Oil and Gas at Your Door? (2005 Edition) - Earthworks

Exploration
Before a company can enter a surface owner’s property for exploration purposes, it may be
required to obtain an exploration permit from the state and notify surface owners that exploration
is going to take place on their property. Permission, however, is not usually required from
the surface owner.
REGULATIONS AND SURFACE
OWNER PROTECTIONS
FIGURE II-2. SELECTED STATES’ EXPLORATION REQUIREMENTS 397
Drilling and Production
Surface Owner Permission and Notification
In most states, surface owner permission to conduct oil and gas operations is not required.
Louisiana and West Virginia, however, do require landowner permission before oil and gas
development may occur. 398
Even though permission from the surface owner to develop oil and gas is not required in most
states, companies typically do have to notify surface owners about a proposed development or
application for a permit to drill.
Once notified of a company’s intention to drill, it is important to realize that surface owners generally
have a time frame during which they may object to the company’s application to drill. Also,
if a landowner fails to receive notice during the time frame specified by the government, then the
operator has no right to begin drilling operations. In the event that drilling begins without notification,
landowners are encouraged to contact the appropriate government agency. If you do not
know which agency is responsible for hearing complaints, simply contact any department that
deals with oil and gas issues. They should be able to direct you to the appropriate state office.
Consultation and “Good Faith” Negotiations
In some states, there are regulations that require companies to consult with surface owners
regarding the location of wells, roads and other items that will affect the surface owner’s ability
to use his or her property.
In Colorado, for example, an operator is required to make a good-faith consultation with surface
owners regarding well locations and access roads. The operator must ask the surface owner if
he or she wants to be consulted about the timing of the operations and the location of the well
site and access road, as well as final reclamation activities. The operator is required to provide
the surface owner with a description or diagram of the proposed drilling location, dimensions
of the well site, and if known, the location of associated production or injection facilities,
pipelines, roads, and any other areas to be used for oil and gas operations. If there is a surface
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