Although not expressly provided for by law, a dump site of reasonable size may be located at the portal of the tunnel.
General
2–11 Recording of Claims: 43 C.F.R. 3841.4–6 states: “The location notice must be filed for record in all respects as required by State or Territorial laws, and local rules and regulations, if there be any.” Although the foregoing is contained in that section pertaining to lode claims, the same applies to placer claims, mill sites and tunnel sites. All the state laws make provision for the recording of location notices, with the County Clerk and Recorder or his equivalent (Register of Deeds in North and South Dakota, County Auditor in the State of Washington). Should the claim fall in two counties, it is proper to record the original certificate in the county (and state) where the discovery lies.
The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 made the recordation of mining claims with the Bureau of Land Management mandatory. Unlike state requirements, failure to file for record with the Bureau of Land Management within the designated time makes the claim abandoned and void. The objective is stated in 43 C.F.R. 3833.0–2:
“An objective of these regulations is to determine the number and location of unpatented mining claims, mill sites or tunnel sites located on Federal lands to assist in the management of those lands and the mineral resources therein. Other objectives are to remove the cloud on the title to these lands because they are subject to mining claims that may have been abandoned and to keep the BLM abreast of transfers of interest in unpatented mining claims, mill site and tunnel sites ....”
An abstract of the law is given in Chapter I. The proper State office of the Bureau of Land Management should be contacted to determine their requirements.
2–12 Assessment Work (Annual Labor): 43 C.F.R. 3851.1 states:
“In order to hold the possessory right to a lode or placer location made after May 10, 1872, not less than $100 worth of labor must be performed or improvements made thereon annually. The period within which the work required to be done shall commence at 12 o’clock meridian on the first day of September succeeding the date of location of each claim. Where a number of contiguous claims are held in common, the aggregate expenditure that would be necessary to hold all the claims may be made on any one claim. Cornering locations are held not to be contiguous.”
Almost any type of improvement will count as assessment work. Development work in the form of shafts, cuts and tunnels definitely will count as well as drill holes. Roads, bridges, ore bins, etc., will also count. Recently, geological, geochemical and geophysical surveys have been included as qualifying for assessment work, although not for patent expenditure.
Reports by qualified experts conducting such surveys must be filed with the county recorder. Such work cannot apply to more than two consecutive years and no more than a total of five years. Work may be done in a common improvement, but such work must be of benefit to all claims of the common group. It may be outside the claims, such as a tunnel driven toward the group for the development of the claims at depth. Not all work qualifying for annual labor will qualify as patent expenditure.