River Surveys

Several rivers in Oklahoma serve as boundaries and were shown as such on the plats of the original surveys by the General Land Office of the United States. Rivers as boundaries have inherent problems not found in boundaries on upland tracts. River boundaries move. Rivers move over time. As the river moves, so moves the boundary.

Through the years, laws have been passed and courts have ruled in regard to river boundaries. The laws and the court decisions sometimes conflict and are not clear. Federal agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management, have their own requirements and do not necessarily recognize state laws. Working with rivers as boundaries is, at best, difficult and confusing. When oil and gas wells are drilled on tracts of land with a river as a boundary, that boundary must be determined. Acreages of leases in the unit cannot be determined until the river boundary has been set.