Title 16, ConservationRelease 119-73not60

§482h–2 Cutting of Timber; Reservation of Patent Rights

Title 16 › Chapter 2— NATIONAL FORESTS › Subchapter I— ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION › § 482h–2

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

On and after June 11, 1946, patents (government land titles) issued under U.S. mining laws for those lands must give the holder ownership of the mineral deposits and allow cutting and removing only the mature timber needed to extract, remove, and process the minerals, if the timber is cut under sound forest management as defined by the national‑forest rules and regulations. Each patent must keep the United States’ ownership of the land surface and its products, and any use of the surface or its resources beyond what is reasonably needed for mining or prospecting is allowed only under rules of the Department of Agriculture.

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 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60