2015-09-02_GENERAL DOCUMENTS - P2013014

Home Browse Search

USDA United States Forest South Park Ranger District 320 Highway 285 _`..--- Department of Service - Fairplay, CO 804.10 Agriculture 719-836-2031 FAX: 719-836-3875 SEP 0 2 2015 DIVISION OF RECLAMATION MINING AND SAFETY Mr. Richard Bolen Owner/ Operator P.O. Box 931 Florissant, CO 80816 Dear Mr, Bolen, File Code: 2810 Date: September 2, 2015 CERTIFIED MAIL — RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED NUMBER: 7011 2970 0002 4092 4141 I have received your Plan of Operations (POO), submitted on July 29, 2015, to conduct prospecting and mining activities on the Blue Hills, Blue Canyon, Blue Water, and Blue Spring unpatented mining claims administered by the South Park Ranger District in portions of section 25, T. I IS., R. 71W., 6 1 PM, Teller County, Colorado. Based on an inspection conducted on September 4, 2014, by myself and Ms. Titterington, the activities found occurring on your claim do not reconcile with the Notice of Intent you provided ON DATE, and were not authorized under a Plan of Operations. Such use violates federal laws and regulations. These activities include: 1) Construction/ occupancy of a cabin/ shed; 2) Cutting green trees (108 total); 3) Using a non -system road with a motorized vehicle; 4) Constructing a new motorized route. The Mining Laws confer the right to explore, prospect, and mine valuable mineral deposits on certain lands. Mining claims may be located to protect an individual's right to extract minerals from these lands. The Mining Laws specifically prohibit a claimant from using unpatented mining claims for purposes other than prospecting, mining, or processing operations and uses reasonably incident thereto 30 U.S.C. 612(a). Forest Service policy is to encourage bona fide prospecting and mining and to allow uses of National Forest Land that are reasonably necessary for these purposes. The Forest Service is also obligated to ensure that National Forest land is used only for purposes related to mining, and to prevent uses that are not reasonably related to mining. The Federal regulations codified at 36 CFR part 228, subpart A (enclosed), provide the applicable procedures regarding surface use of National Forest Lands for mining activities. Under the Mining Laws on National Forest Lands, the regulations require the following: You must submit a complete POO that provides sufficient information to evaluate the surface uses that are being proposed, and to determine if these surface uses are reasonably incident to mining and are likely to cause significant surface disturbance. M rj Caring for the Land and Serving People rl;.Wa .,n Rttyi kc# NN,