Title 30 — Title 30 — Mines And Minerals

certificate. Recording mining claims required; requisites of (a) A discoverer of any mineral lead, lode, ledge or vein shall, within ninety (90) days from the date of discovery, cause the claim to be recorded in the office of the county clerk of the county within which the claim …

Imperfect certificates void. Any certificate of the location of a lode claim which shall not fully contain all the requirements named in W.S. 30-1-101, together with such other description as shall identify the lode or claim with reasonable certainty, shall be void.

Prerequisites to filing location certificates. (a) Before the filing of a location certificate in the office of the county clerk, the discoverer of any lode, vein or fissure shall designate the location thereof as follows: (i) Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 91, § 2. (ii) By posting a…

Additional location certificate to be filed upon change of surface boundaries or addition of new territory. Whenever it shall be apprehended by the locator, or his assigns, of any mining claims or property heretofore or hereafter located, that his or their original location certi…

claim. Location certificates shall describe but 1 No location certificate shall contain more than one (1) claim or location, whether the location be made by one (1) or more locators, and any location certificate that contains upon its face more than one (1) location claim shall b…

Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 91, § 2.

Repealed by Laws 1981, ch. 91, § 2.

Locators' rights of possession and enjoyment; "mineral boundaries" defined. The locators of all mining locations heretofore made, or which shall hereafter be made, on any mineral vein, lode or ledge, situated on the public domain, their heirs and assigns, shall have the exclusive…

Relocation of abandoned claims. Any abandoned lode, vein or strata claim may be relocated and the relocation shall be perfected by fixing new boundaries in the same manner as provided for the location of a new claim. The relocator shall erect new or adopt the old boundaries, rene…

Location certificate for placer claims. (a) Hereafter the discoverer of any placer claim shall, within ninety (90) days after the date of discovery, cause such claim to be recorded in the office of the county clerk of the county within which such claim may exist, by filing therei…

kind. Assessment work for placer claims; character and For every placer claim, assessment work, as hereinafter provided, shall be done during each and every year after the first day of September following the date of location. Such assessment work shall consist in manual labor, p…

Assessment work for placer claims; amount of work required; suspension by act of congress. On all placer claims heretofore or hereafter located in this state not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) worth of assessment work shall be performed during each year from the first da…

Assessment work for placer claims; upon contiguous claims. When two (2) or more placer mining claims lie contiguous and are owned by the same person, persons, company or corporation, the yearly expenditure of labor and improvements required on each of such claims may be made upon…

Assessment work for placer claims; effect of failure to perform. Upon failure of the owners to do or have done the assessment work required within the time above stated, such claim or claims upon which such work has not been completed, shall thereafter be open to relocation on or…

Assessment work; rental fee; affidavit required upon completion or payment. Upon completion of the required assessment work or payment of the annual claim rental fee as required by federal law for any mining claim, the owner or owners or agent of such owner or owners shall cause …

Patents to placer claims. When any person, persons or association, they and their grantors, have held and worked their placer claims in conformance with the laws of this state and the regulations of the mining district in which such claim exists, if such be organized, for five (5…

Use of water. Whenever any person, persons or corporation, shall be engaged in mining or milling in this state, and in the prosecution of such business shall hoist or bring water from mines or natural water courses, such person, persons or corporation shall have the right to use …

Mining claims subject to right-of-way; construction of ditch or flume. All mining claims or property now located, or which may hereafter be located within this state, shall be subject to the right-of-way of any ditch or flume for mining purposes, or of any tramway, pack-trail or …

Protection of surface proprietors. Where a mining right exists in any case and is separate from the ownership or right of occupancy to the surface, such owner or rightful occupant of the said surface may demand satisfactory security from the miner or miners, and if such security …

171,. § 3. Repealed by Laws 1982, ch. 75, § 5; 1983, ch.

171,. § 3. Repealed by Laws 1982, ch. 75, § 5; 1983, ch.

Defrauding, cheating or swindling by "salting". Any person or persons who shall defraud, cheat, swindle or deceive any party or parties in relation to any mine or mining property by "salting," or by placing or causing to be placed in any lode, placer or other mine, any genuine me…

Protection of livestock from mining shafts. Every person, persons, company or corporation, who have already sunk mining shafts, pits, holes, inclines, upon any mining claim, or upon any mineral property, ground or premises, or who may hereafter sink such openings aforesaid, shall…

Length of lode claim. The length of any lode mining claim located within Wyoming, shall not exceed fifteen hundred (1,500) feet measured horizontally along such lode or vein. Nor can the regulations of any mining district limit a location to less than this length.

Width of lode claim. The width of any lode claim located within Wyoming shall not exceed three hundred (300) feet on each side of the discovery shaft, the discovery shaft being always equally distant from the side lines of the claims. Nor can any mining district limit the locatio…

coal mines. W.S. 30-1-101 through 30-1-126 not applicable to Nothing in this act shall apply to the working of coal mines.

Charge for assays at university. Hereafter the charge for making assays or tests for silver, gold, copper and lead at the University of Wyoming shall be in accordance with a fee schedule established by the university for charges to any resident of the state.

Construction or operation of railroads or roads by mining companies. Any corporation or association of persons organized under this article or under the laws of any other state and doing business in this state, now or hereafter engaged in mining gold or silver bearing quartz rock…

Eminent domain for underground right-of-way easements; right of condemnation generally. Every owner or operator of any mining claims or properties having a common corner who find it necessary for the practical or economical development thereof has the right to condemn and to take…

Eminent domain for underground right-of-way easements; duty to show good faith and necessity. In order to exercise the right of eminent domain herein granted the person claiming the benefit of such right shall be required to show that the proceeding is in good faith and that the …

invalidity. Provisions for indemnity in certain contracts; (a) All agreements, covenants or promises contained in, collateral to or affecting any agreement pertaining to any well for oil, gas or water, or mine for any mineral, which purport to indemnify the indemnitee against los…

definition. Provisions for indemnity in certain contracts; The term "agreement pertaining to any well for oil, gas, or water, or mine for any mineral" as used in W.S. 30-1-131, means any agreement or understanding, written or oral, concerning any operations related to drilling, d…

exemption. Provisions for indemnity in certain contracts; Provided that nothing in this act shall be construed to deprive an owner of the surface estate of the right to secure an indemnity from any lessee, operator, contractor or other person conducting operations for the explora…

(a) Definitions. As used in this act: (i) "Approved" means any device or practice approved by the inspector; (ii) "Council" means the state mining council which is within the department of workforce services; (iii) "Coal mine" means any mine from which coal is produced for sale, …

Minimum standards. This act and the rules and regulations adopted under it constitute the body of standards for mining operations in this state. The laws, rules and regulations are intended to constitute minimum standards recognized as necessary for the protection of the public i…

General penalty. Any person who willfully and knowingly violates any provision of this act or rules and regulations adopted under it for which another penalty has not been specifically provided is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than seven hundred fifty d…

Restrictions upon visitation. (a) No person shall enter or remain in any mine, excavation, pit, quarry, mill, or processing plant unless authorized by the owner or operator or by law. (b) No person other than the owner and operator, his employees and agents, and inspectors shall …

Alcohol or controlled substances and intoxication by either prohibited. No alcohol or a controlled substance as defined in W.S. 35-7-1014 through 35-7-1022 except a controlled substance in schedule V not requiring a prescription or as prescribed by W.S. 35-7-1030 shall be taken i…

Action for damages; injury to person or property; loss of life; exception. For any injury to person or property occasioned by a violation of or a willful failure to comply with this act, a right of action against the party at fault shall accrue to the party injured for the direct…

(a) Prohibited acts generally. No person shall intentionally: (i) Injure any shaft, lamp, instrument, air course or (ii) Obstruct or throw open airways; brattice; (iii) Carry any pipe, cigar or cigarette, match or fire-producing material or appliance into places worked by safety …

Bathhouses; when required; specifications; requirements as to use; penalty for failure to provide. (a) A mine owner or operator employing twenty (20) or more miners at any one (1) mine shall provide and maintain in a clean and sanitary condition a bathhouse for the use of the emp…

Appointment and qualifications of inspector and deputy inspectors; terms of office; removal; bond coverage; to devote full time to duties. (a) There is created the office of the inspector of mines within the department of workforce services. The inspector of mines shall be appoin…

inspectors. (a) Duties of inspector; duties of deputy The inspector shall: (i) At reasonable times, day or night, without impeding or obstructing work, enter, inspect and examine any mining operation in development, construction or operation, including the workings and the machin…

Arbitrary action prohibited; information confidential; exception; interest in mining operations prohibited; discharge for violation of section; additional penalty. Neither the inspector nor any deputy inspector shall, in any of his functions, act arbitrarily or without just cause…

Police powers generally. The inspector and deputy inspectors shall have and exercise throughout the state all of the powers of peace officers with respect to the enforcement of this act.

Rules and regulations; uniform code of signals; penalty for false signals. (a) The inspector shall under W.S. 16-3-101 through 16-3-115 promulgate rules and regulations to implement this act. Rules and regulations shall be promulgated under this act for all types of mines and min…

"Interested person" defined; filing of requests prerequisite to notice and information. A person is an interested person entitled to notice under this act of any action of the inspector including any action regarding rules or regulations if he files with the inspector a request f…

Access to mining operations, etc.; penalty for refusal of access or obstruction; enforcement by injunction; misrepresentation of facts or information to inspector; obstruction of inspector or deputy. (a) The inspector or his deputy has access to all mining operations for the purp…

Inspections; when held; duties of inspector or deputy; authority to clear unsafe mine or portion thereof. (a) The inspector or his deputy shall inspect each operating mine in the state: (i) At least once every six (6) months; (ii) If any danger to employees exists; (iii) If reque…

Inspections; reports; posting and distribution; interim reports. (a) The person inspecting the mine shall make an accurate report covering each inspection showing: (i) The date of inspection; (ii) The condition in which the mine is found; (iii) The extent to which safety laws rel…