Title 45.2, Title 45.2. Mines, Minerals, and Energy

A. The Director has the jurisdiction and authority necessary to enforce the provisions of this chapter. The Director has the power and duty to regulate gas, oil, or geophysical operations, collect fees, and perform other responsibilities prescribed in regulations adopted by the D…

No locality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth shall impose any condition or require any other local license, permit, fee, or bond that varies from or is in addition to the requirements of this chapter to perform any gas, oil, or geophysical operation. However, no…

The Director shall hold confidential all logs, surveys, and reports relating to the drilling, completion, and testing of a well that are filed by a gas or oil operator under this chapter for a period of 90 days after the completion of the well or 18 months after the total depth o…

All funds, except civil penalties collected pursuant to § 45.2-1608, collected by or appropriated to the Department pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be expended only for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this chapter.

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 of a permit, or any provision of this chapter is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. B. In addition, any person who violates any regul…

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 operator, or operator of a gas storage field certificated by the State Corporation Commission is a party in such action, the court shall he…

Any person who, as either principal or agent, executes a lease of land or right therein for drilling for gas or oil, or for the development or production of gas or oil, shall furnish a copy of the lease, duly executed by the lessee, to the lessor.

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: 1. Whether the work can be done safely with respect to persons engaged in coal mining at or near the well site; and 2. W…

A. If the well operator and the objecting coal owners who are present or represented at a hearing to consider the objections to the proposed drilling unit or location are unable to agree upon a drilling unit or location for a new well within 2,500 linear feet of the location of a…

A. The Board shall schedule a monthly meeting at a time and place designated by the chairman. If no petition for action is filed with the Board prior to a meeting, the Board may cancel the meeting. Notification or cancellation of each meeting shall be given in writing to the memb…

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, and conservation of gas and oil resources located in the Commonwealth; 2. Administer a method of gas and oil conse…

A. The provisions of this article apply to all lands in the Commonwealth, whether publicly or privately owned. However, no well commenced prior to July 1, 1990, shall be required to be plugged or abandoned solely for purposes of complying with the conservation provisions of this …

A. Unless prior approval has been received from the Board or a provision of the field or pool rules so allows: 1. No well drilled in search of oil shall be located closer than 1,250 feet to any well completed in the same pool; however, this spacing requirement is subject to § 45.…

A. If two or more separately owned tracts are embraced within a drilling unit, or if there are separately owned interests in all or a part of any such drilling unit, the gas or oil owners owning such interests may pool their interests for the development and operation of the dril…

A. Any person who applies for a hearing in front of the Board pursuant to the provisions of § 45.2-1619, 45.2-1620, or 45.2-1622 shall simultaneously with the filing of such application provide notice by commercial delivery service, return receipt requested, or certified mail, re…

A. In order to prevent the waste of gas or oil or the drilling of unnecessary wells or to protect correlative rights, the Board on its own motion or upon application of the gas or oil owner may establish or modify drilling units. Drilling units, to the extent reasonably possible,…

A. The Board, upon application from any gas or oil owner, shall enter an order pooling all interests in a drilling unit for the development and operation thereof when: 1. Two or more separately owned tracts are embraced in a drilling unit; 2. There are separately owned interests …

No conveyance, reservation, or exception of coal shall be deemed to include coalbed methane gas. Nothing in this section shall affect a coal operator's right to vent coalbed methane gas for safety purposes or release coalbed methane gas in connection with mining operations. The p…

A. If there are conflicting claims to the ownership of coalbed methane gas, the Board, upon application from any claimant, shall enter an order pooling all interests or estates in the coalbed methane gas-drilling unit for the development and operation thereof. B. In addition to t…

A. The Board shall enter an order requiring that the matter of disputed ownership be submitted to arbitration and notify the circuit court in the jurisdiction in which the majority of the subject tract is located (i) upon written request from all claimants to the ownership of coa…

A. For a coalbed methane gas well that was force-pooled prior to July 1, 2015, the coalbed methane gas well operator shall, on or before January 1, 2016, apply to the Board for the release of the funds in escrow and give written notice of such application to every conflicting cla…

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 a new permit application unless such person has previously filed an objection with the Director pursuant to the provisions of § 45.2-…

The Director shall enforce the provisions of this article pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 (§ 45.2-1629 et seq.). In addition, if any person violates or threatens to violate any provision of this article, regulation adopted thereunder, or order of the Board, the Board may …

If the Director or Board fails to take enforcement action within 10 days of the Board's receipt of a petition alleging that the petitioner is or will be adversely affected by a violation or threatened violation of any provision of this article, regulation adopted thereunder, or o…

The Inspector shall cause a true copy of any order entered by the Board that establishes a drilling unit or pools any interests to be recorded in the office of the clerk of the circuit court of each locality wherein any portion of the relevant drilling unit is located. Such order…

A. The Director shall adopt and enforce regulations and orders necessary to ensure the safe and efficient development and production of gas and oil resources located in the Commonwealth. Such regulations and orders shall be designed to: 1. Prevent pollution of state waters and re…

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 all duties delegated by the Director pursuant to § 45.2-105 and maintain permanent records of the following: 1. Each applica…

A. No person shall commence any ground-disturbing activity for a well, gathering pipeline, geophysical exploration, or associated activity, facility, or structure without first having obtained from the Director a permit to conduct such activity. Every permit application or permit…

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 provide notice of the application to the following persons: 1. Every surface owner, coal owner, and mineral owner on the tract to be drilled; 2. Every coal …

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 or Director, each permit applicant shall give bond with surety acceptable to the Director and payable to the Commonwe…

A. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Gas and Oil Plugging and Restoration Fund, referred to in this section as "the Fund." All payments made into the Fund by gas or oil operators, all collections of debt for expenditures …

Each permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire 24 months from its date of issuance unless the permitted activity has commenced within that time period. An operator may renew an existing permit for an additional 24 months by submitting a written request containing the co…

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 well or corehole in the manner required by regulations in force at the time of abandonment or the operation's cessation.

A. Objections to a new permit or permit modification may be filed with the Director by any person having standing as set out in § 45.2-1632. Such objections shall be filed within 15 days of the objecting party's receipt of the notice required by § 45.2-1632. Any person objecting …

A. Any person with standing under the provisions of § 45.2-1632 who is aggrieved by a decision of the Director may appeal to the Board, subject to the limitations imposed by subsection B, by petition to the Board filed within 10 days following the appealed decision. B. No petitio…

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 transports gas or oil up to and including the first point of sale shall register with the Director and shall provide…

A. Each holder of a permit for a gas or oil well or gathering pipeline shall file monthly and annual reports of his activities as prescribed by the Director. Such reports shall be for the purpose of obtaining information regarding the production and sale of gas and oil resources,…

If any well drilled for gas or oil does not produce commercial or paying quantities of either resource, the well may be developed as a water well upon the request of the surface owner of the property on which the well is located. Any such development of a water well shall occur o…

A. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Orphaned Well Fund, referred to in this section as "the Fund." All moneys appropriated to it and any surcharges collected pursuant to subsection D shall be paid into the state treasury…

A. For purposes of this section: "Beneficial use" means the same as that term is defined in § 62.1-255. "Groundwater" means the same as that term is defined in § 62.1-255. B. Any person who owns or operates an injection well in a manner that proximately causes the contamination o…

The Director shall inspect permitted coalbed methane well and related facility operations to ensure the safety of persons on permitted sites. If an inspection reveals any hazardous condition that creates an imminent danger, the Director shall issue a closure order pursuant to § 4…

Notwithstanding any other law, no person shall drill for gas or oil in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay or any of its tributaries. The provisions of this subsection shall be enforced consistent with the requirements of this chapter.

A. In Tidewater Virginia, as defined in § 62.1-44.15:68, no person shall drill for gas or oil (i) within 500 feet of the shoreline of the waters of the Chesapeake Bay or any of its tributaries, as measured landward of the shoreline, or (ii) if it is farther than 500 feet from suc…

A. For the purposes of this section, "bioslurry injection" means the underground injection of agricultural waste, food waste, manure, paper sludge, or sewage sludge. B. No person shall conduct any hydraulic fracturing or bioslurry injection in any well that has been drilled throu…

An operator may enter upon surface land at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner to obtain samples of water from any water well that is (i) located within 1,320 feet of a proposed or existing gas well and (ii) actually being utilized by the surface owner or occupant for dom…

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 has been materially affected by contamination or partial or complete interruption proximately resulting from a gas well operation within 1,320 feet of the wate…