{"data":{"id":"us-wv/w.-va.-code-37b-1-2","jurisdiction":"us-wv","citation":"W. Va. Code § 37B-1-2","heading":"Declaration of public policy; legislative findings.","body":"It is declared to be the public policy of this state and in the public interest to:\n(1) Foster, encourage and promote exploration for and development, production, and conservation of oil, natural gas and their constituents;\n(2) Prohibit waste of oil, natural gas, and their constituents and unnecessary surface loss of oil, natural gas, and their constituents;\n(3) Encourage the maximum recovery of oil, natural gas, and their constituents;\n(4) Safeguard, protect and enforce the correlative rights of operators and mineral owners in that each such operator and mineral owner may obtain his or her just and equitable share of production;\n(5) Safeguard, protect and enforce the integrity of the passive royalty owner’s interest in his or her minerals.\n(6) Safeguard, protect and enforce the rights of surface owners; and\n(7) Protect and enforce the clear provisions of contracts lawfully made.","path":["CHAPTER 37B. MINERAL DEVELOPMENT.","ARTICLE 1. MINERAL DEVELOPMENT BY A MAJORITY OF COTENANTS."],"source_url":"https://code.wvlegislature.gov/37B-1-2/","current_through":"as of 2026-08-03; contains at least the enactments of the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-06T00:29:12Z","sha256":"2830aa64aac0cd55379ed3f210fedd00e010930e939a763730e06e38227470fc","source_id":"us-wv","stale":true,"prev":"us-wv/w.-va.-code-37b-1-1","next":"us-wv/w.-va.-code-37b-1-3"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}