{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-json\/45.2-1647.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-text\/45.2-1647.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-xml\/45.2-1647.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-html\/45.2-1647.html"}],"law_id":364193,"edition_id":2,"section_id":364193,"structure_id":51969,"section_number":"45.2-1647","catch_line":" Hydraulic fracturing; groundwater management area","history":"2020, c. 626; \u00a7 62.1-195.3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.","full_text":"No person shall conduct any hydraulic fracturing in any well that has been drilled through any portion of a groundwater management area declared by regulation prior to January 1, 2020, pursuant to the provisions of the Ground Water Management Act of 1992 (\u00a7 62.1-254 et seq.). For purposes of this section, &#8220;hydraulic fracturing&#8221; means the treatment of a well by the application of hydraulic fracturing fluid, including a base fluid and any additive, under pressure for the express purpose of initiating or propagating fractures in a target geologic formation to enhance production of natural gas or oil.\n\n","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":1356656,"text":"No person shall conduct any hydraulic fracturing in any well that has been drilled through any portion of a groundwater management area declared by regulation prior to January 1, 2020, pursuant to the provisions of the Ground Water Management Act of 1992 (\u00a7 62.1-254 et seq.). For purposes of this section, &#8220;hydraulic fracturing&#8221; means the treatment of a well by the application of hydraulic fracturing fluid, including a base fluid and any additive, under pressure for the express purpose of initiating or propagating fractures in a target geologic formation to enhance production of natural gas or oil.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":51969,"edition_id":2,"name":"Drilling for Gas or Oil in the Chesapeake Bay or Tidewater Virginia; Hydraulic Fracturing","identifier":"4","label":"article","depth":4,"order_by":4,"parent_id":51965,"metadata":{"child_laws":3,"child_structures":0},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:51:43","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:33:58","permalink":{"id":1451865,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51969,"identifier":"4","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4","url":"\/45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":51965,"edition_id":2,"name":"Virginia Gas and Oil Act","identifier":"16","label":"chapter","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":51964,"metadata":{"child_laws":50,"child_structures":5},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:51:38","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:33:58","permalink":{"id":1451677,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51965,"identifier":"16","token":"45.2\/IV\/16","url":"\/45.2\/IV\/16\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":51964,"edition_id":2,"name":"Gas and Oil","identifier":"IV","label":"subtitle","depth":2,"order_by":4,"parent_id":51927,"metadata":{"child_laws":50,"child_structures":6},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:51:38","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:33:58","permalink":{"id":1451675,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51964,"identifier":"IV","token":"45.2\/IV","url":"\/45.2\/IV\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":51927,"edition_id":2,"name":"Mines, Minerals, and Energy","identifier":"45.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":99,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{"child_laws":627,"child_structures":120},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:51:17","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:33:32","permalink":{"id":1449541,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":51927,"identifier":"45.2","token":"45.2","url":"\/45.2\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":364191,"structure_id":51969,"section_number":"45.2-1645","catch_line":" Chesapeake Bay; drilling for gas or oil prohibited","url":"\/45.2-1645\/","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1645","metadata":false},{"id":364192,"structure_id":51969,"section_number":"45.2-1646","catch_line":" Tidewater Virginia; drilling for gas or oil prohibited in certain areas","url":"\/45.2-1646\/","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1646","metadata":false},{"id":364193,"structure_id":51969,"section_number":"45.2-1647","catch_line":" Hydraulic fracturing; groundwater management area","url":"\/45.2-1647\/","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1647","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":364192,"structure_id":51969,"section_number":"45.2-1646","catch_line":" Tidewater Virginia; drilling for gas or oil prohibited in certain areas","url":"\/45.2-1646\/","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1646","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/45.2-1647\/","history_text":"<p>This law was first created in 2020. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter <a href=\"https:\/\/legacylis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?201+ful+CHAP0626\">626<\/a> of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":374913,"section_number":"62.1-254","catch_line":"Findings and purpose","order_by":null,"url":"\/62.1-254\/"}],"permalink":{"id":1451875,"object_type":"law","relational_id":364193,"identifier":"45.2-1647","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1647","url":"\/45.2-1647\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/45.2-1647\/","token":"45.2\/IV\/16\/4\/45.2-1647","dublin_core":{"Title":" Hydraulic fracturing; groundwater management area","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 45.2-1647","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section><p>No person shall conduct any hydraulic fracturing in any <span class=\"dictionary\">well<\/span> that has been drilled through any portion of a groundwater management area declared by regulation prior to January 1, 2020, pursuant to the provisions of the Ground Water Management Act of 1992 (\u00a7&nbsp;<a class=\"law\" title=\"Findings and purpose\" href=\"\/62.1-254\/\">62.1-254<\/a> et seq.). For purposes of this section, &#8220;hydraulic fracturing&#8221; means the treatment of a <span class=\"dictionary\">well<\/span> by the application of hydraulic fracturing fluid, including a base fluid and any additive, under pressure for the express purpose of initiating or propagating fractures in a target geologic formation to enhance production of <span class=\"dictionary\">natural gas<\/span> or <span class=\"dictionary\">oil<\/span>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":"                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\n HYDRAULIC FRACTURING; GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT AREA (\u00a7 45.2-1647)\n\nNo person shall conduct any hydraulic fracturing in any well that has been\ndrilled through any portion of a groundwater management area declared by\nregulation prior to January 1, 2020, pursuant to the provisions of the Ground\nWater Management Act of 1992 (\u00a7 62.1-254 et seq.). For purposes of this\nsection, &#8220;hydraulic fracturing&#8221; means the treatment of a well by the\napplication of hydraulic fracturing fluid, including a base fluid and any\nadditive, under pressure for the express purpose of initiating or propagating\nfractures in a target geologic formation to enhance production of natural gas or\noil.\n\nHISTORY: 2020, c. 626; \u00a7 62.1-195.3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.","edition":{"id":2,"name":"2026","slug":"2026","date_created":"2026-07-16 18:40:23","date_modified":"2026-08-02 15:14:36","current":1,"order_by":2,"last_import":"2026-08-02 12:37:30"}}