New York Permitting: Residential/Commercial Instructions

  1. Permitting for the state of NY is not differentiated between commercial and residential. Instead, ANY well deeper than 500 feet must apply for a permit through the NYDEC, Department of Mineral Resources.
  2. In addition, NY does not have primacy, which means that EPA permits need to be applied for as well.
  3. Property owners can expect a review period of approximately 6 weeks with regards to the NYDEC, assuming no changes or amendments need to be done. A review period of approximately 4 weeks can be expected for EPA permit applications. Owners will be notified in writing of their status from both agencies.
  4. For the NYDEC property owners will need to file an “Organizational Report”, “Financial Security Worksheet”, Application for Permit to Drill, Deepen, Plug Back or Convert a Well Subject to the Oil, Gas, and Solution Mining Law” (one for each well), and an “Environmental Assessment Form” (one for each well). These forms can be downloaded from the NYDEC website: http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/1772.html along with instructions. This application carries with it a FEE that can be calculated at the NYDEC website as well.
  5. For the EPA property owners will need to file an “Inventory of Injection Wells” form and an “Underground Injection Control Permit Application”, these can be downloaded from the EPA website: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/uic/reportingforms.html This application carries with it NO FEES.

NOTE: If the location of the wells is in an “archaeologically sensitive area” a project review must be submitted to the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Office. If when an owner applies to the NYDEC it is deemed that the location is in a potentially sensitive area the NYDEC will contact the NYS OPRHP for clearance. This however adds a few weeks to the approval process.

The owner may submit a “Project Review Cover Form” and attachments on his/her own to the NYS OPRHP to bypass the added time. This process takes approximately two weeks and carries with it NO FEE. The single page form can be downloaded from the