Hunting on Mining Claims ?

[noth615]

I can't find information on hunting on mineral tenures in either the Hunting Regs or in the Mineral Tenure Act. From my understanding mining claims are open to hunting and fair game on crown land, but it is possible on a mining lease that access can be restricted?

Any one with information would be appreciated.

[Wild one]

Yes mining claims can restrict access and hunting. I don’t know about small claims but it is very common for large mining operations

[Swissrallyman]

Claim owners cannot restrict access, mineral claims are still crown land, therefore public and the claim holder has only mineral and no surface rights. On a mining lease yes access and therefore hunting can be restricted, for example elk hunting on Tecks coal mines in the Elk Valley etc.

[dracb]

Claim owners cannot restrict access, mineral claims are still crown land, therefore public and the claim holder has only mineral and no surface rights. On a mining lease yes access and therefore hunting can be restricted, for example elk hunting on Tecks coal mines in the Elk Valley etc.

Right On SRM!

[twoSevenO]

I hunted on one. I called the company that has a claim. They said ok and that others do as well, and asked to let them know via email when I would be there so they could have a number of how many people go in.

They seemed fine with it.

[S.W.A.T.]

Claim owners cannot restrict access, mineral claims are still crown land, therefore public and the claim holder has only mineral and no surface rights. On a mining lease yes access and therefore hunting can be restricted, for example elk hunting on Tecks coal mines in the Elk Valley etc.

That's not true. They can restrict access if work is being done in that area, wcb would have a field day if they didn't. However if there is no work being done and no risk to persons or equipment should be no reason for a restriction

[twoSevenO]

That's not true. They can restrict access if work is being done in that area, wcb would have a field day if they didn't. However if there is no work being done and no risk to persons or equipment should be no reason for a restriction

This is correct, but unfortunately they will put up gates and if you ask a key they can always tell you "oh we will be there blasting that day" and chances are they will let you onto the land, but wont provide keys.

[Swissrallyman]

That's not true. They can restrict access if work is being done in that area, wcb would have a field day if they didn't. However if there is no work being done and no risk to persons or equipment should be no reason for a restriction

Wcb has nothing to do with it because you aren't working for them. Even if work is being done you can still access and trespass onto a mineral claim. If there is active work they might escort you through. I deal with this all the time. Like I said a claim holder has rights to minerals beneath the surface and that's all. It's illegal to put up a gate in a mineral claim and prevent access.

[twoSevenO]

Wcb has nothing to do with it because you aren't working for them. Even if work is being done you can still access and trespass onto a mineral claim. If there is active work they might escort you through. I deal with this all the time. Like I said a claim holder has rights to minerals beneath the surface and that's all. It's illegal to put up a gate in a mineral claim and prevent access.

People often confuse what's legal and what's actually being done.

There are gates of questionable legality all over the place. What are you gonna do when you show up and theres a gate and you have no way to tell on the spot whether it's legal or not. Reality is most people get pissed off and move on.

[Swissrallyman]

Unfortunately that's exactly right.

[Bugle M In]

Is there a way to find out if a mining area (larger scale) has maps to show where they may have a no hunting no shooting area???
This is actually a good thread.
Or is the only way to find out to have to contact mine directly?
Or would there be a page on a Ministry site to find these areas of restriction.
Should be on the ministry site and not just left up to the mining companies and sites, imo.

[boxhitch]

Best to ask the leasee. How would govt ever keep up with activities on a site?
And why should they, govt should btfo and keep their hands off more not create extra layers


note- need to find the 411 for Jade Fever so I can drop in on an episode

[Swissrallyman]

Leases aren’t very common unlike regular mining claims, and generally only operation mines or advanced stage exploration projects are on leases. If you have a look at the regs some of the no shooting areas are shown, for example region 4. Teck has probably the largest mining lease areas in the province and they post maps on their website and you can download the kml file. Their no-hunting areas are marked by cut lines.

If anyone wants, PM me and I can send a kml file of all the mining leases in BC

[J_T]

Is there a way to find out if a mining area (larger scale) has maps to show where they may have a no hunting no shooting area???
This is actually a good thread.
Or is the only way to find out to have to contact mine directly?
Or would there be a page on a Ministry site to find these areas of restriction.
Should be on the ministry site and not just left up to the mining companies and sites, imo.
Most of the Operational mines will post notices in local papers about access and hunting restrictions. Swissrallyman and Twoseven0 have summed it up fairly well. A mining right provides ownership of the subsurface minerals. Not the surface. A Lease, will provide some authority to the surface for development/construction of infrastructure.

Most mining titles are claims. The owner has a right to occupy, but not restrict the surface use. The only exception is if they have an active exploration permit, the nature of which deems they must manage access for safety reasons.
The information is public. You can do a search online. You can use the map and zero in on your area of interest, or if you have tenure number you can use the search at.... https://www.mtonline.gov.bc.ca/mtov/home.do
To hunt on a mining claim, you are not required to give notice. If they are actively working the land, they are required to post the land.


Best to ask the leasee. How would govt ever keep up with activities on a site?

To keep a mining claim in good standing, the owner is required to do work. The owners are required to file a statement of work periodically to validate they are holding the title in compliance with the Mineral Tenure Act. To do mechanized work, requires a permit under the Mines Act and the holding of a security. Bond. Exploration projects are audited and inspected by Gov on a regular scheduled basis.

[huntinnewbie]

I know here in the Princeton area a lot of claims have had to remove their gates. A lot have no trespassing signs, not sure if they are legal, and I have seen temporary signs on some claims during hunting season advising that there are people working on the claim.

[Bugle M In]

Thanks JT and all, good stuff. and much appreciated!

[J_T]

^^ In Princeton (and the Boundary, West Kootenay) there are a lot of "Crown Granted" mineral claims. These ceased to be created in 1957. Although they continue to exist. The holder of a CGMC pays a tax and it is, an interest in the land. The Crown Granted Mineral Claim, when it was created issued two titles. One for surface and the other for subsurface. So it is possible the owner might have rights to both surface and subsurface. But not in most cases.

[walks with deer]

i have two claims...if i am working it your are not coming in...if i am not i leave it open...
on another note i am not allowed to hunt on my claims..

[noth615]

Thanks everyone for their input, this is the exactly what I had figured,

In the hunting regulations it mentions Government lease property is to be treated like private property. This makes makes sense in the case of a mining lease because they are extremely large, high traffic mining operations. This includes Land Use Leases for rock Quarry's and Gravel pits. Mining Lease are pretty easy to identify on the mineral titles website map.

This thread was specifically created to address the problem when you encounter mining claim owners that are putting up gates, no Hunting Signs or No Trespassing Signs and they are not actively mining or exploring said claim. How to check their legitimacy to restrict access and hunting.

[noth615]

Most of the Operational mines will post notices in local papers about access and hunting restrictions. Swissrallyman and Twoseven0 have summed it up fairly well. A mining right provides ownership of the subsurface minerals. Not the surface. A Lease, will provide some authority to the surface for development/construction of infrastructure.

Most mining titles are claims. The owner has a right to occupy, but not restrict the surface use. The only exception is if they have an active exploration permit, the nature of which deems they must manage access for safety reasons.
The information is public. You can do a search online. You can use the map and zero in on your area of interest, or if you have tenure number you can use the search at.... https://www.mtonline.gov.bc.ca/mtov/home.do
To hunt on a mining claim, you are not required to give notice. If they are actively working the land, they are required to post the land.


To keep a mining claim in good standing, the owner is required to do work. The owners are required to file a statement of work periodically to validate they are holding the title in compliance with the Mineral Tenure Act. To do mechanized work, requires a permit under the Mines Act and the holding of a security. Bond. Exploration projects are audited and inspected by Gov on a regular scheduled basis.


Great information thanks J_T ,
I have tried several times to contact the mining company, what's next check for a Notice of Work Permit under the mines act at the regional mines office?

[J_T]

^^ Good question. It does move this discussion along....
In most cases a permit is linked to the mining claim. A permit is not always held by the claim owner though. An owner may have an agreement with a contractor, or operator to carry out work. In these cases the permit is held in the name of the operator. Most of the time an owner has a solid relationship with the permit holder and is a logical point of contact.

In a scenario where you want to go fishing, hunting, berry picking, mtn biking etc if you use the map to see if there is a claim on it, is the first step. Finding out 'if' there is a permit on the claim/land is more difficult. "Notices of work" are submitted online through the BC Gov FLNRO portal https://portal.nrs.gov.bc.ca/web/client/-/notice-of-work When a permit is issued (and the security bond in place) the permits are issued in the Mine Management System (MMS). I think the only way to probe this further and determine if there is a permit on the land is by contacting the ministry. But, I don't think the only Ministry staff with access to the information are Mines staff. I think Service BC, Front Counter, and NRO staff might have access to this information. It probably comes down to individual skill set. Some people will know how to help you advance your request, others won't.

[wildcatter]

Claim owners cannot restrict access, mineral claims are still crown land, therefore public and the claim holder has only mineral and no surface rights. On a mining lease yes access and therefore hunting can be restricted, for example elk hunting on Tecks coal mines in the Elk Valley etc.

Off the topic, but are you into rally racing?

[Swissrallyman]

I was at one point..name stuck around.

[Rye]

To add to the mix, BC does allow the construction of private roads on crown land. Where these private roads exist, you may have the right to hunt, you just don’t have the right to use the road to do it.

[wos]

I know here in the Princeton area a lot of claims have had to remove their gates. A lot have no trespassing signs, not sure if they are legal, and I have seen temporary signs on some claims during hunting season advising that there are people working on the claim.

That area is a whole different topic on how people are abusing claims and making up their own rules.

[Piperdown]

I can tell you one thing none of you are going to hunt on my claim....i also own the property so it is private property :)

[geo guy]

People often confuse what's legal and what's actually being done.

There are gates of questionable legality all over the place. What are you gonna do when you show up and theres a gate and you have no way to tell on the spot whether it's legal or not. Reality is most people get pissed off and move on.

Its not illegal to put up gates on mineral claims, one of my previous clients would leave hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment on site we dont need that getting stolen (some did unfortunately). Additionally they are also there for public safety in some situations. Our project had lots of historical workings on it that were unmarked as well as new trenches from us. Dont want someone falling in an old unmarked shaft now.