Oregon Oil and Gas Laws can be found in Chapter 520, Title 43 of Oregon Statute and Chapter 141 of Oregon Administrative Rules.  Pursuant to ORS § 520.035, the waste of oil or gas is prohibited.

Powers and Jurisdiction of the Board

Pursuant to ORS § 520.055, the governing board of the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries has jurisdiction and authority over all persons and property, including tidal submerged and submersible lands necessary to enforce effectively this statute and all other laws relating to the conservation of oil and gas.

Pursuant to ORS § 520.095, the governing board of the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries may adopt rules and issue orders, and the department may issue orders, as may be necessary in the proper administration and enforcement for the following purposes:

• To require the drilling, casing and plugging of wells to be done in such a manner as to prevent the escape of oil or gas out of one stratum to another; to prevent the intrusion of water into oil or gas strata; to prevent the pollution of fresh water supplies by oil, gas or salt water; and to require reasonable bond conditioned upon compliance with applicable laws and rules and upon the performance of the duty to plug each dry or abandoned well.
• To compel the filing of logs from wells, including electrical logs, if any are taken, drilling records, typical drill cuttings or cores, if cores are taken, with the office of the State Geologist.
• To prevent wells from being drilled, operated, and produced in such a manner as to cause injury to neighboring leases or property.
• To prevent the drowning by water of any stratum or part thereof capable of producing oil or gas in paying quantities, and to prevent the premature and irregular encroachment of water that reduces, or tends to reduce, the total ultimate recovery of oil or gas from any pool.
• To require the operation of wells with efficient gas-oil ratios, and to fix ratios.
• To prevent blowouts, caving and seepage in the same sense that conditions indicated by such terms are generally understood in the oil and gas business.
• To identify the ownership of all oil and gas wells, producing leases, tanks, plants, structures and all storage equipment and facilities.
• To regulate secondary recovery methods, including the introduction of gas, air, water or other substance into producing formations.
• To require the filing currently of information as to the volume of oil and gas, or either of them, produced and saved from the respective properties.
• To require the disposal of salt water and oil field waste so as not to damage land or property unnecessarily.
• To require that wells drilled for oil or gas be logged adequately enough to identify the geologic formations penetrated by the wells.
• To regulate the underground storage of natural gas and the drilling and operation of any wells required therefor.

Judicial Review

Pursuant to ORS § 520.145, any person adversely affected by any rule adopted by the governing board of the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries under the statute or any order issued by the board or the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries may obtain judicial review.

Civil Actions

Pursuant to ORS § 520.175(1), whenever any person violates or threatens to violate any provisions of the statute, the board may bring an action against such person in the circuit court of any county where the violation occurs or is threatened, to restrain such person from continuing such violation.  In any such action, the court will have jurisdiction to grant to the board, without bond or other undertaking, such temporary restraining orders or final prohibitory and mandatory injunctions.

If the board fails to bring an action to enjoin a violation or threatened violation of any provision of the statute within 60 days after receipt of a written request to do so by any person who is or will be adversely affected by such violation, then the person making such request may bring an action to restrain such violation or threatened violation in any court in which the board might have brought such action.  The board will be made a party defendant in such action in addition to the person or persons bringing the action.  Such action will proceed and injunctive relief may be granted without bond in the same manner as if the action had been brought by the board[i].

Penalties

Pursuant to ORS § 520.991, violation of any provision of the statute, or any rule adopted by the governing board of the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, or any order issued by the board or the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries is punishable, upon conviction, by a fine of up to $ 2,500 or imprisonment in the county jail for a term of up to six months, or both.

Leases

Pursuant to Or. Admin. R. 141-070-0000, the purpose of the Oregon administrative rules is to provide a uniform system for leasing onshore oil and gas rights to individuals, corporations, and public bodies to encourage exploration and extraction of the state-owned oil and gas resources.  These rules are promulgated and will be administered by the Division of State Lands.

[i] ORS § 520.175(2).