January 23, 1937 Rules and Regulations

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 

FOREST SERVICE
 

RULES AND REGULATIONS TO GOVERN EXERCISE OF MINERAL RIGHTS RESERVED IN CONVEYANCES TO THE UNITED STATES

In conformity with the provisions of .section 9 of the act approved March 1, 1911 (36 Stat. 961), I. Henry A. Wallace, Secretary of Agriculture, do hereby establish the following regulations to govern the extraction of minerals, oil, gas, and other inorganic resources from lands purchased by the United States under authority of said act of March 1, 1911, as amended, in cases where the right to extract such mineral resources is to be reserved by the vendor by stipulation in the deed of conveyance to the United States.

Whoever begins such operations must, on demand, exhibit to the Forest Officer in charge satisfactory evidence of authority from the grantor so to do, and must comply with the following requirements:

1.  Only so much of the surface of the land shall be used or disturbed as is necessary in the bona fide prospecting, mining, drilling, or manufacturing of the minerals; but no right to so occupy, use, or disturb such land shall be recognized unless the recorded owner of the reserved mineral, or his legally authorized representative, shall have applied for and received from the Forest Supervisor a permit authorizing such use or occupancy, for which permit advance payment shall be made annually at the rate of $6 per acre or fraction thereof.

All buildings, camps, equipment, and other structures shall be removed from the land within 1 year from date of completion or abandonment of the operation, which shall be construed as being the date when payment of the permit charges for the land terminates. Otherwise, such buildings, camps, equipment, and other structures shall become the property of the United States.

2.  If the exercise of the rights herein reserved will result in the stripping, collapse, or other damage of the land or any improvements thereon, the recorded owner of the reserved rights, or his legally authorized representative, shall, upon written notification by the Forest Supervisor, pay to the designated fiscal officer of the United States, for deposit in a cooperative fund, the amount determined by the Forest Officer in charge of the area to be necessary to restore the land to a serviceable or safe condition or to repair or replace the improvements damaged or destroyed; such cooperative deposits to be available for expenditure by the United States for the purposes for which deposited.
3.  All marketable timber and other timber products cut, destroyed, or damaged in prospecting, mining, drilling, or removing minerals, coal, oil, and gas, or in manufacturing products therefrom, and in the location and construction of buildings or works of any kind for use in connection therewith, shall be paid for at the usual rates charged in the locality for sales of similar National Forest timber and timber products.

All slash resulting from such cutting or destruction shall be disposed of as directed by the Forest Officer. No timber or reproduction shall be unnecessarily cut, destroyed, or damaged.

4.  All mining operators shall in all developments and operations make all reasonable provisions for the disposal of tailings, dumpage, and other deleterious materials or substances in such manner as to prevent obstruction, pollution, or deterioration of the land, streams, ponds, lakes, or springs.

5.  Nothing herein contained shall be construed to exempt the operator or the mining operations from any requirements of the laws of the State in which situated; nor from compliance with or conformity to any requirements of any law or regulation which later may be enacted or promulgated, and which otherwise would be applicable.

6.  While operations are in progress, the operators, contractors, subcontractors, and employees of contractors and subcontractors at work on the National Forest shall use due diligence in the prevention and suppression of fire, and shall be available for service in the extinguishment and suppression of all fires within 2 miles of said operation. Provided that if such fire does not originate through any negligence on the part of the operators, contractors, subcontractors, or their employees and does not threaten their structures, improvements, or property they shall be paid for their services at the current rate of pay of fire fighters employed by the United States.

All regulations hitherto issued by the Secretary of Agriculture to govern the exercise of mineral rights reserved in conveyance to the United States are hereby superseded as to mineral rights hereafter reserved.

In testimony thereof I have hereunto set my hand and official seal at the city of Washington this 23d day of January 1937.

 (seal)

H. A. WALLACE,
Secretary of Agriculture.