Section 295.31. Definitions; oil and gas.

  In this subchapter:

(1)  “Department" means the department of natural resources.

(2)  “Exploration" means the on-site geologic examination from the surface of an area by core, rotary, percussion or other drilling for the purpose of searching for oil or gas or establishing the nature and extent of a known oil or gas deposit and includes associated activities such as clearing and preparing sites or constructing roads for drilling. For the purposes of the definition of exploration, geologic examination does not include drill holes constructed for the purpose of collecting soil samples or for determining geologic information by seismic methods.

(3)  “Gas" means naturally occurring gaseous hydrocarbons.

(4)  “Oil" means naturally occurring liquid hydrocarbons.

(6)  “Principal shareholder" means any person that owns at least 10 percent of the beneficial interest of another person.

(7)  “Production" means the process involved in the extraction of oil or gas for commercial purposes, and the construction of roads, construction, testing and completion of wells and installation and operation of pipelines, tanks and other necessary equipment for that extraction.

(7m)  “Other waste" includes all other substances, except industrial wastes, as defined in s. 281.01 (5) , and sewage, as defined in s. 281.01 (13) , which pollute any of the surface waters of the state. The term also includes unnecessary siltation resulting from operations such as the washing of vegetables or raw food products, gravel washing, stripping of lands for development of subdivisions, highways, quarries and gravel pits, mine drainage, cleaning of vehicles or barges or gross neglect of land erosion.

(8)  “Person" means an individual, owner, operator, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, association, municipality, interstate agency, state agency or federal agency.

(8m)  “Related person" means any person that owns or operates an oil or gas exploration or production site in the United States and that is one of the following when an application for an oil or gas exploration or production license is submitted to the department:

(a) The parent corporation of the applicant.

(b) A person that holds more than a 30 percent ownership interest in the applicant.

(c) A subsidiary or affiliate of the applicant in which the applicant holds more than a 30 percent ownership interest.

(9)  “Waters of the state" includes those portions of Lake Michigan and Lake Superior within the boundaries of this state, and all lakes, bays, rivers, streams, springs, ponds, wells, impounding reservoirs, marshes, watercourses, drainage systems and other surface water or groundwater, natural or artificial, public or private, within this state or its jurisdiction.

1991 a. 262 ; 1995 a. 227 s. 813 , 995 ; Stats. 1995 s. 295.31.