Terms Used In Oregon Statutes > Chapter 522 > Unitization of Geothermal Resource Area

• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Board: means the governing board of the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Cooperative agreement: means an agreement or plan of development and operation for the production or utilization of geothermal resources in which separate ownership units independently operate without allocation of production. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Correlative rights: means the right of each owner in a geothermal area to obtain that owner's just and equitable share of the underlying geothermal resource, or an economic equivalent of that share of the resource, produced in a manner and in an amount that does not injure the reservoir to the detriment of others. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Department: means the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Drilling: includes drilling, redrilling and deepening of a geothermal well. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Geothermal resources: means the natural heat of the earth, the energy, in whatever form, below the surface of the earth present in, resulting from, or created by, or that may be extracted from, the natural heat, and all minerals in solution or other products obtained from naturally heated fluids, brines, associated gases, and steam, in whatever form, found below the surface of the earth, exclusive of helium or of oil, hydrocarbon gas or other hydrocarbon substances, but including, specifically:

  (a) All products of geothermal processes, including indigenous steam, hot water and hot brines;

  (b) Steam and other gases, hot water and hot brines resulting from water, gas, or other fluids artificially introduced into geothermal formations;

  (c) Heat or other associated energy found in geothermal formations; and

  (d) Any by-product derived from them. See Oregon Statutes 522.005

• Geothermal well: includes any excavation made for producing geothermal resources and any geothermal reinjection well. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Land: means both surface and mineral rights. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Operator: means the person:

  (a) Who possesses the legal right to drill a geothermal well;

  (b) Who has obtained a drilling permit pursuant to ORS § 522. See Oregon Statutes 522.005

• Person: includes individuals, corporations, associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies and joint stock companies. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
• Reservoir: means an aquifer or combination of aquifers or zones containing a common geothermal or ground water resource. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Royalty interest: means a right or interest in geothermal resources produced from land or in the proceeds of the first sale of those resources. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Unit agreement: means an agreement or plan of development and operation developed under the provisions of ORS § 273. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Unit area: means the area described in a unit agreement that constitutes the land subject to development under the agreement. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Unit operator: means the person designated in the unit agreement to manage and conduct the operation involving unitized land. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• Unit production: means all geothermal resources produced from a unit area from the effective date of a unit agreement approved by the board under ORS § 522. See Oregon Statutes 522.005
• United States: includes territories, outlying possessions and the District of Columbia. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
• Violate: includes failure to comply. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
• Working interest: means an interest in geothermal resources or in land containing geothermal resources that is held under a lease, operating agreement, fee title or otherwise and under which, except as otherwise provided in a unit or cooperative agreement, the owner of the interest has the right to explore for, develop, produce or utilize the resources. See Oregon Statutes 522.005