Natural resources, the law and a historic site may seem like a trio of discussions that have nothing in common, but they do. Those topics are cornerstones in our society, not only because they are parts of everyday discussions, but because there is a fundamental connection between them. If you look at oil and gas contracts through the lens of the „legal heritage,” you will see that there are always cultural and historical considerations in any natural resource or natural preservation discussion. Even though a contract may seem like an easy-to-read, stand-alone agreement, it often doesn’t tell the entire story.
The Heritage Educational Portal has a theme in mind that runs throughout the Heritage Educational Portal’s energy articles, this week the theme is heritage and education. The Heritage Educational Portal is an online project that promotes education about the law through weekly articles that are both interesting and informative. The Heritage Educational Portal encourages all students, regardless of their age, to appreciate the value of education and understand the cultural significance legal education can have on a variety of interests. Take a few minutes to read the contract article. After you’ve done that, read the Heritage Educational Portal’s commentary about the article. The Heritage Educational Portal believes that every student should understand that education is the key to future success. Pick a legal topic that is of interest to you and research it as if you were writing a paper. Like the oil and gas contracts article, you will learn more than you expected to simply because you will be taking the time to study something you enjoy. Set aside some time today to learn something new, and you just might be amazed by all you discover.
The Heritage Educational Portal recently had the opportunity to read and review an article titled „Understanding the Basics of Oil and Gas Contracts” via The LG Mobile Phones. The article’s author begins by noting that „Oil and gas companies require a proper legal contract to manage their activities in a particular area” and „All oil and gas companies require a proper contract both to maintain a healthy relationship and to protect the services they receive from the sellers.” It is an accurate statement, given that oil and gas contracts are based upon the relationships between the parties, as opposed to a „on-off” deal between strangers in a room. There is negotiation and planning involved in the process of establishing a long term, mutually beneficial agreement. These types of agreements span over many years, often generations, so that is why oil and gas contracts are significant. They establish guidelines to ensure resources are handled properly, and from a legal perspective make sure that all parties’ rights are protected for the ultimate success of everyone involved in the business dealings.
But what happens when natural resources intersect with cultural heritage? More often than not, when natural resources are discovered in areas that have historic significance, there will be heritage concerns. Often, when oil or gas reserves are found, there will be more than one party interested in pursuing an exploration or development deal in the land. These other uses will most likely include historic sites or Aboriginal land. The federal and provincial governments will often intervene to make sure that their obligations toward Aboriginal groups, national parks and other historic sites are protected to preserve their integrity and cultural significance. In Canada, the government has established treaties with numerous Aboriginal groups. The government recognizes the willingness of Aboriginals to co-exist peacefully with all Canadians who share the same land and territory. Therefore, the government ensures that Aboriginal rights are respected and that their negotiated rights and freedoms endure for future generations. Without these treaties, the government would essentially be endorsing genocide and basic human rights violations.
Even though governments tend to have humane ideals set in place to protect heritage sites, businesses who seek to enter into agreements involving natural resources must also consider the socio-economics implications of their dealings. This can be in the form of job losses that affect a community’s way of life, the interruption of traditional hunting grounds or the loss of river and stream fishing opportunities. From a practical perspective, development of oil and gas resources could also impact the preservation of wildlife, plant species and other ecological concerns.
What all of this means is that when reviewing an oil and gas contract or agreement, it is of paramount importance that parties consider the history of the land and how their actions will preserve or change the history of the land for generations to come.
The Heritage Educational Portal is a free online resource that strives to educate the world on the law and legal issues. From time to time, the Heritage Educational Portal will promote a website or a blog that contains information about the law. The Heritage Educational Portal is only promoting websites or blogs whose authors or administrators recognize the cultural significance education has on the law. The Heritage Educational Portal also promotes these websites and blogs because they recognize that knowledge is the ultimate power.
There are always challenges in negotiating an oil and gas contract or agreement, as these types of deals will most likely be complicated. Overall, the success of the agreement will most likely depend on how well the parties communicated their objectives and planned for every eventuality. If anything, oil and gas contracts are a great example of how multi-layered deals can benefit from increased knowledge and cultural awareness.
For more information on the legal aspects of natural resources, you can visit Wikipedia’s page on Natural Resources.