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laws allow States to establish their own laws <br />regarding the manner in which mining claims and <br />sites are located. Most States have statutes and <br />regulations adding to the Mining Law of 1872, as <br />aznended, concerning the actual staking and <br />recording of mining claims. Staking require- <br />ments include the placement, size, and acceptable <br />materials for a comer post or a discovery monu- <br />ment. Check with the proper State agency(s) <br />before locating claims. State agencies may <br />include the State geological survey, the State <br />mineral resource department, or the State lands <br />commission. <br />Generally, staking a mining claim includes (1) <br />erecting comer posts or monuments and (2) <br />posting a notice of location on a post or monu- <br />ment in a conspicuous place (see Figures 1 and <br />2). The conspicuous place on the claim is usually <br />the point of discovery. Several States also <br />require side-line or end-line posts or monuments <br />for claims. Claims and sites described by legal <br />subdivision in some States do not require the <br />erection of comer monwnenu (see Figure 2). <br />However, all claims and sites must have a <br />location (sites) or discovery (claims) monument. <br />Be sure to check what the law requires in the <br />State where the claims and sites are to be located. <br />For a specific vact of land, check the official land <br />records at the BLM State or District Office <br />responsible for administering the land area. <br />Rather than looking randomly through the <br />records for lands open to location, it is better to <br />restrict your search to a general area of interest. <br />Topographic map(s) of the area (published by the <br />U.S. Geological Survey) provide the legal <br />description (meridian, township, range, section, <br />lo[) of such lands. Visit the local BLM office or <br />the BLM State Office and check maps, the BLM <br />Master Title Plats, mining claim records, and <br />files. Ultimately, it is up to the locator to deter- <br />mine if there are prior existing claims on the <br />ground. <br />14 <br />Figure 4. List of Fees for Filing Mining Claim <br />and Site Documents with the BLM (effective <br />as of January 3,1989). <br />New Location Notice <br />(per claim/site) $10 <br />Amendments/Transfer of Ownership <br />(per claim/site) $5 <br />Affidavit of Annual Assessment Work <br />:" _ (perclaim/site). $5 <br />, Notice of Intention to Hold <br />_ <br />(per claim/site) $5 <br />Petition for Deferment of <br />Assessment Work <br />(per petition) $25 <br />Mineral Patent Application <br />(first claim) $250 <br />Filing for each additional <br />claim/site in one patent application <br />(per additional claim/site) $50 <br />MAINTENANCE OF A MINING <br />CLAIM OR SITE <br />Annual Assessment Work <br /> <br />To keep a possessory interest <br />in the claim or site, the <br />claimant must perform a <br />minimum amount of labor or <br />make improvements worth <br />$100 each yeaz. Assessment <br />work is work or labor per- <br />formed in good faith that tends to develop the <br />claim and directly helps in the extraction of <br />minerals. Geological, geophysical, and geo- <br />chemical surveys may qualify as assessment <br />19 <br />