Peter Freedman 2 Report post Posted April 10, 2016 I am interested in possibly claiming some mine dumps of past producing gold mines on Public Lands but have a couple of questions. 1) Placer or Lode Claim? Reviewing the definitions of claims by the BLM, seems that mine dumps should be claimed as Placer claims and not Lode Claims. 2) Placer Claim over an Exhisting Lode Claim? Can I establish a placer claim a the dump if someone else has establish a lode claim that runs through the dump? What are things to consider for these scenarios? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Clay 24 Report post Posted April 11, 2016 You are correct that the material in a mine dump is properly located as a placer deposit. There are no circumstances where a placer claim can be made coincident to a senior valid lode claim. There are very limited circumstances where the opposite is sometimes possible. You might want to review Cole v Ralph for a more holistic and authoritative view than I can give you on the issues surrounding mining claim rights against subsequent locators. The Supreme Court did a pretty good job of covering the possibilities in that very important mining case. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
