§1280 Federal Mining and Mineral Leasing Laws

Summary

Mining and mineral leasing rules still apply inside parts of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, but with limits to protect the rivers. If a mining claim was not finished before an area became part of the system (or is later included), or if a lease, license, or permit is issued or renewed after inclusion, the activity must follow rules made by the Secretary of the Interior or, for national forests, the Secretary of Agriculture. A finished claim or issued patent only gives rights to the minerals and only the surface use needed for mining, and must follow those rules. Minerals in river beds or within one‑quarter mile of a wild river bank are withdrawn from mining and leasing laws. The rules must guard against river pollution and harm to scenery. For rivers listed in section 1276(a), minerals in beds or within one‑quarter mile of the bank are withdrawn during the times in section 1278(b). Prospecting and issuing leases or permits are still allowed, but they can have conditions to protect the area if it is later added to the system. For the river segments in paragraphs (77) through (88) of section 1276(a), public lands that are the bed or bank or within two miles of the bank on both sides are withdrawn, subject to valid existing rights, during the periods in section 1278(b).