Mining for Gold and Other Minerals on Federal Lands
Posted on February 14, 2017
It’s Valentine’s Day and while some people may shop for flowers and chocolate, others may be seeking a longer-lasting gift like gold jewelry. But it’s not just Valentine’s Day that can lead to a gold rush. Mine operators can submit plans for the right to dig for gold and other minerals on federal lands throughout the year. Today’s WatchBlog looks at these mining plans and the agencies that review and approve them.
Be mine
Two federal agencies, the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service, manage hardrock mining on federal lands. These two agencies manage about 450 million acres of federal land—which is about 38 percent of the combined land area of 12 western states.
If a mine operator (a person or company) wants to extract minerals from federal lands, they must stake a mining claim and submit a plan of operation to BLM or the Forest Service (depending on which agency manages that land). The operators must also explain how they will reclaim the site once the desired minerals have been removed. Requirements for reclaiming the site vary, but generally involve re-sloping pit walls to minimize erosion, removing or stabilizing buildings to reduce safety risks, and removing mine roads, among other things.
Once the plan of operation is submitted, BLM or the Forest Service:
- reviews the proposed plan,
- conducts an environmental assessment,
- approves (or rejects) the proposed plan,
- establishes a reclamation bond, which covers estimated costs associated with reclaiming the mine site once operations have ceased and that the agency can use to reclaim the site if the operator fails to do so, and
- authorizes mining operations.
(Excerpted from GAO-16-165)
(Excerpted from GAO-16-165)
- hold pre-plan-submittal meetings with operators to ensure that their applications include all the necessary information, and
- establish a fee structure for mine plan processing activities.
- Questions on the content of this post? Contact Anne-Marie Fennell at fennella@gao.gov.
- Comments on GAO’s WatchBlog? Contact blog@gao.gov.