I am not an expert on mining law - I am just trying to help. Use the information in this website at your own risk. See the Notice at the bottom of this page.
Anyone may pan for gold,
using only a hand shovel and a gold pan,
in any watercourse in BC except in or on a...
The government has established a number of Recreational Panning Reserves for hand panning. Using metal detectors and camping in these reserves is not allowed.
If you want to pan outside these hand panning reserves, you pretty much have to use the government's Mineral Titles Online (MTO) system to make maps that show you where there are claims, parks, private property, etc.
You must work under the rules for hand panning if...
Most of the hand panning rules are from Information Update No. 2 - Recreational Hand Panning for Placer Minerals.
It is also worth noting that most of the rules on this page do not apply to work done under the rules for hand panning, as long as what you are doing is not so aggressive that it can be called making Changes In and About a Stream.
It has some new rules and restrictions. It is "Interim Guidance", so some of it may change. They are still really down on sniping. We will see.
The basic idea is that the government has provided a set of rules for working without a permit. If you want to work outside these rules, you should contact the Regional Mining Office, and see what they say.
In general, to work without a permit, your equipment must not contain "moving parts driven by mechanical means", other than a small, portable water pump.
If you ask a Mining Office whether certain work is allowed, or
allowed without a permit, they may say that the way to ask is to do a
NOW - Notice Of Work -
which is how you apply for a permit.
If the work is approved, you will (eventually) receive either a
"Mines Act Permit" (aka "Reclamation Permit") or
an Exemption that says you do not need a permit.
It is the same process as applying to do
machine digging
or what they call "mechanized mining".
A metal detector must not be used closer than 10 metres
from the high-water line of a creek.
No vegetated part of a gravel bar may be disturbed.
Outside the high-water lines,
you are not allowed to work, store fuel or disturb anything
within ten metres of the high-water line on each side
of the creek - other than...
On bars and banks inside the high-water lines,
you can use a sluicebox/highbanker,
but you must not work closer than three metres from the water's edge.
On the Fraser River, you cannot work closer than ten metres from
the water's edge,
and you must be working at least one meter above the water.
The Fraser River is the only river/stream in which
machine digging can be done on gravel bars.
Working Near Water - The Riparian Setback
The province wants to protect land next to water.
One aspect is that plants can help prevent erosion
that hurts fish. So, we have rules about not disturbing
vegetated parts of bars and other protected areas near water
called the Riparian Setback...
Digging by Hand without a Permit
There are rules from
Information Update No. 38
about pits and trenches dug by hand when you are working without a
permit...
If you want to work outside these limits, you should contact a
Regional Mining Office
and possibly apply for a permit - do a
NOW - Notice Of Work.
Note that any construction that is part of an excavation,
such as a retaining wall, must be approved by a Professional Engineer,
and would require doing a NOW.
It is illegal to snipe in the water of a creek (or any natural water) -
any work in a creek must follow the rules of hand panning - the only
equipment that is allowed is a hand shovel and a gold pan. Using a
small scoop - calling it a "hand shovel" - is probably okay.
It is also illegal to disturb any vegetated area on bars or banks.
However...
Information Update 38
says using hand sniping tools in the watercourse
(ie. between the high-water marks on both sides) is not allowed,
but further down suggests that anyone that wants to use
hand-sniping tools in a watercourse should contact the appropriate
Regional Mining Office.
Presumably you have to convince them you will leave the vegetated
parts of bars alone.
Water from a sluice box or highbanker must flow into a
settling pond or a tank/tub.
Water in a pond can soak into the ground or be reused or both.
It is not legal to use a sluice box in a stream.
You can use a water pump without a licence for hand mining if the
suction intake is no larger than 1.5 inches.
The intake must be
properly screened -
no openings larger than 2.5 mm and enough area that the water flow
doesn't trap tiny fish.
It seems that it might be acceptable to use a
a 2 inch pump with a 1.5 inch restriction in the suction intake
of the pump (not the end of the suction hose).
If this matters to you, you should check with the appropriate
Regional Office.
It can be worth getting a FMC even if you intend to work within the
rules for
Hand Panning.
A FMC sort of establishes that you are a miner, not a tourist.
For individuals, a FMC costs $25 per year.
A BCeID is general purpose ID and password for dealing with the
BC government. You need a Business BCeID to get a FMC
(not an Individual BCeID - you can use it to
get a new claim,
which is "doing business" with the government).
This isn't really a rule - it's just the way it is...
If you need a
Free Miner Certificate,
then you need to use the MTO system.
You need to be able to
make maps
that show where there are
claims, parks, private property and First Nations land,
so you can plan what you are going to do.
You can also use MTO to
look up the owners of claims,
or Logon to renew your Free Miner Certificate,
get a new placer claim,
register work or pay cash to renew a claim, and other tasks.
Most placer mining equipment can only be used on a
claim or lease, including...
Sniping Bedrock
Sniping is using small tools - picks, hooks, screwdrivers, knives, etc. -
to recover gold from cracks and other tight places where gold can
get caught in rock.
Sluice Boxes and Highbankers
Sluice boxes and highbankers can only be used on a placer claim,
and they must be movable by hand,
and must not include any moving parts "driven by mechanical means"
(not counting the water pump).
No Water Into a Watercourse
The most important rule is that
no water from placer mining (other than hand panning)
may flow or visibly seep into a watercourse.
This includes any natural stream, pond, lake or wetlands.
Using a Pump
See
Pumping Water.
Free Miner Certificate and BCeID
A person or corporation must have a
Free Miner Certificate (FMC) and a BCeID
to own a claim, which is required to use a sluice box, get permits,
etc.
Mineral Titles Online (MTO)
Mineral Titles Online (MTO)
is the Government's
online mapping and administration (getting stuff done) system.
Claims, Leases and Placer Areas
A
Placer Claim or Placer Lease
gives you the exclusive right to explore for
and mine the placer minerals in the area of the claim.
A claim/lease is not required for work under the rules for
Hand Panning.
A Placer Lease is for fairly serious operations. It is like a placer claim, but it gives you a more secure form of title and some surface rights (although not ownership of the land). There are steps to convert a claim into a lease.
A
Placer Area
is a part of the province in which you can get a placer claim.
Reclamation
If your mining activities disturb the ground, you are responsible
for
Reclamation - putting the
disturbed areas back into a good approximation of their
original state or a reasonable looking state compared to the
surrounding area.
You are not responsible for ground that was disturbed when you got
or bought your claim.
To see how the government looks at it, Section 60(2) of the
Mineral Tenure Act
says that if a person advertises a claim for sale, the ad must
include:
See Information Update No. 4 -
Surface Use by Recorded Holders of Mineral Titles
The exceptions - land that you do not have the right to
enter, includes:
It is a big subject, with many rules. You have to
give notice to the owner 8 days before you
enter private land.
A simple approach is to stay off of private land.
This is more practical in some areas than others.
It seems that you don't need the consent of the landowner, but
if he or she objects, you can't enter the private land until
you have an agreement. Mineral Titles and, if necessary, the
Surface Rights Board will help you reach an agreement.
To get a Mines Act Permit, you file a
Notice of Work (NOW),
and probably post a reclamation bond (thousands of dollars,
but you get it back if you do proper
reclamation).
The NOW should be filed at least two months before you require
the permit. If there is a problem, you want time to
provide additional information. You may
need a Mines Act Permit to apply for other permits.
If you intend to
use a water pump
with an intake larger than 1.5 inches (38 mm), you may have to
apply for a Water Licence (probably after you have a
Mines Act Permit as a justification).
If you intend to
cut down any trees,
for access to your claim/lease or to prepare a site, you will
have to apply for a licence or permit (probably after you have
a Mines Act Permit as a justification).
No Cabins
Do Not build a
cabin
or use an existing cabin on your claim. If you do,
sooner or later an Inspector will give you an order to remove it,
at your cost, or lose the claim.
Surface Use of Placer Claims
A placer claims gives you the right to search for and
mine the placer minerals on the claim.
A claim gives you no rights to the surface other than
what is required by these mining activities.
Warning - This property is offered for mining purposes only and
ownership of the title to it does not include ownership of the
surface rights or the right to use the surface for residential or
recreational purposes.
Private Property
You can get a claim on
private land.
With some exceptions, you can enter private land to:
First Nations Land
First Nations land is pale green in the
MTO System,
so it looks like Parks. Usually, you have no right to gold in these
areas unless an agreement is made with the band. See:
Proponent Engagement with First Nations
for more information about how the government deals with this issue.
Permits
To use mechanized equipment,
(also known as machine digging) or to go beyond the
hand-mining rules in
Information Update No. 38,
you need a Mines Act Permit, also known as a
Reclamation Permit. This includes using a suction dredge
even if it is more than 10 metres from a creek.
(Using a suction dredge in a creek is generally against the law).
See
Suction Dredges
for more information.
Notices
Copyright 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020,
2021, 2022, 2023
by Brian Marshall
bmarshal@agt.net
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INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THIS WEBSITE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF ACCURACY, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
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