Misplaced Pages

#386613

62-514: Oil production on the field continues from 32 active wells as of 2016. The gas storage reservoir is accessed through 115 gas injection wells, along with approximately 38 miles of pipeline internal to the field. Three operators were active on the field: Southern California Gas Company, The Termo Company, and Crimson Resource Management Corp. The field is on the southern slope of the Santa Susana Mountains , an east-west trending range dividing

124-764: A transverse range of mountains in Southern California , north of the city of Los Angeles , in the United States . The range runs east-west, separating the San Fernando and Simi valleys on its south from the Santa Clara River Valley to the north and the Santa Clarita Valley to the northeast. The Oxnard Plain is to the west of the Santa Susana Mountains. The Newhall Pass separates

186-697: A Storage Integrity Management Program to address these deficiences, along with a budget, and presented it to the State Public Utility Commission in 2014. Two other oil companies continue to operate on the field, outside of the SoCalGas facility boundary: The Termo Company and Crimson Resource Management Corp. These companies produce oil from other, shallower zones than the Sesnon-Frew zone that SoCalGas uses for gas storage. The Termo Company proposed an expansion of their operation, adding another 12 wells to

248-494: A biocide before injection. Filters clean the water and remove impurities, such as sediments, shells , sand, algae and other biological matter. Typical filtration is to 2 micrometres , but depends on reservoir requirements. After filtration the remaining matter in the filtrate is fine enough to avoid blockage of the pores of the reservoir. Sand filters are a commonly used filtration technology. The sand filter has beds with various sizes of sand granules. The water flows through

310-451: A modern pipeline transport system, natural gas at this time was not always retained for use – it was commonly flared or just vented to the atmosphere). The State Oil and Gas Supervisor ruled in favor of Standard and Tidewater and limited production on the Sesnon pool to reduce the waste. One enhanced recovery technique, waterflooding , was used on the field, beginning in 1976. The Del Aliso zone

372-466: A series of trays or packing causing dissolved air to be transferred to the gas stream. An alternative or supplementary method, also used as a backup to deoxygenation towers, is to add an oxygen scavenging agent such as sodium bisulfite and ammonium bisulphite. Another option is to use membrane contactors. Membrane contactors bring the water into contact with an inert gas stream, such as nitrogen, to strip out dissolved oxygen. Membrane contactors have

434-448: A single productive zone, the Sesnon-Frew, the largest of the field's zones and the one used by SoCalGas for gas storage. This unit has an average depth of about 9,000 feet, and averages about 160 feet thick. Beneath the Sesnon-Frew are marine sediments of Cretaceous age, not known to contain oil, and below that crystalline basement rocks of Cretaceous age or older. The Santa Susana Mountains are one of several anticlinal formations within

496-402: Is crucial; especially with river-, and seawater, intake water quality can vary significantly (algae blooming in spring, storms and current stirring up sediments from the seafloor) which may have significant impact on the performance of the water treatment facilities. This may result in poor water quality, bioclogging of the reservoir and reduction of oil production. Oxygen must be removed from

558-876: Is located in the Simi Hills, just south of the Santa Susana Pass, at the northwestern edge of the San Fernando Valley. The Santa Susana Mountains are not as steep or high as the San Gabriel Mountains. The western half of the range lies in Ventura County , and the eastern half lies in Los Angeles County . The southeastern slopes of the Santa Susana Mountains are part of the City of Los Angeles , and housing subdivisions, including Porter Ranch , have been built on

620-458: Is not uncommon to see red-shouldered hawks flying from limb to limb. Through the cover of dense, trailside chaparral you might glimpse the California towhee or the colorful spotted towhee , birds who often make their presence known by rustling up leaf litter on the ground. California quail , greater roadrunner , and common raven are also residents of the range. The eerie and enchanting call of

682-549: Is placed at sufficient depth to reduce the concentration of algae; however, filtering, deoxygenation, treatment with a biocide is generally required. Aquifer water from water-bearing formations other than the oil reservoir, but in the same structure, has the advantage of purity and chemical compatibility where available. However this will not be allowed if the aquifer is a source of potable water as, for instance, in Saudi Arabia. River water will require filtration and treatment with

SECTION 10

#1732855011387

744-405: Is taken from the base of the deaerator by transfer pumps which deliver 1632 m /hr at 3.6 barg to the degasser surge drum. From the surge drum water is transferred to the water injection pumps which deliver water at up to 250,000 BWPD to up to 11 water injection wells. Produced water is also injected into the reservoir at up to 350,000 BWPD. The table shows the number of water injection wells on

806-537: The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the project was approved and construction began in 2014. Gas wells on the site are old, and have required considerable maintenance in recent years. Of 229 storage wells on the site, half were more than 57 years old as of July 2014. Casing, tubing, and wellhead leaks have occurred in recent years. For example, in 2013, two wells were found with casing leaks, four with tubing leaks, and two with leaks at

868-523: The San Fernando Valley on the south from the Santa Clarita Valley on the north-northeast. With some of its productive wells set at an elevation over 3,000 feet, it is one of the highest and most rugged oil fields in California. The main entrance to the oil field is on Limekiln Canyon Trail where it intersects Sesnon Boulevard. Vehicles must pass a guard station and locked gate to enter. Land uses in

930-561: The common poorwill can often be heard after dark while quick eyes might observe the silent flight of great horned owls and phantom-like barn owls . A handful of fascinating amphibians live in the area. Streams and creeks support populations of Pacific tree frog , the small amphibian whose signature chorus adds an aura of mystery and inexplicable beauty to the surrounding land. Western toads often make their appearance at nightfall, emerging from burrows in search of water and insects, while California slender salamanders are often found under

992-423: The 15 they already had at the end of 2015, but put their plans on hold after the methane gas eruption from SoCalGas well Standard Sesnon 25 that began on October 23, 2015. A dramatic break somewhere along the length of an 8,750-foot injection well casing resulted in a gigantic methane eruption from the field on October 23, 2015, allowing the escape of around 60 million cubic feet of methane per day at first, before

1054-500: The 5,000 psi (345 bar) manifold and wellheads. There were eight water injection wells, each well had a capacity of 15,000 BWPD (99.4 m /hr). An alternative configuration and technology is used on the Buzzard field in the North Sea . Seawater lift pumps deliver 4,000m /hr at 12 barg to the seawater coarse filtration package. After filtration the water is used to cool the cooling medium in

1116-470: The Santa Clarita Woodlands Park and other large open space preserves. The mountains are part of the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion . The oaks , ( Quercus spp. ), include the evergreen coast live oak ( Quercus agrifolia ), the deciduous valley oak ( Quercus lobata ), and the coastal scrub oak ( Quercus dumosa ) all can be found in the area. Spring wildflowers include

1178-655: The Santa Susana Mountains from the San Gabriel Mountains to the east. Newhall Pass is the major north-south connection between the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys, and Interstate 5 and a railroad line share Newhall Pass. The Santa Susana Pass (containing SR 118 ) connects the Simi and San Fernando valleys, and separates the Santa Susana Mountains from the Simi Hills to the south. Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park

1240-816: The Santa Susana Mountains through the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. The City of Los Angeles maintains O'Melveny Park at the eastern end of the mountains. Note: the Santa Susana Field Laboratory , once operated by and still owned by Rocketdyne until toxics are cleaned up, is actually in the Simi Hills , which are adjacent to the south of the Santa Susana Mountains. The south-facing slopes are mostly covered in Chaparral shrubland , grasslands , and oak savanna. The north-facing slopes are home to magnificent oak woodlands and conifer (fir) woodlands, some of which have been protected in

1302-614: The Southern California coastal wildlife corridor the connects Los Padres National Forest with the Santa Monica Mountains. The Rim of the Valley Trail is a plan in progress for connecting the parkland and recreational areas of the San Fernando, Simi, and La Crescenta Valleys via the Santa Susana Mountains. Rocky Peak Park and O'Melveny Park have trail sections already. Water injection (oil production) In

SECTION 20

#1732855011387

1364-625: The Ventura Basin, and as such have long been of interest to those looking for oil. The oldest oil well in California, and the oldest commercially viable oil well in the western United States, was at the Pico Canyon Area of the Newhall Oil Field less than five miles northwest of the Aliso field boundary, also in the Santa Susana Mountains. J. Paul Getty's Tidewater Associated Oil Company drilled

1426-505: The advantage of being lower weight and compact enabling smaller system designs. The high pressure, high flow water injection pumps are placed near to the de-oxygenation tower and boosting pumps. They fill the base of the reservoir with the filtered water to push the oil towards the wells like a piston . The result of the injection is not quick, it needs time. The configuration of the plant elements described above and their operating conditions are outlined in this section. These examples are

1488-489: The area is Mediterranean , with warm, almost rainless summers, and mild and rainy winters. Snow is rare although it can fall at the higher elevations. Wildfires are common, particularly in the summer and fall, and some of the storage field was burned over in the October, 2008 14,000-acre Sesnon Fire . The Aliso Canyon field consists of multiple layers of oil and gas bearing sediments in a southeast-plunging anticline bounded on

1550-527: The cool leaf litter and canopy of oak woodlands. Many reptiles thrive in the Santa Susana range. Lizards that are likely to be observed on any given day include the common western fence lizard and the equally abundant side-blotched lizard . Somewhat less frequently observed but still present are the southern alligator lizard , western skink , whiptail , and the seemingly rare coast horned lizard . Southern Pacific rattlesnakes and gopher snakes are perhaps

1612-446: The cooling medium plate exchangers. 2322.7 m /hr of seawater now at 6 barg and 20°C is routed to the fine filters and then to the sulphate removal membrane where reverse osmosis is used to remove sulphate ions from the water. Desulphated water flows to the top of the deaerator column, this operates at a partial vacuum (0.3 bara) sustained by the deaerator vacuum unit. The deaerator internals comprise three packed beds. Deaerated water

1674-476: The discovery well for the Aliso field in 1938, finding oil in the Porter zone, 5,393 feet below ground surface. Other producing zones were discovered not long after, including Del Aliso zone in 1938, and the Sesnon-Frew zone in 1940. Several companies operated the field in the early years, including Tidewater, Standard Oil of California, Porter Sesnon et al., Porter Oil Co., Carlton Beal and Associates, and M.L. Orcutt. By

1736-444: The early 1970s the Sesnon zone was depleted of oil. As it was an enormous and structurally sound reservoir, with an average depth of about 9,000 feet, and centrally located in the distribution area of Pacific Lighting (an ancestor of Southern California Gas Company), it was ideal to use as a storage reservoir for gas for the local utility. Pacific Lighting bought rights to that portion of the field from Getty's Tidewater , and worked over

1798-512: The field after it had already been fully developed, with some of the first residential housing in Porter Ranch appearing in the 1960s, but the main buildout started in the 1970s. Development continued into the first decade of the 21st century, expanding into the foothills right up to the SoCalGas property line. Many of these projects were master-planned developments, including gated communities, in one of San Fernando Valley's most affluent areas. By

1860-674: The field is on the south slope of the Santa Susana Mountains, drainage is to the south into the San Fernando Valley, with runoff into Mormon Canyon, Limekiln Canyon, and Aliso Canyon, which all flow into the Los Angeles River , which then flows south through the Los Angeles Basin and out to the ocean at Long Beach. Vegetation on the field includes a mix of native habitat types, including oak woodlands and Venturan sage scrub , as well as non-native grassland, with many disturbed areas around roads and drilling and production pads. Climate in

1922-412: The filters water was routed to the water injection pumps. The three water injection pumps each had a capacity of 221 m /hr with a differential head of 2068.5 metres (209 bar). The pumps discharged to the 3,000 psi manifold and wellheads. The single water injection booster pump (221 m /hr, 1,379 m (139 bar) differential head) took its suction from the discharge of the water injection pumps and discharged to

Aliso Canyon Oil Field - Misplaced Pages Continue

1984-445: The first, coarsest, layer of sand down to the finest. To clean the filter the process is inverted. After the water is filtered it continues to the de-oxygenation tower. Sand filters are bulky, heavy, have some spill over of sand particles and require chemicals to enhance water quality. A more sophisticated approach is to use automatic self-cleaning backflushable screen filters (suction scanning). The importance of proper water treatment

2046-555: The former Amoco North West Hutton installation and the Buzzard installation in the North Sea. The water injection system had two design cases The two duty seawater lift pumps discharged water at 1,590 m /hr and 30.5 psi (2.1 barg) to the seawater filters. These comprised six dual media (garnet and anthracite) filter beds. Normal flow was downwards. Backwash flow of water and air was upwards with flush water discharged overboard. Backwashing

2108-451: The gas injection capacity of the site from 300 million to 450 million cubic feet per day, and remove the compressors which were installed in 1971 when the storage facility was first being developed. It would also move guard houses and some other structures, build a substation on the field, and upgrade various transmission and telecommunications lines. After environmental review through draft and final Environmental Impact Reports as required by

2170-814: The larger operators including Vintage Production , Freeport McMoRan , and the Southern California Gas Company . The largest of SoCalGas's four underground storage natural gas facilities is within the Aliso Canyon Oil Field north of Porter Ranch . The mountains are within the acquisition area for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy , which operates several parks, including Santa Clarita Woodlands Park , Rocky Peak Park , Joughin Open Space Preserve , Happy Camp Canyon Regional Park , and other Santa Susana parks in

2232-481: The line separating Ventura and Los Angeles counties and is indicated by a battered marker embedded into the sandstone boulder summit. The first discovery of oil in California was in Pico Canyon, on the north side of the mountains, The California Star Oil Works, later Chevron , succeeded with Pico Well No. 4 . It became famous not only as the first well in California, but also as the longest-producing well in

2294-401: The lower slopes of the range. The city of Simi Valley lies to the southwest. North of the range is the fast-growing city of Santa Clarita , and several large subdivisions in unincorporated Los Angeles County, including Lyons Ranch and Newhall Ranch , have been approved for development. The Sunshine Canyon Landfill is at the mountains' eastern end, and several canyons in the northwest corner of

2356-474: The middle of 1959, there were 118 producing wells on the entire field, and over 32 million barrels of oil had been withdrawn. Early in production, the Sesnon-Frew zone had been identified as having a strong gas cap, with some wells being completed in gas-only portions of the reservoir, needing to be deepenend. The overproduction of gas led to accusations of wasting, and litigation commenced with Standard Oil and Tidewater accusing Carlton Beal of wasting gas (lacking

2418-436: The most commonly observed snakes, but a lucky hiker might also encounter other species including the striped racer, California kingsnake , and ring-necked snake . Mammals that may be regularly observed in the mountains include smaller animals such as the California ground squirrel and brush rabbit . Small mammals that are less often seen include the dusky-footed woodrat and the agile kangaroo rat . As for larger mammals,

2480-557: The north by the Santa Susana Fault Zone and on the west-northwest by the Frew Fault. These tectonic features form a structural trap keeping oil in place. The layered Tertiary sedimentary zones within the anticline resemble a layer-cake elevated on the northwest, with some of the layers containing oil and gas, and other impermeable layers between them, keeping them separate. Older Cretaceous sedimentary rocks have been forced over

2542-442: The oil industry, waterflooding or water injection is where water is injected into the oil reservoir, to maintain the pressure (also known as voidage replacement), or to drive oil towards the wells, and thereby increase production. Water injection wells may be located on- and offshore, to increase oil recovery from an existing reservoir. Normally only 30% of the oil in a reservoir can be extracted, but water injection increases

Aliso Canyon Oil Field - Misplaced Pages Continue

2604-467: The old oil production wells, many dating from 1940s and 1950s, to turn them into gas injection wells. The Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility, as this repurposed part of the oil field became known, became the largest gas storage reservoir owned by SoCalGas and the second largest in the western United States. Storage fields such as the four maintained by SoCalGas are necessary to balance the load between summer and winter months; gas can be withdrawn during

2666-458: The potential of causing formation damage due to incompatible fluids, although the risk of scaling or corrosion in injection flowlines or tubing remains. Also, the produced water, being contaminated with hydrocarbons and solids, must be disposed of in some manner, and disposal to sea or river will require clean-up treatment of the water stream first. However, the processing required to render produced water fit for reinjection may be equally costly. As

2728-508: The pressure was reduced. The well, Standard Sesnon 25 ("SS 25") had originally been installed in 1953, and reworked as a gas injection well in 1973, but lacked a blowout prevention valve, as it had not been considered a priority given the well's position, at the time, far from a populated area. Fallout from the methane cloud, in the form of oily droplets and persistent noxious odors, caused the evacuation of over 6,000 families, who relocated to hotels and other rentals at SoCalGas's expense throughout

2790-508: The rain-bearing winds. Most of the rain falls between November and March. Because of the summer drought, wildfires sometimes occur in summer and fall before the rains start, especially during hot, dry "Santa Ana" wind events (mostly between late September to mid November). The highest peaks in the range are Oat Mountain (1,142 m; 3,747 feet), Mission Point (845 m; 2,771 feet), Rocky Peak (827 m; 2,714 feet), and Sand Rock Peak (765 m; 2,511 feet). The summit of Rocky Peak lies directly atop

2852-446: The range have been proposed for more landfills . The Santa Susana Mountains are paralleled by State Route 118 to the south and State Route 126 to the north. The mountains have a mild climate, with warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters (Mediterranean climate type). Snow falls in winter in some higher areas, such as Oat Mountain , but melts quickly. Annual precipitation totals vary between 18 and 25 inches, depending on exposure to

2914-534: The recovery (known as the recovery factor) and maintains the production rate of a reservoir over a longer period. Waterflooding began accidentally in Pithole, Pennsylvania by 1865. Waterflooding became common in Pennsylvania in the 1880s. Most sources of bulk water can be used for injection. The following sources of water are used for recovery of oil: Produced water is often used as an injection fluid. This reduces

2976-444: The redbush monkey flower, Mariposa lily , and canyon sunflower. Poison oak is also an important member of the native plant habitat community. Various ferns are found in moister and tree-shaded areas. Many bird species thrive in the Santa Susana Mountains. Perhaps the most common raptors observed soaring over the brushy, boulder-strewn landscape are turkey vultures , red-tailed hawks , and American kestrels . In oak woodlands it

3038-400: The region. Another 10,000 homes received air-purification systems at the company's expense. On Dec. 4, 2015, SoCalGas commenced drilling a relief well to stop the natural gas blowout by plugging the damaged well at its base. The relief well intercepted the base of the well on Feb. 11, 2016, and the company began pumping heavy fluids to temporarily control the flow of gas out of the well. SoCalGas

3100-734: The top by motion along the Frew Fault. The uppermost oil-bearing stratigraphic unit is the Pliocene -age Pico Formation , which contains the Aliso, Porter, and Upper, Middle, and Lower Del Aliso zones, from top to bottom, ranging in depth from about 4,500 to 8,000 feet. Underneath the Pico is the Middle Miocene Modelo Formation , and beneath that, bounded by an unconformity , the Eocene-age Llajas Formation . Since these units are both permeable and in direct contact, they form

3162-401: The vicinity of the field include industrial (for the oil and gas field itself), open space, parkland, and residential to the south. Areas to the west, north, and east in the Santa Susana Mountains have been identified as Significant Ecological Areas. The Michael D. Antonovich Open Space Preserve abuts the field on the northeast, and numerous parks in Porter Ranch are adjacent on the south. Since

SECTION 50

#1732855011387

3224-413: The volumes of water being produced are never sufficient to replace all the production volumes (oil and gas, in addition to water), additional "make-up" water must be provided. Mixing waters from different sources exacerbates the risk of scaling. Seawater may be the most convenient source for offshore production facilities, and it may be pumped inshore for use in land fields. Where possible, the water intake

3286-411: The water because it promotes corrosion and growth of certain bacteria . Bacterial growth in the reservoir can produce hydrogen sulfide , a source of production problems, and may block the pores in the rock. A deoxygenation tower brings the injection water into contact with a gas stream (gas is readily available in the oilfield). The filtered water flows down the de-oxygenation tower, splashing onto

3348-428: The well-trained eye might spot California mule deer or a coyote . Larger mammals that are considerably more secretive and therefore less often encountered include the gray fox , bobcat , ring-tailed cat , American badger , and the mountain lion . A population of American black bears occupy various niches in the backcountry; showing up in communities below the mountains every few years. The mountains are part of

3410-422: The wellhead. In 2008, one well – "Porter 50A" – was found to have a gas pressure of 400 pounds per square inch on the surface annulus , an indication of a serious underground leak and potential safety hazard; this well was immediately removed from service, and on investigation corrosion was discovered along a 600-foot stretch of the production casing, ending more than 1000 feet below ground surface. SoCalGas designed

3472-569: The wells were thoroughly tested for corrosion and leaks. On May 10 2016, Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 380, introduced in the California State Senate by Fran Pavley , into law. The bill extended the moratorium on gas injection, and requires the state to consider permanently shutting down this gas storage facility. 34°18′54″N 118°33′51″W  /  34.3149°N 118.5641°W  / 34.3149; -118.5641 Santa Susana Mountains The Santa Susana Mountains are

3534-448: The winter, when it is in high demand, and injected back into the reservoir during the warmer months. Aliso Canyon was ideally placed near the center of SoCalGas's service region, and connected to the system by an extensive pipeline network. In 2009 SoCalGas proposed an expansion and upgrade of the storage facility involving replacement of the obsolete gas turbine compressors with more up-to-date electric versions. This project would increase

3596-636: The world, having been capped in September, 1990 after 114 years. Well No. 4 has the distinction of being the first site in Los Angeles County to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places , in 1966. The surrounding town, Mentryville , is maintained as the oil "ghost town" Mentryville Historical Park, within Pico Canyon Park . Many active oil and gas fields remain in the area, with some of

3658-582: Was able to plug the leak permanently on February 18, 2016. Overall the well is estimated to have released over 100,000 metric tons of natural gas, the largest such release in U.S. history. In March 2016, Termo Company was fined $ 75,000 for piping in methane emissions from another natural gas leak in what the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources called "brazen and intentional violations of state law" . Governor of California Jerry Brown issued an executive order banning natural gas injection until all of

3720-465: Was drawn from the base of the vessel by the deaerator pumps and was transferred to the cold water header operating at 90 psig (6.2 barg). Process and utility coolers were supplied from the cold water header, warm water from the coolers was routed to the degassing drum where any air or gas was removed. From the degassing drum water passed to the injection filters. Water was filtered in the water injection filters, one duty and one on standby/backwash. From

3782-443: Was initiated by a high differential pressure across a filter bed. Filtered water was routed to the top of the deaerator. This was a vertical vessel 12.6 m high and 4.0 m diameter, the internals comprise a packed bed. Air was stripped from the water by an upflow of fuel gas, gas/air was routed from the top of the vessel to the flare. Oxygen scavenger was injected into the deaerator vessel to remove any residual oxygen. Deaerated water

SECTION 60

#1732855011387

3844-409: Was produced this way as conventional oil production began to decline. In this method, water pumped up with oil is disposed by being pumped back into the same formation from which it came, restoring reservoir pressure and pushing the remaining reservoir fluid to other recovery wells, even though it becomes more and more diluted with time. Suburban developments of the San Fernando Valley began approaching

#386613