What should I do?

• Advice for common situations and updates to Surface Owner's Guide
• You can refuse or block a horizontal well on your land
• If there is a proposal to plug an oil or gas well on your land, what should you do?

• Should surface owners sign pore space lease etc. papers? If so, how much money should you get?

Resources

• West Virginia Surface Owners' Guide to Oil and Gas
• Erosion and Sediment Control Manual (that drillers must follow)
• Reporting Violations: Information on Filing a Complaint with the WV DEP Office of Oil & Gas or the EPA
• Why an old well is plugged, not “capped”; and how a well is supposed to be plugged; and why a lot of oversight of well pluggers is needed.
• Latest on leasing,  forced pooling, amendments/ratifications and cotenancy
• How a Gas Well Is Drilled Down Into the Ground, and What Can Go Wrong
• What a depleted oil or gas well should look like after it is plugged
• Lawyers, experts, tax and mineral management advice, and water testers
• State Office of Oil and Gas
• Information on the Marcellus Shale
• What are oil and gas wells’ “API” numbers? How to find them and use them to get info on wells.
• More Helpful Links and How To Find Information On Particular Gas Wells

Shared Experiences

• Marcellus Shale Play well examples
• Photo slide show for drilling of small shallow well.
• Bad Examples!
• Surface Owner Stories

Mineral Owner Info

• Leasing/Royalty info