Program prohibits Class IV injection wells on the Navajo Nation; these are wells injecting hazardous and radioactive waste. There currently are no Class I injection wells on the Navajo Nation (injection of hazardous waste below USDWs, and other types of industrial and municipal well injection of fluids). Class III wells for extraction of minerals currently may be permitted, and Class V wells (wells that are not in Classes I – IV) also may be permitted.
The UIC Program is authorized to conduct enforcement of the NNSDWA and its implementing regulations, including by issuing administrative orders to comply, if needed. The program prohibits unauthorized injections, endangering drinking water sources, and allowing the movement of fluids into a USDW. The program maintains a database of all underground injection wells on the Navajo Nation and conducts compliance inspections of mechanical integrity tests (which ensure through pressure testing that a well is operating appropriately).
Navajo UIC is authorized to:
Authorize and impose conditions on authorized injection activities
Impose compliance evaluation requirements.
Take enforcement actions.
Promote public participation in permit processing.
Apply technical criteria and standards for the control of underground injection.
Classify types of injection wells.
Prohibit Class IV wells (wells used to dispose of hazardous and radioactive wastes).
Identify aquifers that are underground sources of drinking water (USDW) and may exempt certain aquifers from that definition.
Ensure that federal agencies and persons operating on privately owned or leased property within the Navajo Nation comply with the Navajo Nation UIC laws/regulations.
Revise underground injection control program laws/regulations as needed.
Make policies, keep records, and report to USEPA.
May make available to the USEPA upon request, without restriction, any information obtained or used in the administration of the program, including information claimed by permit applicants as confidential.
The Navajo Nation UIC Program focuses on underground injection by petroleum companies operating on the Navajo Nation. Brine solutions used to recover oil and gas are buried deep within the ground, as allowed by a permitted Class II injection well. These wells are drilled through geologic layers and through drinking water sources. The cement casing used in developing a Class II injection well is required to protect underground sources of drinking water (USDWs). These Class II underground injection wells are primarily located in the northern part of the Navajo Nation, in the Shiprock Agency and the Eastern Agency.