NAC459.7645. Agreement with owner or operator of well.

     1. A licensee shall not perform well logging with a sealed source before entering into a written agreement with the owner or operator of the well who is employing the licensee.

     2. The written agreement required by subsection 1 must identify the person who will assure that:

     (a) If a sealed source becomes lodged in the well, a reasonable effort will be made to recover it;

     (b) A person will not attempt to recover a sealed source in a manner which, in the licensee’s opinion, could result in its rupture;

     (c) The radiation monitoring required in NAC 459.773 will be performed;

     (d) If the environment or any personnel are contaminated with radioactive material, they will be decontaminated;

     (e) If any equipment is contaminated with radioactive material it will be decontaminated before it is released from the job site or released for unrestricted use at the job site; and

     (f) If a sealed source is classified as irretrievable after reasonable efforts at recovery have been expended, the following requirements will be carried out within 30 days:

          (1) Each irretrievable well logging source must be immobilized and sealed in place with a cement plug;

          (2) A mechanical device to prevent inadvertent intrusion on the irretrievable well logging source must be set at some point in the well above the cement plug, unless the cement plug and source are not accessible to any subsequent drilling operations; and

          (3) A permanent identification plaque, constructed of long lasting material such as stainless steel, brass, bronze or monel, must be mounted at the surface of the well. The size of the plaque must be at least 7 inches square and 1/8-inch thick and contain:

               (I) The word “CAUTION”;

               (II) The radiation caution symbol, but the color requirement in NAC 459.355 need not be met;

               (III) The date on which the irretrievable source was abandoned;

               (IV) The name of the well owner or well operator, as appropriate;

               (V) The name of the well and the well identification number or other designation;

               (VI) An identification of the sealed source by radionuclide and quantity;

               (VII) The depth of the sealed source and depth to the top of the plug; and

               (VIII) An appropriate warning such as “DO NOT RE-ENTER THIS WELL.”

     3. A licensee shall retain a copy of the written agreement required by subsection 1 for 3 years after the completion of the well logging operation.

     (Added to NAC by Bd. of Health, eff. 9-6-88; A 1-18-94)