RED DEER – A call to the Alberta farmers’ advocate office can provide information on land values across the province to producers negotiating energy leases.
More than half the time at the office is spent helping rural people work with energy companies, the surface rights board and the Energy Resources Conservation Board, said farmer’s advocate Jim Kiss.
Recently, the office signed an agreement with Calgary company William Marriott and Associates that prepares provincial maps with a detailed range of land values. It also outlines costs associated with land-use loss in all regions where drilling is taking place. The 2007 data has been published and the advocate’s office has rights to information for the next two years.
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This information gives property owners a better starting position when negotiations start, said Kiss at the recent Synergy Alberta convention in Red Deer. Synergy Alberta represents landowner groups and energy companies working together for education and conflict resolution.
“The more proactive you can be, the more effective a person will be when the landman comes calling,” he said.
If farmers can find out average prices paid in a district, they can make more informed decisions on compensation for oil and gas activity on their land.
Most land in Alberta has two titles. The owner of the surface title has control of the land’s surface and the right to work it. The mineral title owner has the right to explore for oil, gas and other minerals.
Companies must tell the surface rights holders about the development, where it will be and types of equipment used.
Proposed surface lease agreements are comprehensive documents that list the location for a well site, how much land is to be used, the access road and the compensation to be paid to the landowner for use of that land.
Compensation covers the entry fees to the land, land value based on the open market, fees for nuisance, inconvenience and noise and payments for loss of use of the land.
