§121 — Title 30 Mineral Lands and Mining | U.S. Code

§121 Agricultural Entry or Purchase of Lands Withdrawn or Classified as Containing Phosphate, Nitrate, Potash, Oil, or Gas; Reservations to United States; Application

Title 30 › Chapter 3— LANDS CONTAINING COAL, OIL, GAS, SALTS, ASPHALTIC MATERIALS, SODIUM, SULPHUR, AND BUILDING STONE › Subchapter V— AGRICULTURAL ENTRY OF LANDS WITHDRAWN OR CLASSIFIED AS CONTAINING PHOSPHATE, NITRATE, POTASH, OIL, GAS, ASPHALTIC MINERALS, SODIUM, OR SULPHUR › § 121

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Allows people to buy or claim public lands that were withdrawn or set aside because they contain phosphate, nitrate, potash, oil, gas, or asphaltic minerals, using the normal nonmineral land rules, but only if the United States keeps the mineral deposits and the right to look for, mine, and remove them. Applications must say they are made under sections 121 to 123.

Title 30, §121

Mineral Lands and Mining — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Lands withdrawn or classified as phosphate, nitrate, potash, oil, gas, or asphaltic minerals, or which are valuable for those deposits, shall be subject to appropriation, location, selection, entry, or purchase, if otherwise available, under the nonmineral land laws of the United States, whenever such location, selection, entry, or purchase shall be made with a view of obtaining or passing title with a reservation to the United States of the deposits on account of which the lands were withdrawn or classified or reported as valuable, together with the right to prospect for, mine, and remove the same. All applications to locate, select, enter, or purchase under this section shall state that the same are made in accordance with and subject to the provisions and reservations of sections 121 to 123 of this title.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1955—Act June 16, 1955, removed 160-acre limitation on desert entry.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Additional Desert-Land EntryIncrease of limitation with respect to desert entries to 320 acres, see note set out under section 83 of this title.