What principle does the law of capture govern?

The law of capture primarily governs the extraction of oil and gas, allowing a property owner to claim any hydrocarbons that are produced by wells they drill on their land. This principle is based on the concept that oil and gas are part of a common resource that can flow freely and move underground, meaning that if a landowner successfully drills for these resources, they can take ownership of whatever they extract, even if the natural reservoir originally spans multiple properties.

This principle has significant implications in the oil and gas industry, as it encourages landowners to explore and extract these resources from their properties. The law of capture is often contrasted with other legal concepts, like the rule of “reasonable use” or surface water rights, which govern different types of resource management.

In contrast, the other options focus on entirely different legal frameworks or principles, such as agricultural land ownership, commercial shipping rights, or mineral rights protections, which do not pertain directly to the governing principles of oil and gas extraction as established by the law of capture.