blm response to lakeside claimants

8/14/2019 BLM Response to Lakeside Claimants

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United States Department of the InteriorBUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

IN REPLY REFER TO:3809, 3720 (UTW011)

Salt Lake Field Office2370 South 2300 WestSalt Lake City, Utah 84119ph: (801) 977-4300; Fax: (801) 977-4397www.ut.blm.gov/saltlake foJUL 22009

Certified Mail Number-7008 3230000271821626Return Receipt RequestedMr. Cory ShumanGold Rush Expedition, Inc:14056 South Pepi Band Road.Draper, Utah 84020Dear Mr. Shuman:This is in response to your letter dated and received in this office on June 8, 2009, included with yourletter was a June 10,2009, letter by your attorney, Russel D. Hartill, and a Notice of Operations."Your letter responds to a June 2, 2009, letter from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)informing you that the Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining, Abandoned Mine ReclamationProgram (UDOGM, AMRP) is scheduled to rec;laim existing physical safety hazards within theboundaries of the Monarch placer and lode mining claims (T. 2 N., R. 9 W., NW1I4 of Section 11,SLB&M), ofwhich you are claimant of record.Mr. Hartill's letter, which you reference as your "official response," objects to the proposedreclamation and asserts that "a valid mineral discovery was visible and accessible through theopenings" that are pr_oposed to be reclaimed. He states that backfilling "the discovery points willjeopardize" your ability to prove a "valid mineral discovery" and harm your "ability to sell or minethe claim." He also asserts that you "will maintain all existing structures, equipment and otherfacilities in a safe and orderly manner" and that "[s]ignage has and will be placed to adequatelyidentify and alert the public to any hazardous conditions on the claim .... In your Notice ofOperations, you state that the "site will be signed to deter vandals" and that"the entrance to the adit will be secured so that the average person will know that it is a private siteand will not inadvertenty wander into the workings."We are willing to accept your and your attorney's representations that the existing openings on yourclaims are essential to your mining operations and that you accept full responsibility for insuringpublic safety as it relates to the openings. According to our records, the openings on your claimsconsist of one horizontal adit and two vertical shafts. There is a third vertical shaft just outside yourclaim boundary to the east; if you intend to claim this feature, you will need to amend your locationnotice appropriately. We note that your Notice of Operations refers to a map apparentiy showingfeatures ofyour mining operations, but we did not receive the map in your letter.As you are aware, BLM and the State of Utah have identified all these openings as posing anunacceptable risk to public safety, and the scheduled closing was intended to ameliorate this risk.Because your letter and the attached letter from your attorney establish that the openings are anintegral part of your mining operations on your claims and that you accept responsibility for insuringpublic safety, BLM is willing to forego the scheduled closure of the three openings on your claims.With respect to the fourth opening described above, BLM will temporarily postpone closure of that


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opening for no less than 30 days to give you an opportunity to amend your location notice to includethe opening.We emphasize that, as a mining claimant and operator on public land, you are required by federal lawto protect "the public from surface uses, workings, or improvements which, if left unattended, createa hazard to the public safety." 43 C.P.R. 3715.2-1(d). Therefore, you must take appropriatemeasures to ensure that all mining features and facilities on your claims are adequately secured (e.g.,fenced, gated or blocked). In addition, the BLM will need the assurance that if you abandon theclaims in the future, you will conduct the appropriate reclamation to permanently close the openingsand any others that may become a part ofyour operations on your claim.We acknowledge that your attorney's letter and the Notice ofOperations identify certain actions thatyou plan to take to insure public safety. A field inspection ofyour claims on June 18,2009, indicatesthat you have not taken any of those actions and that the openings remain unsecured. Please take the

-- -necessary---actiorls as soon-as possible. .. This--should n o t - - b e - c o n s t r u e d - a s - - t h i s o f f i c e ~ - positionregarding whether or not the measures you have identified are sufficient to protect the pUblic. If themeasures are not adequate and the openings on your claims cause the injury or death of a member ofthe public, any liability is solely your responsibility.Also, please be aware that, for any use and occupancy ofyour claims, you must comply with allprovisions of 43 C.P.R. Subpart 3715. This requires, among other things, that you provide BLMwith a map showing all proposed enclosures, fences, gates, and signs intended to exclude the generalpublic, and that BLM concur in the proposed facilities before they are installed. See 43 C.F.R.3715.3-2,3715.3-6.You will be sent an additional letter under separate cover informing you of further information weneed to consider and accept your Notice ofExploration. If you have any questions or concerns withanything mentioned in this letter or dealing with this matter please contact Larry Garahana, Salt LakeField Office Geologist at (801) 977-4371.

Sincerely,

Michael G. NelsonAssistant Field ManagerNon-Renewable Resources

cc: Richard Mulvey, 522 West Clover View Drive, Murray, UT 84123Connie J0 Garcia, Utah Division ofOil, Gas and Mining, Abandoned Mine ReclamationProgram, 1594 West North Temple, Suite 1210, Box 145801, SLC, UT 84114-5801Russell D. Hartill, 140 W 9000 S Suite 1, Sandy, UT 84070UT-923 -Snyder

blm response to lakeside claimants

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