Mining Laws Review

Mining Laws Review

MINING LAWS REVIEW

Using the attached mining law excerpts, match them into the correct mining law section below. Copy into your notebook.

Mining Laws / Descriptors
General Mining Law of 1872 / 4. This piece of legislation was initially established to use federal land and to promote commerce.
7. Miners can stake claims on federal lands and take any minerals they find. In addition, they only paid $5/acre for land filled with minerals.
8. Miners can take any ore that they wish without extra payments to the government. The miners can deduct a “depletion” allowance from their taxes which lowers their taxes as the resources decline in their mines.
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
(SMCRA) - 1977 / 1. Congress passed this act that requires mined areas be returned to their approximate original topography and the land restored and replanted.
9. This act/law pertains to strip-mined lands especially where mines replaced prime farmland.
Clean Air Act / 6. Set emission limits for ore processing and power plants.
Clean Water Act / 3. Requires all point source discharges from mining operations to be authorized under a permit.
10. This act/law pertains to surface mining where minimal adverse aquatic ecosystem effects result from the activity.
Superfund Act / 2. Designed to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances/pollutants/contaminants.
5. Responsible for cleaning up abandoned mines and restoring affected ecosystems.
  1. Congress passed this act that requires mined areas be returned to their approximate original topography and the land restored and replanted.
  2. Designed to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances/pollutants/contaminants.
  3. Requires all point source discharges from mining operations to be authorized under a permit.
  4. This piece of legislation was initially established to use federal land and to promote commerce.
  5. Responsible for cleaning up abandoned mines and restoring affected ecosystems.
  6. Set emission limits for ore processing and power plants.
  7. Miners can stake claims on federal lands and take any minerals they find. In addition, they only paid $5/acre for land filled with minerals.
  8. Miners can take any ore that they wish without extra payments to the government. The miners can deduct a “depletion” allowance from their taxes which lowers their taxes as the resources decline in their mines.
  9. This act/law pertains to strip-mined lands especially where mines replaced prime farmland.
  10. This act/law pertains to surface mining where minimal adverse aquatic ecosystem effects result from the activity.
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