The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee took its first look at reforming the 1872 hardrock mining law on January 24, and promised that any bill put forward would look much different from the version that passed the House last November. The Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2007 (H.R. 2262), shepherded through the House by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall, gives broader authority to prohibit hardrock mining (gold, silver, copper, etc.) claims and assesses a royalty payment on the mining industry. H.R. 2262 passed by a vote of 244 to 166, but western lawmakers who largely make up the Senate Energy Committee, as well as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, claimed that the House version would negatively affect the mining industry and the Senate needs to start with a clean legislative slate, reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

The laws governing hardrock mining in the United States are some of the oldest remaining land-management authorities still in effect. Passed when the federal government was encouraging westward expansion, the General Mining Law of 1872 had the same goal as the Homestead Act and other land-disposal laws of the day, i.e., to attract settlement the vast western landscape by selling land at near give-away prices. Today, public land still is available for private hardrock mineral claims and, once claims are made, miners can exclude public access to the land and eventually own both the minerals and the land for a nominal fee. More than 3 million acres of public land have been sold to mining companies for as little as $2.50 to $5.00 per acre under the patenting provisions of the law. These prices were a bargain even 135 years ago.

Mining companies have limited requirements to clean up abandoned mines and are assessed no royalty fees by the federal government, unlike any other natural resource-extraction method. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 40 percent of western headwater streams are degraded by the cyanide, selenium and other heavy metals that leach through soils or runoff into the waterways from abandoned mines. Numerous current and former mines are now Superfund sites, and clean-up costs often are shouldered by the federal government.

"Over the years, the Mining Law of 1872 has helped to develop the West and allowed needed minerals to be extracted from the Earth. But, we have long passed the time when this 19th-century law can be depended upon to serve the country's 21st-century mineral needs," stated Chairman Rahall. "At stake here are the health, welfare, and environmental integrity of our people and our precious federal lands, the public interest of all Americans, and the future of the hardrock mining industry in this country."

The House-passed bill assesses a 4-percent gross income royalty fee on existing mines and an 8-percent gross income royalty fee on new mine claims. The new revenue, estimated by the Congressional Budget Office to exceed $300 million over the next 10 years, would be targeted for abandoned mine-reclamation, for human health and safety threats from mines, and for community-impact assistance. In addition to the royalties, the bill would allow the Secretary of the Interior to refuse a mining claim that would have severe, irreparable impacts on sensitive lands. States, local communities and tribal entities would also be able to petition the Secretary to withdraw federal lands from mining to protect drinking water, wildlife habitat and other resources they consider critical to their communities and local economies. Finally, the bill would permanently end the patenting of land and the sale of public lands to private companies at 1872 prices.

Previous efforts to have hardrock mining pay royalties, as required for oil, gas and coal extractions, and to provide environmental oversight have not panned out. The mining industry has maintained that royalties and additional restrictions would be bad for business. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee leadership, Senators Jeff Bingaman and Pete Domenici have said they would like to find a way to develop mining reform legislation, but anything they move is expected to be substantially different from the House bill. "It is important to remember that, while the Mining Law itself has not been updated, there have been numerous new environmental laws that still are applicable to mining," stated Domenici. "For that reason, and in light of the fact that America increasingly relies on foreign countries for minerals, I believe that the scope of our efforts should be limited to patenting, royalty and abandoned mine issues. Striking the right balance will be key to our efforts, and Senator Bingaman and I should move forward with drafting legislation as quickly as possible." (jas)