Understanding Texas Natural Resources Law And Your Landowner Rights

Our Houston natural resources attorneys at Gibson PC, like many Texas landowners, are pro-oil and pro-energy. But allowing energy operators to conduct work on your land, or adjacent to your land, is not the same thing as signing away all your rights. Operators must abide by federal and state natural resources law. Our firm’s legal team represents your interests to make sure that they do.

Natural Resources Law Versus Environmental Law: How Do They Work?

In Texas, environmental law covers what is produced when human activity puts the ecosystem at risk. Permian Basin environmental lawyers focus on matters of pollution, waste management, site contamination and emissions from energy-producing sites.

Natural resources law, by contrast, is centered more on questions of who gets to manage, use and distribute beneficial energy raw materials. Mineral rights, subsurface water and surface water rights, natural resource easements taken by eminent domain, or disputes over how an energy operator’s actions are devaluing your property would fall into this category.

Real life is rarely as neat as legal categories can be, so when you need to take on an operator about how they are using your land, you need an attorney experienced in both environmental and natural resources law. Our firm covers both areas of law and can help you create an effective strategy for safeguarding your property when energy companies step over the line.

How Energy Companies Can Violate Natural Resources Laws On Your Property

There are both federal and state laws that protect property owners from energy operator overreach. They include:

The Accommodation Doctrine, established by the Texas Supreme Court (Getty Oil Co. v. Jones),  which requires operators to use industry-standard alternatives to extract resources if normal extraction techniques would substantially impair a surface land use such as ranching or irrigating crops.

The “Common Courtesy Act” (codified at Texas Natural Resources Code § 91.753), requires operators to give a surface owner 15 days’ written notice before entering the property to drill a new well or re-enter a plugged or abandoned well.

Texas Natural Resources Code § 85.321, which allows landowners with a damaged property interest to sue an operator for civil damages resulting from violations of oil or gas conservation laws, though operators can defend themselves by proving they acted as a reasonably prudent operator under the circumstances.

Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1991 (OSPRA), which holds operators strictly liable for the costs of cleaning up unauthorized oil discharges and guarantees real property owners compensation for direct, documented property damage or natural resource degradation.

The Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, two federal laws that require permits for discharging industrial contaminants on private property and impose strict federal liability on oil companies for removal costs and property damages resulting from oil spills.

One important caveat to note is that Texas law views the mineral estate part of your property as “dominant” compared to the surface estate. This means that in normal, nonnegligent circumstances, the oil, gas or mining company conducting work on your land has the implied right to use the surface land to extract the resources, unless otherwise stated. While the laws above can protect you, this aspect of the legal landscape means a strong Surface Use Agreement is critical to ensuring the operator is obligated to treat your surface land with care.

How A Houston Natural Resources Attorney Can Help You

Our attorneys at Gibson PC are steadfast in their commitment to you – the Texas landowner. We don’t brunch with energy operator executives and we don’t take cases defending energy companies. Our legal team’s members have confronted energy company tactics to stop our work – sometimes on a client’s property – and remained focused on one thing: ensuring your property is kept whole, safe and valuable.

As a firm, we use our talents in case preparation and investigation, mediation and litigation to guide clients to an optimal outcome in this highly charged legal practice area.

Protect Your Property – Schedule A Free Consultation Today

Discover how we can help you preserve your natural resources rights to your property. Call our offices in Houston at 713-766-9076 or send us an online message to set up a free, no-obligation initial consultation.