Article | Landpoint

Oil and Gas Surveying: What You Need to Know About Easements

February 26, 2015/in Article /by administrator

As you may already know, an easement refers to the right granted to a person or entity to use a piece of land for a particular purpose. It’s very important that oil and gas companies understand the easement situation in an area when planning projects, as failing to do so could result in higher costs and legal trouble down the line. In this post, we’ll give a brief overview of some of the things every oil and gas company should know about easements; however, working with an experienced oil and gas surveying provider is the best way to truly understand the issue and avoid problems.

Are there any existing easements on a particular piece of land?

If you’re considering a piece of land for an oil and gas project, an existing easement from another organization would legally prevent you from developing it or taking out an easement of your own. Of course, the only way to find out for sure what existing easements there are in an area is to conduct a thorough review of the land records for the area. An oil and gas surveying provider can help with this investigation, thereby limiting the chance that you’ll end up with an unpleasant surprise later on, when your project is already in progress.

Is the piece of land that’s being considered for an easement in danger of experiencing significant erosion?

Over time, land erosion has the ability to significantly alter the features of a terrain. In the case of an easement, this fact matters because it could result in a company being unable to access their easement, or unable to use it for its stated purpose. When this happens, all of the hard work put into gaining the easement ends up being for nothing.

A land surveyor can help you study the possible effects of erosion on a particular piece of land, so that you’ll have a better idea of how that land will function as an easement over time. By taking into account all possible outcomes related to erosion, the surveyor can help you come up with contingency plans, or seek out a new piece of land that might be less sensitive to the effects of erosion.

What type of easement is your company getting?

Legally, land easements are divided into two different types: easements appurtenant and easements in gross. An easement appurtenant is an easement that is tied to the land itself; if the ownership of the land where the easement lies or the land served by the easement ever changes hands, the easement will change hands accordingly. Also, the owner of an easement appurtenant must own a piece of land that is somehow affected by the easement, which usually means a piece of land that is adjacent to the easement.

On the other hand, an easement in gross is owned by an entity that does not need to own land adjacent to the easement. Since this type of easement is not tied to the land, changes in ownership of the land do not affect ownership of the easement.

Will you need to change the easement later on?

If the scope of a project changes unexpectedly after the project is already in progress, this means that the easement might need to change as well. In cases like this, the land owner might choose to request significantly more money for the expanded easement, knowing that the company has no choices other than to pay the increased rate or abandon all the work they’ve already done on the project.

Work with your land surveying firm to anticipate your future needs so that you can get your easement right the first time and not end up paying increased fees in the future.

Contact Landpoint today to learn more about what our oil and gas surveying knowledge and experience can do for you.

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How Professional Land Surveyors Can Assist With Site Zoning

February 26, 2015/in Article /by administrator

Before you begin your oil and gas project, it’s important that you have a complete and accurate understanding of what you can and can’t do with the particular piece of land in question. The rules and regulations surrounding land use can be very complex and by not fully understanding them you risk major delays on your They can help you take the guesswork out of land use, so that you can be sure your land meets all of the requirements of your project.

There are two similar but distinct subjects that professional land surveyors can assist you with: land use planning and site zoning.

Land Use Planning

Land use planning is a general term to describe what can be done with a particular piece of land. It is usually framed using open-ended descriptions; for instance, a team of professional land surveyors may help you to determine that a particular piece of land is well suited to become a high-end retail center or a utility site, without going into more detail than that. In other words, a surveyor can help you shape land use policy by providing professional recommendations.

If you have questions about the possible land uses of an area you own, working with a land surveyor can help you determine where the boundaries are for the piece of land, while also painting you a picture of what could be accomplished with the land in question. This service is very important, because finding out that a piece of land is ill-suited for a particular project after you’ve already begun to plan the project could be a huge waste of time and resources for your organization.

Site Zoning

When compared with land use, site zoning is a much more detailed description of how the land will be used. While land use provides a very brief description of what the eventual purpose of the land development might be, site zoning actually provides exact details about things like how many stories will be in each building, how densely the buildings will be situated on the piece of land, and more.

While a team of professional land surveyors can be helpful when it comes to preparing a land use survey, they are absolutely essential when it comes to site zoning. That’s because a detailed and accurate site zoning map is required to move forward with getting a zoning permit, which is one of the requirements for being able to proceed with your project. Also, if your project needs to be financed in any way, the lender will most likely ask to see zoning maps before agreeing to provide a loan to your company.

As a result, site zoning is something that you simply cannot afford to leave up to chance. Working with a team of experienced land surveyors will help you make sure you get the site zoning maps you need to keep your project moving forward on schedule. They will inspect the land, meet with you to figure out what your requirements are for the project, and then come up with a plan that meets those requirements, while also complying with all applicable laws and land use standards. Finally, after the team delivers the site zoning maps. They will also assist you with getting the site zoning permits approved for your project.

Whether you’re just in the conceptual land use phase, or ready to get down to business with a site zoning plan, a professional land surveyor can help you understand what can be done with your land, and then help you turn your project requirements into reality. To get started with your land surveying project, contact the team of professional land surveyors at Landpoint today to get a free land surveying quote.

Image Source : Daniel Lackey

How Using Drones For Surveying Actually Improves Data Accuracy

January 19, 2015/in Article /by Jill Souter

Like any other business, the oil and gas industry is constantly benefiting from new technological developments that can revolutionize the way operations are conducted. A recent example of a new development that could lead to big things for the industry can be found in the field of land surveying technology.

New unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, could go on to provide the ability for oil and gas companies to gain a much more detailed and accurate look at the land they will be using for their projects. Although this new land surveying technology is still being adopted, the possibilities offered by using drones for surveying promise that they warrant a closer look.

Benefits of UAVs Over Traditional Land Surveying Techniques

Drones used for land surveying offer many different advantages over traditional land surveying techniques, which require surveyors to go from place to place to conduct their work. Since this kind of old-fashioned survey work often has to take place in dangerous or difficult terrain, using UAVs instead can lead to land surveys that are much quicker and much less likely to put workers in harm’s way.

However, the most exciting advantage offered by using drones for surveying may perhaps be the increased accuracy it offers. Over recent years, developments in high-resolution camera technology, along with greater battery life and increased levels of control for the UAVs themselves, has finally made it practical to use UAVs to conduct high-resolution photography work from above.

Unlike earthbound land surveyors, these UAVs are able to conduct their work without interference from the land around them, meaning that they can get as close to the terrain as needed in order to get the images required for the project. They are also less likely to have to worry about time constraints, as they can stay in an area conducting a survey for as long as the battery life of the device allows.

As a result, UAVs are able to create highly accurate land surveys that are capable of meeting the needs of all oil and gas projects.

Why UAVs Offer Better Results When Used With LiDAR

Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology has become the latest word in terrain scanning over the last couple of years. With LiDAR, land surveyors use thousands of tiny sensors that bounce light points off the terrain, and then collect the result of the sensors into a data cloud that forms an extremely detailed and accurate representation of the land in question.

Pairing this new land surveying technology with an aerial vehicle is perhaps one of the best ways to maximize the quality of the results. However, up until now, the majority of the LiDAR work done from the air has been performed by manned aerial vehicles, which are unable to provide the quality of results that UAVs can. For one thing, manned vehicles have to conduct LiDAR from much higher in the air, which increases the likelihood that atmospheric conditions will interfere with the results of the scan.

On the other hand, drones used for land surveying are able to get as close to land as needed to conduct high-quality, accurate LiDAR scans, and as a result, are able to avoid any issues related to atmospheric interference.

While there are still several hurdles that need to be cleared before UAVs can find widespread use in land surveying applications, the potential for better, more accurate surveying already provides a lot to get excited about. As this land surveying technology continues to develop and grow more sophisticated, the possibilities will only continue to grow with it.

To learn more about using drones for surveying, request a free land surveying quote today.

Image Source : Adam Meek

Ways to Improve Pipeline Route Selection in the Permian Basin

January 12, 2015/in Article /by Jill Souter

The recent boom in oil production in the Permian Basin has created a bottleneck situation,where the pipelines that are currently in place are not capable of moving crude to refinery locations fast enough to keep pace with the level of production. While the rate of production has increased significantly over the last couple of years, the infrastructure in place to move that oil has not increased at a similar rate, creating a situation where refiners have to pay an additional premium to acquire crude. This is especially costly with volatile oil prices.

Clearly, there is a need for more pipelines to service the region; the issue is that the pipeline infrastructure in the Permian Basin is already quite significant, in spite of the fact that it can’t keep up with the current level of demand. This fact means that pipeline right of ways in the region are already very congested, making it a real challenge to find efficient routes to lay new pipelines. An experienced land surveying company can help oil and gas companies overcome the challenges that are currently facing them in the Permian Basin by finding an efficient route that does not overlap with existing routings.

4 Ways Land Surveyors Can Help With Pipeline Route Selection In the Permian Basin

1. Identifying the Most Efficient Routing Possible For the Pipeline

It the past, developing pipeline routings depended on topographical maps. These maps were frequently incorrect and offered very little detail, but were usually good enough to get the job done.

Now, in an era where the Permian Basin is already crowded with pipelines, “good enough” no longer gets the job done. Luckily, land surveyors have developed new technologies to help overcome the current challenges facing oil and gas companies. With GIS mapping tools, land surveyors can help their oil and gas clients get a more detailed pipeline route survey than a traditional topographical map could ever offer, allowing them to identify potential issues such as terrain change and chasms.

2. Increasing Accuracy and Completeness of Information

Simply put, if you’re considering a pipeline routing project in the Permian Basin, you can’t afford to enter the game with anything less than the most complete, accurate information possible. Anything you don’t know coming into the project could come back to haunt you later on in the form of higher costs and unexpected delays.

A land surveyor can provide you with all of the studies and analyses needed to make sure your pipeline project progresses according to plan.

3. Performing Environmental and Cost Analyses

Knowing how much a pipeline will cost to build depends on a wide variety of variables, and failing to account for any one of these variables could result in unpleasant surprises down the line.

A land surveyor can help oil and gas companies account for all costs involved with a pipeline routing, and suggest alternate routes that may be more efficient uses of resources. They can also help identify environmental hazards that might lead to higher-than-expected costs.

4. Identifying Potential Legal Issues with a Proposed Routing

When it comes to a pipeline route survey, what you don’t know definitely can hurt you. A land surveyor can help oil and gas companies research legal issues such as land status, right of ways, and easements.

As a result, the company can gather all of the information they would need to feel confident about moving forward with a proposed routing, knowing that they don’t have to worry about legal challenges in the future. This is a particularly beneficial service in a very crowded region such as the Permian Basin.

To learn how Landpoint can help with your Permian Basin pipeline development project, get a free land surveying quote today.

Image Source : U.S. Geological Survey

Common Environmental Review Issues (And How to Fix Them)

November 25, 2014/in Article /by Jill Souter

Oil and gas projects can cover a large geographical area, making environmental review issues a major area of concern. When a company doesn’t prepare to address these issues in advance, they may find themselves scrambling to address them after the project has already started, leading to major delays and budget shortages that can be hard to overcome.

In this post, we’ll discuss some of the major environmental review issues that could interfere with your project and talk about how to prepare your company for these issues so they cause the least amount of complication possible.

Major Environmental Review Issues for Oil and Gas Projects

1. Wetlands Mitigation Regulations and Permitting
Getting a permit to work in or around wetlands is a very time-consuming process, so it’s important that you start thinking about what permits you might need well in advance of your project. Depending on the location, size, and scope of your project, it could take anywhere from 6 to 18 months to get your permit.

Another complicating factor is that the entire permitting process is handled by a single federal organization, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Even if you work with an environmental consulting firm, there is nothing they or anyone else can do to speed up the permitting process. The timeline for securing a permit will depend on the USACE’s schedule.

2. State Regulated Waters
Depending on what state your project is located in, you may need a permit to work around protected waters; this permit would be separate from the 404 permit that covers federal wetlands regulations. An example of this can be found in the Louisiana Scenic Rivers System.

The hard part of these regulations is knowing which bodies of waters are regulated, since the exact rules vary from state to state. Working with a partner that has an intimate knowledge of an area can be extremely helpful in this regard.

3. Well Spacing on Oil and Gas Projects
There will often be cases where you’re unable to secure a wetlands permit. In these instances, you may find yourself having to improvise by relocating a project site. In turn, this could lead to complications when a well ends up being located too far away from its assigned unit.

It’s critical to strike a balance between ensuring proper well spacing on your oil and gas project and complying with all environmental regulations.

4. Endangered Species
Your company must take the time to learn about any endangered species habitats that can be found in the area of your project site. If an endangered species does live in the area, your project will not be allowed to go ahead. It’s important to know about these situations in advance so that you can make other plans.

5. Archeological and Historical Sites
If areas of cultural or historical significance are discovered on the project site, your project will have to be shut down or relocated. These areas could include sites such as Native American mounds or cemeteries. While there may be no way to predict where these sites will be found, you can come up with a contingency plan to use in the event that such sites are found.

6. Wildlife Management Areas
Working in a wildlife management area can be very time-consuming and difficult. These areas are highly protected, and often require special clearances and notifications in order to access them. Once again, working with an environmental consulting firm can help you navigate this issue while also pursuing the satisfactory completion of your project.

To learn more about how to tackle environmental issues and avoid complications and delays, contact Landpoint today.

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The Biggest Permitting Issues That Arise in Oil and Gas Projects

November 20, 2014/in Article /by Jill Souter

When planning a new oil and gas project, it’s very important that you educate yourself about the permit issues that you might run into along the way. While there are many different permitting issues that could arise, all of these can be boiled down into two main factors: wasted time and wasted money.

Wasted Time

As you are no doubt aware, oil and gas projects operate according to a strict schedule. When a permit issue appears unexpectedly, companies will find themselves putting a stop to things while they wait for the needed permits to come through. This could end up setting the project back weeks, which could in turn have a ripple effect that greatly disturbs the rest of the project schedule. The only way to avoid unexpected sources of wasted time is by planning ahead and making sure that your company knows about any perspective permit issues before they become problems.

Wasted Money

Just like oil and gas surveying projects have to adhere to strict timelines, they also have to adhere to strict budgets. Oil and gas companies that don’t take the time to familiarize themselves with all of the permitting issues they might face before the project begins risk going significantly over their budgets, which could in turn affect what the company is and is not able to do going into the future. This is another reason why it’s important for oil and gas businesses to look into potential permitting issues as early as possible.

What Types Of Permitting Issues Should Oil And Gas Companies Be Worried About?

Oil and gas companies are subject to a variety of state and federal regulations regarding what they can and can’t do. While some states may require a particular type of permit, others may not. On top of this, the turnaround time for permits can vary greatly and some permits can take well over a year to obtain.

Here are a couple major permits that we have seen oil and gas companies have issues with:

404 Permit

A 404 Permit, named for Section 404 of the federal Clean Water Act, is something that all companies must obtain before pursuing a project that might affect bodies of water such as wetlands. To be more specific, the regulation limits the discharging of potentially harmful dredged or fill material into bodies of water.

In order to receive a permit to proceed with a project that requires the discharge of such material into a body of water, an organization must be able to demonstrate to the EPA that there is no practical alternative available that would be less damaging to the aquatic environment, and that the damage to the water would be limited as much as possible during the project. Gathering and presenting this kind of information takes time, so it’s important to know whether or not you need this permit in advance.

Louisiana Natural and Scenic Rivers System Permit

A good example of a permit required by state regulations can be found in Louisiana. A company must secure one of these permits before beginning an oil and gas project that might affect any of the scenic waterways listed on the Louisiana Scenic Rivers Act.

Working with a professional land surveying company that has certified environmentalists is the best way to ensure that your company is aware of all the possible permit issues that apply to your project. With this knowledge, you can ensure that these issues don’t stand in the way of you completing your oil and gas project successfully. Contact Landpoint today to learn more about what our oil and gas surveying knowledge and experience can do for you.

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How a Land Surveyor Can Make Pipeline Construction Projects Less Expensive

November 17, 2014/in Article /by Jill Souter

While using pipelines is the most cost-effective way to transport oil and gas across long distances – that does not mean that it’s not important to save money on the pipeline cost per mile when you can. On the contrary: pipeline construction projects usually represents a significant capital cost for oil and gas companies, so it’s always a good idea to identify saving opportunities. In this post, we’re going to discuss why a quality land surveying company can serve as one of these saving opportunities.

What factors drive up a pipeline’s cost per mile?

In order to cut down on the cost of your pipeline construction project, you must first identify what factors lead to high costs in the first place. According to the report “The Challenges of Further Cost Reductions for New Supply Options” by employees from the International Energy Agency and CEDIGAZ, capital expenses usually account for about 90 percent of the cost of transmission pipelines. As a result, it’s very important to identify potential sources of cost before you begin your pipeline development project.

According to the same report referenced above, the key determinants of cost in a pipeline development project are diameter, operating pressures, distance and terrain. The first three factors are usually determined by circumstances that are beyond your control; however, you do have complete control over what terrain you build your pipeline through. As a result, paying attention to terrain and obstacles up front may be the most effective way of ensuring efficiency and identifying possible cost savings for your pipeline development project.

How can you find the right terrain for your pipeline construction project?

While finding the right route to build your pipeline might seem like a no brainer, it’s something that’s definitely easier said than done. As pipeline right of ways have grown more and more congested, oil and gas companies have been forced to become more selective about where they build their pipelines. In addition, things like freeway crossings and rough terrain can lead to higher pipeline construction costs. As a result, oil and gas companies need to find terrain that avoids these obstacles as much as possible.

How can a land surveying company help?

In order to identify terrain that might be a good location for your pipeline development project, you can’t rely on guesswork or intuition. You need to have actual insights about what types of obstacles might be included with a particular terrain. This is where GIS mapping tools from a land surveying company can help. These tools can help you identify and avoid obstacles such as sudden terrain changes, chasms, and other rough terrain

Why 3D Scanning is Critical to Building Information Modeling

November 12, 2014/in Article /by Jill Souter

While 3D laser scanning has been used in various surveying capacities for many years, it has only been recently that companies have begun to apply it to Building Information Modeling. As both hardware and software have become more capable, applying 3D laser scanning to BIM has become more practical in a wider range of settings.

Why applying 3D laser scanning to BIM makes sense

The value that 3D laser scanning can add to the BIM process is really quite clear: whether you’re scanning existing construction in order to plan updates or improvements, or scanning terrain in advance of new construction, using lasers to create BIM models allows you to optimize the BIM process, reduce the amount of project risk your company takes on, and reduce the cost and time to completion for the project.

In addition, converting your laser scanning point clouds into object-based BIM models opens up an entirely new set of possibilities for what you can do with that data. For instance, you can use the data to create 2D documents that are easier to share with team members and plan ahead for things like scheduling, quantities, and cost.

What is BIM, and how can it be applied?

To put it quite simply, Building Information Modeling is the process of creating digital representations of physical spaces. These BIM models are created using specialty scanning hardware and modeling software. BIM is important to the construction and land surveying industries because it allows companies to approach projects with a higher level of insight, since they’ll be able to view the building or landscape in question at their convenience, from a variety of different angles.

How 3D laser scanning works with BIM in Construction

With 3D laser scanning, a series of scanners lets off thousands of laser bursts per second and then measures the time of flight and phase shift as the laser beams return to the source in order to create a point cloud of data that provides an extremely detailed representation of the physical environment being scanned.

In order to apply your 3D laser scans to BIM in construction, you must first register multiple scans together, in order to create a full view of the building or terrain being scanned from multiple angles. Then, you can convert your point clouds into object-based BIM models using a software program or an external modeling application.

In order to get the best results from laser scanning, it is very important that you plan ahead, because the scanning process can be time consuming. In addition, you must be able to know what your objectives are in advance, and be able to describe exactly what you plan to do with the information you gather from your scan in order to get the best results possible.

How laser scanning leads to more accurate BIM models

Laser scanning takes something good and makes it even better. By providing highly detailed scans of a 3D building or terrain as it actually exists in the physical space, 3D laser scanning supports a BIM model that matches up closer with reality.

In addition to offering a more accurate model, 3D laser scanning can also offer the following benefits when applied to BIM modeling:

The ability to coordinate or prefabricate construction plans, saving time and cutting down on project risk
The ability to use quantity information to support estimation and scheduling

With the decreasing cost of hardware and software involved with conducting 3D laser scans, there is less reason than ever for companies to put off trying the new technology. Those companies that do take the time to try it will surely find that it supports a more thorough, accurate BIM experience. By partnering with a surveyor that is an expert in laser scanning and experienced in using BIM in construction, you can reduce or eliminate the time to learn about the process and receive the models you need without the headache.

What Should Oil and Gas Companies Look For in a Registered Land Surveyor?

October 20, 2014/in Article /by Jill Souter

In the business world, standards and regulations exist for a good reason: by creating an agreed-upon set of standards for an entire industry, everyone operating within that industry knows what to expect when it comes to hiring contractors or doing business with other companies. This can help cut down on the amount of surprises a company experiences while working on a project. This post examines the standards and regulations that you should expect from a registered land surveyor.

Standards and Regulations for Land Surveying

The oil and gas industry is filled with different standards and regulations, all of which are aimed at helping companies do business quicker, safer and more efficiently. However, in order to get the best benefits out of these regulations, you have to take the time to understand what they really mean, and how they affect your business.

This is particularly true when it comes to selecting a registered land surveyor to work with. Knowing what standards and regulations land surveyors comply with, and what those standards and regulations really mean, can help you make sure you select the right professional registered land surveyor to work with, and that can make all the difference for your project.

Land surveying standards and regulations that you should be aware of include:

Safety regulations
Drug and alcohol regulations
Pipeline data standards

Safety Regulations

Safety regulations for contractors in the land surveying industry are offered by a number of third party organizations, including:

ISNetworld
PEC Safety
PICS

While each of these different organizations functions in their own unique way, they are all alike in that they offer services for verifying the safety knowledge and compliance of oil and gas surveying professionals. These third party programs often pull from a diverse set of industry safety standards and safety regulations set by state and federal governments.

It’s important that you take a little bit of time to get to know each of these organizations to find out how they’re alike and how they differ; this will help you know exactly what each of these certifications really signifies.

Drug and Alcohol Regulations

Keeping a standard that oversees your contractors’ drug and alcohol usage can play an important role in creating a successful project with no unpleasant surprises or major safety concerns. Fortunately, National Compliance Management Service (NCMS), another third party standards organization, provides drug and alcohol auditing services that are specifically designed to help contractors live up to the expectations of their clients.

These NCMS audits establish a program that helps a contract organization put the specific drug and alcohol requirements of their client organization into practice. This program can include things like written policies, established screening methods, randomized testing, and regularly scheduled annual testing. As a result, any client that establishes a drug and alcohol monitoring program for their contractor organizations through NCMS can always be sure that they have a full and accurate understanding of what steps are being taken to ensure compliance.

Pipeline Data Standards

Pipeline data standards can help give you a better idea of the final product that your registered land surveyor will provide you. Keeping these standards open and well established helps ensure that all companies that work in the oil and gas industry will be able to deliver data to one another without having to worry about custom software programs or vendor-specific data architectures that stand in the way of the free distribution and easy use of data.

The two main pipeline data standards for the oil and gas surveying industry are the Pipeline Open Data Standard (PODS) and the ArcGIS Pipeline Data Model (APDM). These two standards should not be considered competitors; they have some similarities, but function in slightly different ways. Getting to know both of these standards is important, as it will help you select the standard that best meets your needs, and then select a registered professional land surveyor that can work within the context of that standard.

Image Source : Elvert Barnes