Ariz. Admin. Code § 12-5-1901
A. "Commissioner" means State Land Commissioner.
B. "Date of issuance of permit" means the 15th day after approval of the designated land by the Commissioner.
C. "Department" means State Land Department.
D. "Exploration" means activity conducted upon the state land covered by an exploration permit to determine the existence or nonexistence of a valuable mineral deposit, including but not limited to geological, geochemical or geophysical surveys conducted by qualified experts, and drilling, sampling and excavation, together with the costs of assay and metallurgical testing of samples from such land.
E. "Geochemical surveys" means surveys on the ground for mineral deposits by the proper application of the principles and techniques of the science of chemistry as they relate to the search for and discovery of mineral deposits.
F. "Geological surveys" means surveys on the ground for mineral deposits by the proper application of the principles and techniques of the science of geology as they relate to the search for and discovery of mineral deposits.
G. "Geophysical surveys" means surveys on the ground for mineral deposits through the employment of generally recognized equipment and methods for measuring physical differences between rock types or discontinuities in geological formations.
H. "Mineral" means all natural inorganic substances that may be extracted from the earth and includes mineral compounds and aggregates, natural building stone, saline deposits, and such organic substances as coal and guano but does not include petroleum and related hydrocarbon gases or other natural gases.
I. "Qualified expert" means an individual qualified by education or experience to conduct geological, geochemical, or geophysical surveys, as the case may be.
Ariz. Admin. Code § R12-5-1901