Laserfiche WebLink
The public has the right to cross mining claims for' <br />recreational and other purposes. and to access <br />Federal lands beyond the claim boundaries: Fdr <br />these reasons, claimantsmay not maintain locked <br />gates across public access routes, unless afull- . <br />time attendant is available and the locked gate is. <br />approved under a plan of operations. Under a. <br />plan of operations, approvals for locked gates may <br />be givenfor the protection of an operator's . <br />equipment and facilities. These approvals usually . <br />restrict the operator to a fenced compound sur- <br />rounding the immediate area of operations. <br />Claimants should not constructpemia'rient stiuc- <br />tares or store equipment or mobile structures . <br />without prior approval of the authorized Federal <br />official. Intermittent or casual mineral explora- <br />tion and development do not normally justify the <br />use o such structures.- - - - - <br />Theright ofaccess to aclaim across Federal lands <br />does not mean that the mining claimant has a right <br />to cause unnecessary or undue degradation of the <br />': resources. Vehicles used for exploration or <br />mining purposes are not permitted in areas that are <br />temporarily or permanently closed to vehicle use. <br />For example, on lands administered by the BLM, <br />in areas designated as closed to off-highway <br />vehicle use, an approved plan of operations is. <br />. required for new road construction and use of. <br />existing roads. The claimant is liable for damages <br />if found responsible for unnecessary loss of or <br />injury to property of the United States. <br />Issuance ofa nodce.of trespass may`oceurif an <br />unpatented claim or site is (1) used for a homesite, <br />place of business, or for other purposes not <br />reasonably related to mining or milling actidiiies; <br />(2) used for the mining and sale of leasable <br />minerals or of mineral materials, such as common <br />varieties of sand, gravel; or building stone; or (3) <br />located on lands that for any reason have been <br />wiffidrawn from location of mining claims after <br />the effective date of withdrawal. <br />26 <br />Deparmtent bf the Interior in 1894, Castle v. <br />W m I , 19 LD 455 (1894), states: "...where <br />minerals have been found and the evidence is of <br />such a chazacter that a person of ordinary pm- <br />dence would be justified in the further expendi- <br />ture of his labor and means, with a reasonable <br />prospect of success in developing a valuable <br />mine, the requirements of the statutes have been <br />= met" <br />The Supreme Court approved this definiflon in <br />Chrisinan v. Miller' 197 US 3.13'(1905). In 1968 <br />' the Supreme Court approved a parallel concept, <br />the mazketabiliry test, in 31~ v. Leman; 290 <br />US 602-603 (1968). The mazketabiliry test adds <br />to the pmdent man rule and considers economics. <br />It requires that the claimant show a reasonable <br />prospect of selling minerals from a claim or a <br />group'of claims. Its use by the Department of the <br />Interior since 1933 is based.on the Solicitor's <br />opinion in Layman v: Ellis, 52 LD 714 (1929). <br />This decision involved widespread nonmetallic <br />minerals. The Solicitor noted a need for a <br />distinct showing that the mineral could be mined, <br />removed, and marketed at a profit The Interior <br />Board of Land Appeals ruled in Pacific Coas[ <br />Molybdenum, 90 ID 352 (1983) that proof ofpast <br />or present profit is not a requirement. However, <br />a profit must be a reasonable likelihood. <br />Other Departmental decisions require a discovery <br />on each claim, based on an actual physical <br />exposure of the mineral deposit within the claim <br />boundaries. Jefferson-Montana Copper.Mines <br />fig;, 41 LD 320 (1912), establishes the full test <br />for a lode claim: (1) a physical exposure of the' <br />mineral deposit, (2) evidence that the deposit <br />contains a valuable mineral, and (3) engineering <br />and economic data showing a possible profit. <br />For placer claims, in addition to proof of a <br />discovery of a pay streak, each 10 acres must be <br />shown to bemineral-in-character. Mineral-in- <br />character is based on geologic inference and <br />mazketabiliry, not necessarily on an actual <br />7 <br />