Code of Virginia - Title 45.1 Mines And Mining - Chapter 22.1 The Virginia Gas And Oil Act
- 45.1-361.1 Definitions
As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise: "Abandonment of a well" or "cessation of well operations" means the time at which ...
- 45.1-361.2 Regulation of coal surface mining not affected by chapter
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as limiting the powers of the Director relating to coal surface mining operations and reclamation. The provisions of ...
- 45.1-361.3 Construction
The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the following purposes: 1. To foster, encourage and promote the safe and ...
- 45.1-361.4 Duties and responsibilities of the Director
A. The Director shall have the jurisdiction and authority necessary to enforce the provisions of this chapter. The Director shall have the power and duty ...
- 45.1-361.5 Exclusivity of regulation and enforcement
No county, city, town or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth shall impose any condition, or require any other local license, permit, fee or bond ...
- 45.1-361.6 Confidentiality
The Director shall hold confidential all logs, surveys and reports relating to the drilling, completion and testing of a well which are filed by gas ...
- 45.1-361.7 Expenditure of funds
All funds, except civil charges collected pursuant to § 45.1-361.8, collected by or appropriated to the Department pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall ...
- 45.1-361.8 Violations; penalties
A. Any person who violates or refuses, fails or neglects to comply with any regulation or order of the Board, Director, or Inspector, any condition ...
- 45.1-361.9 Appeals; venue; standing
A. Any order or decision of the Board may be appealed to the appropriate circuit court. Whenever a coal owner, coal operator, gas owner, gas ...
- 45.1-361.10 Duplicate leases
Any person, either as principal or agent, who executes a lease of land or right therein for drilling for gas or oil, or for the ...
- 45.1-361.11 Objections by coal owner
A. In deciding on objections by a coal owner to a proposed permit modification or drilling unit modification, only the following questions shall be considered: ...
- 45.1-361.12 Distance limitations of certain wells
A. If the well operator and the objecting coal owners present or represented at the hearing to consider the objections to the proposed drilling unit ...
- 45.1-361.13 Virginia Gas and Oil Board; membership; compensation
A. The Virginia Gas and Oil Board is hereby established. The Board shall be composed of seven members and shall have the powers and duties ...
- 45.1-361.14 Meetings of the Board; notice; general powers and duties
A. The Board shall schedule a monthly meeting at a time and place designated by the chairman. Should no petition for action be filed with ...
- 45.1-361.15 Additional duties and responsibilities of the Board
A. In executing its duties under this chapter, the Board shall: 1. Foster, encourage and promote the safe and efficient exploration for and development, production ...
- 45.1-361.16 Applicability and construction
A. The provisions of this article shall apply to all lands in the Commonwealth, whether publicly or privately owned. However, no well commenced prior to ...
- 45.1-361.17 Statewide spacing of wells
A. Unless prior approval has been received from the Board or a provision of the field or pool rules so allows: 1. Wells drilled in ...
- 45.1-361.18 Voluntary pooling of interests in drilling units; validity of unit agreements
A. When two or more separately owned tracts are embraced within a drilling unit, or when there are separately owned interests in all or a ...
- 45.1-361.19 Notice of hearing; standing; form of hearing
A. Any person who applies for a hearing in front of the Board pursuant to the provisions of § 45.1-361.20, 45.1-361.21, or 45.1-361.22 shall simultaneously ...
- 45.1-361.20 Field rules and drilling units for wells; hearings and orders
A. In order to prevent the waste of gas or oil, the drilling of unnecessary wells, or to protect correlative rights, the Board on its ...
- 45.1-361.21 Pooling of interests in drilling units
A. The Board, upon application from any gas or oil owner, shall enter an order pooling all interests in the drilling unit for the development ...
- 45.1-361.22 Pooling of interests for coalbed methane gas wells; conflicting claims to ownership
When there are conflicting claims to the ownership of coalbed methane gas, the Board, upon application from any claimant, shall enter an order pooling all ...
- 45.1-361.23 Appeals of the Director's decisions; notices; hearings and orders
A. With the exception of an aggrieved permit applicant, no person shall have standing to appeal a decision of the Director to the Board concerning ...
- 45.1-361.24 Enforcement
The provisions of this article shall be enforced by the Director pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 (§ 45.1-361.27 et seq.) of this chapter. ...
- 45.1-361.25 Standing when Director or Board fails to act
Should the Director or Board fail to take enforcement action within ten days of the Board's receipt of a petition alleging that the petitioner is ...
- 45.1-361.26 Recording of orders
The Inspector shall cause a true copy of any order entered by the Board which establishes a drilling unit or pools any interests to be ...
- 45.1-361.27 Duties, responsibilities and authority of the Director
A. The Director shall promulgate and enforce rules, regulations and orders necessary to ensure the safe and efficient development and production of gas and oil ...
- 45.1-361.28 Powers, duties and responsibilities of the Inspector
A. The Inspector shall administer the laws and regulations and shall have access to all records and properties necessary for this purpose. He shall perform ...
- 45.1-361.29 Permit required; gas, oil, or geophysical operations; coalbed methane gas wells; environmental asse...
A. No person shall commence any ground disturbing activity for a well, gathering pipeline, geophysical exploration or associated activity, facilities or structures without first having ...
- 45.1-361.30 Notice of permit applications and permit modification applications required; content
A. Within one day of the day on which the application for a permit for a gas or oil operation is filed, the applicant shall ...
- 45.1-361.31 Bonding and financial security required
A. To ensure compliance with all laws and regulations pertaining to permitted activities and the furnishing of reports and other information required by the Board ...
- 45.1-361.32 Gas and Oil Plugging and Restoration Fund
A. The Gas and Oil Plugging and Restoration Fund is hereby established as a non-lapsing revolving fund to be administered by the Department pursuant to ...
- 45.1-361.33 Expiration of permits
All permits issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire 24 months from their date of issuance unless the permitted activity has commenced within that time ...
- 45.1-361.34 Abandonment or cessation of well or corehole operation; plugging required
Upon the abandonment or cessation of the operation of any well or corehole, the gas, oil, or geophysical operator shall immediately fill and plug the ...
- 45.1-361.35 Objections to permits; hearing
A. Objections to new or modification permits may be filed with the Director by those having standing as set out in § 45.1-361.30. Such objections ...
- 45.1-361.36 Appeals of Director's decisions to the Board
A. Any person with standing under the provisions of § 45.1-361.30 who is aggrieved by a decision of the Director may appeal to the Board, ...
- 45.1-361.37 Persons required to register; designated agents
A. Any person who owns a well, drills a well, completes well work, operates any well or gathering pipeline, conducts ground disturbing geophysical explorations, or ...
- 45.1-361.38 Report of permitted activities and production required; contents
A. Each holder of a permit for gas or oil wells or gathering pipelines shall file monthly and annual reports of his activities as prescribed ...
- 45.1-361.39 Developing a gas or oil well as a water well
Should any well drilled for gas or oil not produce commercial or paying quantities of either resource, the well may be developed as a water ...
- 45.1-361.40 Orphaned Well Fund; orphaned wells
A. The Orphaned Well Fund is hereby established as a non-lapsing revolving fund to be administered by the Department pursuant to the provisions of this ...
- 45.1-361.41 Interference by injection wells with ground water supply
A. Any person who owns or operates an injection well in a manner that proximately causes the contamination or diminution of ground water used for ...
- 45.1-361.42 Safety in coalbed methane gas, oil and geophysical operations
The Director shall inspect permitted coalbed methane well and related facility operations to ensure the safety of persons on permitted sites. When the inspection reveals ...
- 45.1-361.43 Operator's right to sample water and quality
An operator shall have the right to enter upon surface land at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner to obtain samples of water from ...
- 45.1-361.44 Replacement of water supply
If any water supply of a surface owner who obtains all or part of his supply of water for domestic use from a water well ...
Last modified: April 3, 2009