# ore photos



## rookieminer (Oct 30, 2011)

Here are some pictures of some ore I have found. I have assayed all but the third picture for gold and silver. The first and last photos are from a recent discovery I have filed a claim on, the second picture is of some copper ore I found. 
I was just curious to get some opinions on them.

I appreciate any comments,

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Oct 30, 2011)

The third photo I believe to be a chromite ore, but I'm not sure. I've also read that platinum is commonly found in association with these ores. 
The first and last photos are from a load I recently discovered, and they assay very high in silver with lesser, but still economical levels of gold. I have some more impressive specimens of this ore in my ore pile, and I can post some more if anyone is interested.
The copper ore photo is unfortunatly from a very small vein and there doesn't appear to be a whole lot of it there. I have fire assayed this vein also and it also contains a fair amount of silver and gold. I'm not sure of the accuracy of the assay with the high levels of copper but atleast I know it's worth looking further into. The vein also contains alot of bornite, and there are some very impressive looking specimens. Again if any one is interested I can post some more photos of this ore.
I would love to hear some more educated/experienced feedback about any or all of the photos.

thanks for looking,

rookieminer


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## gollum (Oct 30, 2011)

RM - thanx for the great pictures and I wish you all the luck in the world with your claims.
gollum 8)


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## darshevo (Oct 30, 2011)

I am quite fond of copper ore from a decorative standpoint. I have accumulated quite a few samples from various closed mines from around my area. I would love to see more pictures of your samples. The ones posted are fantastic


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## rookieminer (Oct 31, 2011)

Here are some more pics of the ores. I would love to hear what the Rock Man has to say about them, and what other minerals they contain that might be of value. After reading several posts on this site, I would have to say that his knowledge of ores is quite impressive.


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## Geo (Nov 1, 2011)

in south Alabama,in the county of Cleburne just before you enter Georgia on highway 278 theres a rock formation that the state had to cut through to put the road bed in.its easy to spot as the rock is almost transparent.my father and i stopped to get a sample and i could see why,there were tiny green streaks on the face of the rock where it had been cut smooth and you can see into the rock and see the specks of red copper and where they broke the surface it oxidized into the green streaks i saw.it was a beautiful rock formation and this thing was as big as a house, i often thought about what a beautiful headstone it would make cut square and polished and each speck of copper shining like a new penny and light shining through it from the sun.


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## Richard36 (Nov 2, 2011)

Hello rookieminer,

Most are Quartz and Albite with Goethite and Siderite.

Here's a photo for comparison.




As for the Copper ore, it's exceptional. 
Truly high grade material when in quantity.

As for the photo below, it may well contain Cobalt due to the slight Purple-Pink tint it has.



Thanks for the compliments.

Sorry that I haven't been around much lately. I've been quite busy.
I'm currently 5 assays behind, and processing a 14 lb batch of scrap for a client with more on the way, 
as well as batches from others headed this way too.

That doesn't leave me much time to be online. 
I'll continue to check in from time to time.


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## rookieminer (Nov 3, 2011)

Thanks for the info. I looked at more examples of the minerals you mention in the quartz specimens, and I've seen parts of the ore that resemble the different colors of the goethite as well. I don't need to tell you but from what I can tell by looking at, and reading about what you mention, your spot on.
I would also like to post some photos of a red vein I found. It looks like cinnabar to me, but I'm not sure. I also read a post somewhere on this forum where you mention a red vein material that can assay high in gold. It also has alot of sulfides in it, and some white material that I'm guessing is quartz. I had some of this assayed a couple of years ago, but it came back zero. But I also had a sample assayed from the same person that came back at over 8 oz/ton, and after learning to assay I haven't gotten anything more than a trace amount from it. Needless to say, there may have been an error. I think I'll go pull another sample to assay, that is if I can make it there before the snow buries it.
I would also like to post a photo from the same vein the previous pictures of quartz came from. there is some dark red material in it that more closely resembles a red cinder rock, like the kind used for landscaping. I would be interested to know what that material is.
Just out of curiosity, what would you guess the copper content to be in that copper ore? I'll also post another photo of the material beside the vein to see what you think of the copper content of it would be.

Thanks again for the reply on the previous photos. I understand your busy, so reply if you have time. And thanks in advance.

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Nov 4, 2011)

Here's a few more ore photos. The first on is of the ore beside the copper ore vein. If the copper content of this was a good enough grade to be worth something, I could get a fair amount of it.
The second photo is of the red cinder looking mineral that is in the quartz vein from the previous photos. It runs in one of the veins about an inch thick.
The third photo is of the red vein that I believe is cinnabar, but I'm not sure. It's also mixed in with a bunch of the rock near by 
in small pits. 

Thanks for any comments,

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Nov 4, 2011)

By the way, if anyone else has any ore photos to share feel free to post them. I can't get enough of looking at, and learning about different ores.

Thanks for any posts,

rookieminer


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## Dr. Poe (Nov 4, 2011)

I've seen very similar rocks as a researcher over the last 32 years. Most of them (that looked like these) had at least 0.3 troy oz gold per ton. Some had much more. The small porous vugs of quartz indicate that you've discovered a hydrothermal vein.
Don't be discouraged by the small size of you cache. I'm sure that if you dig deeper you'll find more. Dr. Poe


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## Richard36 (Nov 4, 2011)

The first photo would probably meet the requirements to be considered a low grade Copper Ore, and be sold as such.
As for the photo with the red cinder material, it was too dark in the photo for me to be able to discern anything of significance. 

As for your last photo, compare it to this photo. 
This is similar material that I found in the hills close to me.




Here's another photo of very similar material, and is the "Red Ore" that I wrote about in my other posts.




Here's some photos from other forum members who found similar ore.


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## rookieminer (Nov 4, 2011)

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate it.
I'm going to try to run an assay on the red vein material tomorrow. Have you assayed the red material that you found? And if so did it have any good values?
I'm not located all that far from you, So there's a good chance of the material being similar.

Thanks again,

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Nov 4, 2011)

Dr. Poe said:


> I've seen very similar rocks as a researcher over the last 32 years. Most of them (that looked like these) had at least 0.3 troy oz gold per ton. Some had much more. The small porous vugs of quartz indicate that you've discovered a hydrothermal vein.
> Don't be discouraged by the small size of you cache. I'm sure that if you dig deeper you'll find more. Dr. Poe




Witch specimen would you be referring to? Just out of curiosity.

And thanks for the reply,

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Nov 15, 2011)

Hopefully these photos turned out a little better. I'm hoping to identify the redish brown material in the quartz vein. The other photo is of some ore I found in a chromite mine. It' is very heavy (having a specific gravity higher than the other photo), and I was wondering what the probability of it containing platinum would be. Which leads to the next question, if it does how easy is it to find a buyer for platinum ore. After reading about the complexity of extracting platinum from ores I think it would be best to find a buyer for the ore.

Thanks for any replies,

rookieminer


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## Harold_V (Nov 16, 2011)

rookieminer said:


> It' is very heavy (having a specific gravity higher than the other photo), and I was wondering what the probability of it containing platinum would be.


Do not base your assumption on the fact that platinum is heavy. I would expect an ore that yielded so little as an ounce per ton would be considered an exceptional ore, in particular if you're deposit is in the US. An ounce in a ton of ore would make, for all practical reasons, no difference in what the ore weighed. To expect more platinum than that is just dreaming. We're simply not known for platinum production, and time is running out for anything of consequence to be found. That, to me, indicates that it's highly unlikely there is such a deposit here. 

Harold


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## rookieminer (Nov 16, 2011)

Harold_V said:


> rookieminer said:
> 
> 
> > It' is very heavy (having a specific gravity higher than the other photo), and I was wondering what the probability of it containing platinum would be.
> ...



Thanks for the reply,
I didn't tell about the weight of the rock because I thought that might be an indication of platinum, I was just explaining a characteristic of the rock. I found it in a chromium mine and I expect the heavy weight comes from the high chromium content. I just wanted an opinion on it, mostly because I like to talk about and learn about ores.
I've been threatening to run a fire assay on it, but I haven't because I really don't think it will carry any platinum. But even if it doesn't I would be interested in knowing if it is in fact a chromium ore, having never seen one before.


Thanks for any replies,

rookieminer


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## shaftsinkerawc (Nov 16, 2011)

Try to put something into your photo's for scale. Also a little explanation would be nice. Are the three pieces in the photo cut off the same rock? Did you collect them as float or did you find their source? What size are they? Have you crushed and panned any? Have you dropped hydrocloric on either sample and got any reaction? Looks like they come from a fault/shear zone and are recemented with an Fe/? mix.


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## rookieminer (Nov 17, 2011)

shaftsinkerawc said:


> Try to put something into your photo's for scale. Also a little explanation would be nice. Are the three pieces in the photo cut off the same rock? Did you collect them as float or did you find their source? What size are they? Have you crushed and panned any? Have you dropped hydrocloric on either sample and got any reaction? Looks like they come from a fault/shear zone and are recemented with an Fe/? mix.




Sorry, I should have given more information. I did leave out a lot of information. 

The first photo was something I picked up at a chromium mine that my metal detector picked up. It's about 6"x4"x3", I haven't done anything with it because I'm not sure there is much of it there. And to tell you the truth I forgot I had it until recently.

The second photo is from a recent claim I have filed on. It's part of a quartz vein that's about 16" to 18" wide, and the redish/brown material is in a layer about an inch thick. I have ran several fire assays on this vein, and it averages about 8 o.p.t silver and 1 o.p.t gold. I did run a fire assay on just this redish/brown portion of the vein also, to see if it was a high grade material. But it assayed lower than the average assay of the vein. I don't have my notes in front of me, but I think it was about 2 o.p.t silver and .25 o.p.t gold.
I wish I had gotten some photos of this load before it got burried with snow. To the right of this vein there is another vein about 8' away that assays about the same, but is only about 6" thick. And about 30' to the left there is a vein that is assaying about 30 o.p.t silver and 4 o.p.t. gold, but unfortunatly it is only about 1" thick and it appears to pinch out very quickly. I would be very interested in any opinions on it, and the likely hood of it carrying these values at greater depths.

Whether these materials or any I have posted are of value or not, I still would like to hear about them. I'm always anxious to learn more about ores.

Thanks for the reply,

rookieminer


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## shaftsinkerawc (Nov 18, 2011)

Is your access denied due to the snow? Most hardrock locations are worked year round.
Have you had the country rock(surrounding rock) assayed, What is it?
Those are nice assay #'s, have you personally crushed and panned any of the material? What were your observations?
Veins do pinch off and re open along their path.
Do you have access to anyone with a rock saw and microscope?
What State did you find these in?


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## rookieminer (Nov 18, 2011)

shaftsinkerawc said:


> Is your access denied due to the snow? Most hardrock locations are worked year round.
> Have you had the country rock(surrounding rock) assayed, What is it?
> Those are nice assay #'s, have you personally crushed and panned any of the material? What were your observations?
> Veins do pinch off and re open along their path.
> ...




Thanks for the replies shaftsinkerawc,

I have personally ran all of the assays myself. I've ran about 20 assays total on the three veins, and all of the results were pretty much the same. I did run a couple assays on the country rock between the two largest veins, and it has low grade values. I'm thinking it has enough to just run the ore all together instead of hand sorting it. I figure it will pay for itself and save me the time of sorting, thus increasing what I can take out in a day. I'm not very good at rock identification yet, but I believe it is an andesite. I can post some photos of it, and hopefully get a more posative ID on it. The location is in Oregon.

I have crushed and panned out some of the material. It has a few sulfides that appear to be arsenopyrite, but very few. It also has a lot of small black and silver flakes that are ductile, which I'm pretty sure is native silver. I think the gold is alloyed with the silver, because I haven't seen any free yellow gold yet. I can also see a lot of native silver in the ore with a 40x pen microscope. 

Access is blocked by heavy snow for now. At the moment my brother and I are working the bugs out of our crushing equipment. We have about 12 tons stockpiled at my house and we are going to spend the winter working on the best extraction method for the ore. Our hope is to be starting full mining operations by spring. If the snow lingers on the road to late in the year, we will plow our way in.

I'm hoping that we can concentrate the ore enough with gravity methods to get it to a smelting grade. If you have any other suggestions I would love to hear them.

Also to keep a lower profile, and not bring to much attention to ourselves I'm thinking about drilling and using some of the expanding products (like crackamite) to break the rock free. Then load it up and haul it to my shop for processing. 

This will be our first mining venture, so we will be learning as we go. And don't worry neither of us are foolish enough to quit our jobs until we are actually making it pay well, and have at least one other prospect as a backup.

I'm not a very sensitive person, so if you think any part of my plan sound foolish don't hesitate to tell me about it. And I appreciate any advice, as I know I still have a lot to learn.

Thanks again for your interest,

rookieminer


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## Reno Chris (Nov 19, 2011)

First, before you invest any more money, have a few independent assays done by a well known commercial assay business to check that your values are accurate. 

Second, make sure you have whatever governmental permits you need. Most locations do not allow commercial scale ore processing in residential neighborhoods. Active mining on claims requires permits as well - lots of them. Citations for violations can wipe out all your profits very quickly. Flying below the radar is fine for taking samples, but wont work for a commercial operation.

Native silver is both unusual and uncommon. Odds are that's not what you have.


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## rookieminer (Nov 20, 2011)

Reno Chris said:


> First, before you invest any more money, have a few independent assays done by a well known commercial assay business to check that your values are accurate.
> 
> Second, make sure you have whatever governmental permits you need. Most locations do not allow commercial scale ore processing in residential neighborhoods. Active mining on claims requires permits as well - lots of them. Citations for violations can wipe out all your profits very quickly. Flying below the radar is fine for taking samples, but wont work for a commercial operation.
> 
> Native silver is both unusual and uncommon. Odds are that's not what you have.




Thanks for the reply Reno Chris,

I agree about getting some more assays done by reputable assayers. Actually that's what brought me to this site recently to find some reputable companies. That is next on my list.

I have been talking to the local forest service office about a plan of operations, and I think I'll be able to work that part out with out to many problems. Other than obtaining a reclamation bond. By keeping a low profile, I didn't mean to hide from the governmental agencies involved. I have no desire to be paying out any potential money we may make in fines. I meant that I didn't want to attract to much attention from the general public. There are a lot of anti-anything that's not "green" people around, and if I can help it I'd rather not deal with them.

As for running a commercial milling operation from my residence, that's not quit what I had in mind. I don't have any close neighbors, as every one that lives near by lives on a minimum of 5 acres. We plan on running a very small scale operation in our free time, until (if ever) we can make it pay. And spending to much money on something unproven is of primary concern. The equipment that we are putting together has been made largely from scrap metal scavenged from the local scrap metal guy, who happens to be a friend of mine. Our goal is to spend as little as possible until we are actually extracting a good amount of gold from the ore. 

I am still learning (obviously), and I'm not sure about all the permits that will be required. I would appreciate any input on that part of it, or anything else I may be missing.

If it's not native silver I'm seeing, what other shinny silver colored mineral that is ductile could I be looking at. I wish I had the capabilities to take pictures of the ore under a 40x microscope so you (or anyone else) could help me identify it. It occurs as coarse flakes and grains, and not in any kind of crystals, like pyrite. I've seen the flakes up to about 20 mesh in size, and sometimes in a coarse streak of flakes up to 1/4" long but only about the size of 30 mesh wide.

Thanks for your advice, I appreciate it.


rookieminer


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## Wyndham (Nov 20, 2011)

Could it be lead?
Wyndham


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## Richard36 (Nov 20, 2011)

You could always send me chicken egg size piece, and put an end to the debate too.
I'd like play with a chunk of it, and see what I can find out.


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## shaftsinkerawc (Nov 21, 2011)

"sometimes in a coarse streak of flakes up to 1/4" long but only about the size of 30 mesh wide." How did you come up with this streak of flakes? Sounds like it could be one of the mica family?

You mentioned ductile, did you hammer any flatter without destroying? Are you sure they're not flexible mica flakes?

Don't forget to get your MSHA surface miner.


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## rookieminer (Nov 21, 2011)

Richard36 said:


> You could always send me chicken egg size piece, and put an end to the debate too.
> I'd like play with a chunk of it, and see what I can find out.




Yeah, I'll send you a chunk. I'd like to see what you come up with when you can check it out first hand, instead of a pic.

Thanks for the offer,

rookieminer


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## rookieminer (Nov 21, 2011)

shaftsinkerawc said:


> "sometimes in a coarse streak of flakes up to 1/4" long but only about the size of 30 mesh wide." How did you come up with this streak of flakes? Sounds like it could be one of the mica family?
> 
> You mentioned ductile, did you hammer any flatter without destroying? Are you sure they're not flexible mica flakes?
> 
> Don't forget to get your MSHA surface miner.




I have a comparator, like the one action mining sells. I found a good use for it, you can measure particle sizes in ore samples you're looking at. That's about the best use for it.

I've actually been able to pull a flake off of a piece with tweezers. It bends, stays bent like a piece of wire, and doesn't break.
My description you mentioned might not be the best, I was having trouble finding the words to describe it. From my description I can see how you could guess mica as a possibility, but I don't think it is. I'll send the Rock Man a piece and I guess we'll see for sure. It will be nice to have a pro check it out in person, instead of me trying to explain it.

Thanks for all of the comments. If you have any more, feel free to share them.

rookieminer


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## sawmill (Nov 21, 2011)

Rookieminer

I don't want to burst your bubble or cause grief ,but
have you really checked into permitting a mining operation?
There is a reason that the local Forest Service is agreeable
at this point. They won't tell you the whole story up front. At
this point they are not taking you seriously.

There is about 20 different permits that you have to have in
place before the Forest Service will approve a Plan of Operation.
Nearly all these permits require bonds and insurance. This is
just to work the mine area.

You can't mill,or process your ore on the claim either. This
requires a mill site claim,or an approved and bonded private
site. Either place,you will need more permits and bonds. Also
if you are planning to use a Forest Service road to haul any
ore over,that is a separate can of worms. If you are going to
haul ore with a dump truck from the actual mine,your truck
operation has to be MSHA approved and certified too.

Before you spend any money,check with a good mining attorney
about what permits and bonds ,that are required in your state.
I have a good friend that started a small hard rock mining and
milling operation. It took several years,and several million dollars,
before they processed their first ton of ore. He had to finally go
into a partnership with a large company,just to raise the cash,and
meet bonding requirements. 

The Forest Service knows all of this and more,that is why they
are still smiling and acting agreeable.They will still be smiling as
they write large citations,charge you with damages,take your
birthday,and your claims,for neglecting any one of those permits,
or obscure rules. If those claims are near a stream,spring,or 
there is any chance of hitting water while mining,be prepared to
be held liable for all costs and damages for the rest of your life.

Also you have kind of got your cart before the horse. The first
action is to file a notice of intent. This requires bonds too,and
allows you to prospect,and test ,depending on what you intend
to do in the scope of the notice. You can't actually mine or recover
values with a notice. It is for exploration only. Any mining done
under a notice will void the notice,and your claim. But this allows
you to prove and estimate the value of your claim,for validity.

This is important,because the Forest Service will have your claim
tested ,for validity before issuing a plan of operations or permit.
This is just part of what you can encounter,I don't have the heart 
to tell you any more.


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## rookieminer (Nov 22, 2011)

Thanks for the heads up sawmill,

All of this doesn't surprise me, with the way our government works. It sounds like my best plan of action will be to file a notice of intent, and do some more testing to prove the values. Then if it still looks good, I could try to partner with a larger mining company.
I do have one question. I've seen a lot of small mining operations, that seem to small to have invested millions. Do you think they are just working illegally, hoping to not get caught? Or is the permit process different for a very small operation?

Thanks again for the eye opener,

rookieminer


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## sawmill (Nov 22, 2011)

Rookieminer

Are the small miners doing placer,or hardrock?
There is a heck of a difference for getting approval,and
permitted. Some small mines were grandfathered in,or
are on patented claims. And yes some are trying to run
under the radar. These are the guys that make the news,
when Smokey the Bear,decides to ruin their day.

If you can keep it to a pick and shovel operation,you can
get by without much hassle. Any blasting,machinery,or ore
hauling requires a Plan of Operations.

I would use the casual miner status until you find something
worth going through the notice process. Once you file a notice
you will draw more attention than you may want.


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## rookieminer (Nov 23, 2011)

sawmill said:


> Rookieminer
> 
> Are the small miners doing placer,or hardrock?
> There is a heck of a difference for getting approval,and
> ...




Thanks a lot for the advice sawmill,

Keeping it to a pick and shovel operation sounds like the best plan for now. For one it doesn't cost much, and I won't draw any unnecessary attention. And if it starts looking like a rich load, at that point I can look into going further with it.
Either way I appreciate your advice, it potentially saved me a lot of headaches and money.

Thanks again,

rookieminer


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## sawmill (Nov 24, 2011)

Rookieminer

You are very welcome,and I don't mean to upset a guys
apple cart,but I have been in the same situation.
I also own claims,and wish that things were different. If
it was easy,you would see small mines cropping up every
where.

The sad truth is out of several thousand good claims,only
a hand full will be developed into a working mine. The legal
hurdles are just too much,for a small operator,unless you are
working rich pockets,and keeping a low profile.

Big or larger companies are not interested in just a couple
claims with some good out crops. They want large areas with
low to medium grade ore in large quantities.Long term projects
is what it takes to justify the expense.Contrary to popular belief
large mining companies,are not gamblers.

You have got the right idea now. Keep it small and simple until
you have proof,that it may pay to go to the next step. Rich 
veins can come and go,or pinch out completely .Sometimes
the vein will go for ever,but there may only be paying minerals
in just a small spot or two.

Beware of any company that shows a big interest in a few 
high grade quartz veins. Chances are you and other investors 
will get the shaft,and they will move on.


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## solarsmith (Nov 24, 2011)

here in colorado we have a thing called recreational scale mines.
if you keep your operation under 1800 sq ft of surface disturbance you dont need a state permit.. however there is still msha! and all bets are off if your releaseing any thing like water, dust, noise, etc. The county im in doesent know about this rule. I am just prospecting and keeping it in the recreation scale of things. Your state may have a similar catagory you can take advantage of. good luck Bryan in denver colorado 303 503 4799


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## sawmill (Nov 25, 2011)

solarsmith
BLM and Forest Service land is regulated under Federal mining
and other laws . Federal mining law allows casual use prospecting.
This is limited to hand tools only ,and minimal surface disturbance.
There is no specific size of what can be called surface disturbance,
or what can be called significant disturbance. The Forest Service
is the toughest to work with. Several Ranger districts require a
notice of intent for just a simple test hole ,dug with a pick and
shovel in some areas. Significant disturbance can be anything the
district ranger says it is. It is up to the Forest Service to decide
when you need ,a notice,plan,or permit,for a specific action. If
you decide to file a Plan of Operations,that automatically puts
you on the spot,for all Federal,State,and County environmental
permits,EMSHA,and all other requirements. As a rule the Forest
Service is not too miner friendly.

The BLM is easier to deal with in most cases,and allow a little
more leeway for casual use. On BLM if you keep your project to
hand tools, limit the damage to small areas,and keep your
reparation work current you can do a lot of prospecting.

A state can not issue its own rules on Federal land that conflicts
with Federal law. Possibly the rules you state,are for State owned
land.


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## solarsmith (Nov 25, 2011)

if your doing anything more than hand tool prospecting on land that is not private there are many hoops to jump through. Local park or open space rangers often do not know the rules and some times in this area hassle the hand panners. Im lucky to own a large property in the center of 3 mineing districts. All of my waste is used to gravil and fill my driveway. I revegitate as I go with grass seed and now have a nice place for a picinic table and fire pit. I wish nothing but good things foe any one that wants to take on a comercial scale operation. One of my neighbors has done this and does get the ocational msha fine for small stuff. he is a few million into his operation and yet to process a rock. thanks BRYAN in Denver Colorado


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