North Dakota Supreme Court strikes down provisions in pore space law

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) - The North Dakota Supreme Court has sided with a group of landowners over key sections of a 2019 law, known as the pore space law. The Northwest Landowners Association filed a lawsuit claiming they have a right to be compensated when the petroleum industry injects saltwater back into pore spaces on their land.

Last year, a district judge ruled it gave that valuable space away to the oil and gas industry for free.

On Thursday, justices largely agreed by striking down provisions that previously said landowners couldn’t be compensated for some uses of pore space, including for saltwater disposal or enhanced oil recovery.