Land Reclamation After Oil Extraction: RK Rules and Stages

Oil extraction inevitably disturbs the land surface. A drilling site leaves behind pits, sludge pads, oil-soaked patches, traces of spills and a technogenically altered relief. Once operations are complete, the subsoil user is obliged to return this land to a condition suitable for further use. This is precisely what reclamation means. In Mangystau Region, where hundreds of hectares of desert land are affected by oil and gas activity every year, reclamation of disturbed land in Kazakhstan is not a voluntary initiative but a direct requirement of the law, with serious sanctions for non-compliance.

This article is written for the technical specialists and environmental engineers of oil and gas companies who plan reclamation works and want to understand the structure of the process: the regulatory framework, the stages, the documentation and the role of surveying support.

What Reclamation Is and Why It Is Mandatory After Oil Extraction

Reclamation is a set of technical, engineering and biological measures aimed at restoring the productivity and economic value of disturbed land, as well as improving the state of the environment. After oil extraction, we deal with two categories of land, each requiring its own approach.

Disturbed land refers to areas where the relief and soil cover have been mechanically altered: drilling pads, access roads, spoil heaps, backfilled and open pits, and well-cluster foundations. Here the fertile layer has been stripped, mixed or destroyed, and the relief no longer matches the natural terrain.

Oil-contaminated land refers to areas where the soil is saturated with oil and petroleum products as a result of spills, pipeline ruptures, emergency blowouts or the long-term use of storage pits. Reclamation of oil-contaminated land is a more complex task, since it requires not only the restoration of the relief but also the cleaning of the soil down to the regulated petroleum-product content thresholds.

Typical reclamation objects at an oilfield:

• Drilling pits — excavations for collecting drilling cuttings and spent fluids;
• Sludge pads — areas where drilling and oil sludge accumulate;
• Spill sites — zones of historical and emergency oil contamination;
• Abandoned wells — sites after wellhead equipment has been dismantled;
• Dismantled pipeline routes — right-of-way strips after pipes have been removed.

The obligation to reclaim is enshrined in law: a subsoil user who has disturbed land in the course of its activity is obliged to restore it at its own expense. A reclamation project must be in place for oil and gas facilities before the relevant works begin — without an approved project, acceptance of the restored land is impossible.

The Regulatory Framework for Reclamation in Kazakhstan

Land reclamation in Kazakhstan is governed by several interrelated legislative acts. The codes in force are listed below without references to specific numbers of subordinate acts, since the detailed requirements are set out in rules approved by the authorised bodies.

The Environmental Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (adopted in a new edition in 2021) is the foundational document establishing the principle of the resource user’s liability for harm caused to the environment and the obligation to restore disturbed land. The Code sets out requirements for environmental impact assessment and for the handling of waste generated during oil extraction.

The Land Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan regulates the procedure for the use and protection of land, establishes the obligation to bring disturbed land into a condition fit for use in accordance with its designated purpose, and governs the stripping, storage and use of the fertile soil layer.

The Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Subsoil and Subsoil Use” defines the subsoil user’s obligations to eliminate the consequences of subsoil use, including the reclamation of land disturbed during hydrocarbon exploration and production. Land-restoration obligations are, as a rule, reflected in the subsoil use contract and in the liquidation fund.

The key practical takeaway for the client: the development and approval of a reclamation project are mandatory. The project goes through coordination, and the works actually carried out are accepted by a dedicated commission with a formal certificate. Working without a project, or deviating from it, is a risk of the land being rejected and of penalties being imposed.

The Two Stages of Reclamation: Technical and Biological

Reclamation is traditionally divided into two consecutive stages. Skipping or poorly executing either of them leaves the restoration of the land incomplete.

The Technical Stage

The technical (engineering) stage is the preparation of the disturbed territory for further restoration. It comprises:

• Stripping and relocating contaminated soil — removing oil-contaminated and unsuitable soil for subsequent treatment, neutralisation or placement in the prescribed manner;
• Eliminating pits and pads — backfilling excavations and levelling spoil heaps;
• Grading the territory — restoring a relief close to the natural terrain, eliminating subsidence and irregularities;
• Applying the fertile (potentially fertile) layer — distributing the soil preserved during stripping over the graded surface.

The technical stage is the most resource-intensive: this is where earthmoving equipment operates, and this is where surveying support is critical for volume control.

The Biological Stage

The biological stage is aimed at restoring fertility and the vegetation cover. It includes:

• Agrotechnical measures — tilling the soil and applying fertilisers and ameliorants that improve the soil structure;
• Phytomeliorative measures — sowing zoned grasses and plants that are resistant to salinity and drought, promoting soil stabilisation and the restoration of the soil microflora.

Under Mangystau Region conditions, the biological stage is especially challenging: the desert climate, scarce precipitation and saline soils call for a selection of special phytomeliorants and, often, several seasons of monitoring how well the vegetation takes root.

The Step-by-Step Order of Reclamation Works

The reclamation process is structured as a clear sequence, where each step relies on the result of the previous one.

Step 1. Survey and inventory of disturbed land. A field survey of the site, defining the boundaries and areas of disturbance, taking soil samples to assess the degree of contamination, and a topographic and geodetic survey of the actual relief.

Step 2. Development of the reclamation project. Based on the survey data, the project is drawn up: technical solutions for each stage, work volumes, selection of phytomeliorants, the cost estimate and the designated purpose of the restored land.

Step 3. Coordination and approval of the project. The project goes through the established coordination procedures with the authorised bodies and is approved in the manner prescribed by law.

Step 4. The technical stage. Stripping contaminated soil, eliminating pits, grading the relief and applying the fertile layer with surveyed volume control.

Step 5. The biological stage. Agrotechnical preparation of the soil, sowing grasses, and tending and monitoring establishment over the prescribed period.

Step 6. Acceptance of the reclaimed land. A commission inspection of the restored territory, verification of conformity with the project, and formalisation of the acceptance certificate for the reclaimed land. As-built documentation, including surveying materials, is attached to the certificate.

The Role of Surveying in Reclamation

Surveying support is not an auxiliary service but a tool for objective control and an evidence base for the completed works. GeoProGlobal provides surveying support for reclamation at each of its stages.

Surveying disturbed land. Before the works begin, a topographic survey of the site is carried out: the boundaries of the disturbance, the pits, the sludge pads and the spill zones are recorded. A digital terrain model (DTM) of the initial condition is produced — the reference point for all subsequent calculations.

Calculating soil volumes. Based on the DTM, the volumes of soil to be stripped, relocated and backfilled are calculated, as are the volumes of the fertile layer. Accurate calculation directly affects the estimated cost and the justification of the certificates for completed works.

Volume control by comparing BEFORE and AFTER DTMs. The key method of objective control is comparing the digital terrain models built from aerial surveys before and after the works. For this we use the DJI Matrice 4E unmanned aerial vehicle, which covers large oilfield areas in one or two flight days. The difference between the two DTMs yields the actual volume of relocated soil — an evidentiary document for the acceptance commission and for the subsoil user’s reporting.

Ground control points (GCPs). To tie the aerial imagery to the state coordinate system and ensure the required vertical accuracy, ground control points are established, their coordinates determined with the South Galaxy G9 GNSS receiver in static and RTK modes.

As-built survey of the restored relief. On completion of the technical stage, an as-built survey of the graded surface is carried out. It confirms that the actual relief matches the design elevations and gradients, and it forms part of the acceptance documentation package.

The Specifics of Oil-Contaminated Land and Mangystau Region

Reclamation in Mangystau Region has a number of specific features that must be taken into account when planning the works.

Saline soils. A significant proportion of the region’s land is characterised by high natural salinity. This complicates both the technical grading and the biological stage: ordinary grass mixtures do not take root in such soils, so salt-tolerant species must be selected and, frequently, leaching and ameliorative measures carried out.

Desert relief and climate. Scarce precipitation, high summer temperatures and strong winds slow the natural recovery of vegetation. Phytomeliorative measures require irrigation and multi-year monitoring, while the graded relief is vulnerable to wind and water erosion.

The Caspian coast. Facilities in the coastal zone and at fields near the Caspian require particular attention to preventing secondary contamination of the water environment. Here the requirements for the quality of soil cleaning and for controlling the movement of contaminated material are raised.

Oil-contaminated soils. Cleaning the soil of petroleum products down to the regulated thresholds is a distinct technological task. Contaminated soil is stripped, neutralised or sent for treatment, and the depth of contamination is determined from the survey and sampling data. Surveying helps to delineate the contamination zone precisely and to calculate the volume of soil to be removed.

Documentation for the Subsoil User

On completion of reclamation, the subsoil user receives a package of documentation confirming that the obligations have been fulfilled:

• the reclamation project with coordinations and approval;
• the survey and inventory materials for the disturbed land, with sampling results;
• the surveying materials — topographic plans, before-and-after DTMs, coordinate catalogues and soil-volume calculation sheets;
• the as-built survey of the restored relief;
• the acceptance certificate for the reclaimed land, signed by the commission.

This package is the basis for closing out the reclamation obligations before the supervisory bodies and for drawing on the liquidation fund.

Summary Table of Reclamation Stages

Stage	Works	Result / document
Survey and inventory	Field survey, sampling, relief survey	Survey materials, DTM of the initial condition
Reclamation project	Technical solutions, volumes, estimate	Approved reclamation project
Coordination	Passing coordination procedures	Coordinated and approved project
Technical stage	Soil stripping, grading, fertile layer	As-built survey, volume sheets
Biological stage	Agrotechnics, sowing phytomeliorants	Certificate of the biological stage completion
Acceptance	Commission inspection	Acceptance certificate for reclaimed land

Conclusion

Reclamation after oil extraction is a legally enshrined obligation of the subsoil user, implemented through an approved project and two consecutive stages: technical and biological. Under the conditions of Mangystau Region, with its saline soils, desert relief and proximity to the Caspian, the task becomes more complex, and the requirements for the quality and demonstrability of the completed works increase. Surveying support — from surveying the disturbed land to controlling soil volumes by comparing aerial-survey DTMs — ensures objective acceptance and defensible reporting.

GeoProGlobal carries out the full range of surveying works for the reclamation of oil and gas facilities in Aktau and across Mangystau Region: the survey and inventory of disturbed land, soil-volume calculation, work control by aerial survey with the DJI Matrice 4E drone relying on the South Galaxy G9 GNSS receiver, and the as-built survey of the restored relief. We have practical experience working at the region’s oil and gas facilities.

To discuss the scope and cost of surveying support for reclamation at your site, get in touch with us through the geoproglobal.kz website. We will prepare a commercial proposal within one working day.