1150 LAWS OF MARYLAND [CH. 613

45M. As used in this sub-title, unless the context other-
wise requires:

(a) "Waste" means and includes (1) physical waste,
as that term is generally understood in the oil and gas
industry; (2) the inefficient, excessive, or improper use
of, or the unnecessary dissipation of reservoir energy,
except that formation pressure decline resulting from
delivery of gas or oil to a bona fide market shall not be
termed, or adjudged as inefficient, excessive, or improper
use of or the unnecessary dissipation of reservoir energy;
(3) the locating, spacing, drilling, equipping, operating or
producing of any oil or gas well or wells in a manner
which causes, or tends to cause, reduction in the quantity
of oil or gas ultimately recoverable from a pool under pru-
dent and proper operations, except that wells classified as
gas wells shall not be deemed to reduce the ultimate recov-
ery of oil when gas is marketed to a bona fide market, or
which causes or tends to cause unnecessary or excessive
surface loss or destruction of oil or gas; (4) the ineffcient
storing of oil.

(b) "Department" means the Department of Geology,
Mines and Water Resources.

(c) "Person" means and includes any natural person,
corporation, association, partnership, receiver, trustee,
executor, administrator, guardian, fiduciary or other rep-
resentative of any kind and includes any department,
agency or instrumentality of the State or of any govern-
mental sub-division thereof; the masculine gender, in
referring to a person, includes the feminine and the neuter
genders.

(d) "Oil" means and includes crude petroleum oil and
other hydrocarbons regardless of gravity which are pro-
duced at the wellhead in liquid form except liquid hydro-
carbons known as distillate or condensate recovered or
extracted from gas.

(e) 'Gas" means and includes all natural gas and all
other fluid hydrocarbons not hereinabove defined as oil
that are produced from a natural reservoir.

(f) "Pool" means an underground reservoir containing
a common accumulation of oil or gas or both; a zone is
a specified geological interval of formation or formations
of a structure which is completely separated from any
other zone in the same structure defined by the Depart-
ment; each defined zone is a pool, as that term is used in
this sub-title.