Notification of fires, leaks, spills, or blowouts

All persons controlling or operating any well, pipeline and associated aboveground equipment, receiving tank, storage tank, facility, treating plant, or any other receptacle or production facility associated with oil, gas, or water production, injection, processing, or well servicing shall verbally notify the director immediately and follow up utilizing the online initial notification report within twenty-four hours after discovery of any fire, leak, spill, blowout, or release of fluid. The initial report must include the name of the reporting party, including telephone number and address, date and time of the incident, location of the incident, type and cause of the incident, estimated volume of release, containment status, waterways involved, immediate potential threat, and action taken. If any such incident occurs or travels offsite of a facility, the persons, as named above, responsible for proper notification shall within a reasonable time also notify the surface owners upon whose land the incident occurred or traveled. Notification requirements prescribed by this section do not apply to any leak or spill involving only freshwater or to any leak, spill, or release of crude oil, produced water, or natural gas liquid that is less than one barrel total volume and remains onsite of a site where any well thereon was spud before September 2, 2000, or on a facility that was constructed before September 2, 2000, and do not apply to any leak or spill or release of crude oil, produced water, or natural gas liquid that is less than ten barrels total volume cumulative over a fifteen-day time period, and remains onsite of a site where all wells thereon were spud after September 1, 2000, or on a facility that was constructed after September 1, 2000. The initial notification must be followed by a written report within ten days after cleanup of the incident, unless deemed unnecessary by the director. Such report must include the following information: the operator and description of the facility, the legal description of the location of the incident, date of occurrence, date of cleanup, amount and type of each fluid involved, amount of each fluid recovered, steps taken to remedy the situation, root cause of the incident unless deemed unnecessary by the director, and action taken to prevent reoccurrence, and if applicable, any additional information pursuant to subdivision e of subsection 1 of North Dakota Century Code section 37-17.1-07.1. The name, title, and telephone number of the company representative must be included on such report. The persons, as named above, responsible for proper notification shall within a reasonable time also provide a copy of the written report to the surface owners upon whose land the incident occurred or traveled. The commission, however, may impose more stringent spill reporting requirements if warranted by proximity to sensitive areas, past spill performance, or careless operating practices as determined by the director.