Title 16 — ConservationRelease 119-73
§482h–2 Cutting of timber; reservation of patent rights
Title 16 › Chapter CHAPTER 2— - NATIONAL FORESTS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION › § 482h–2
Summary
On and after June 11, 1946, mining patents must give ownership of the minerals and allow cutting mature timber to extract and process them, if the cutting follows national‑forest management rules. Patents keep U.S. title to the land surface, and any other surface use needs Department of Agriculture approval.
Full Legal Text
Title 16, §482h–2
Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
On and after June 11, 1946, all patents issued under the United States mining laws affecting lands within the above-described area shall convey title to the mineral deposits within the claim, together with the right to cut and remove so much of the mature timber therefrom as may be needed in extracting and removing and beneficiation of the mineral deposits, if the timber is cut under sound principles of forest management as defined by the national-forest rules and regulations, but each patent shall reserve to the United States all title in or to the surface of the lands and products thereof, and no use of the surface of the claim or the resources therefrom not reasonably required for carrying on mining or prospecting shall be allowed except under the rules and regulations of the Department of Agriculture.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
16 U.S.C. § 482h–2
Title 16 — Conservation
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73