As Congress considers royalties and regulations, mining claims on federal land in California zoom

The General Mining Law of 1872 allows hard-rock miners to extract valuable ore from federal land "virtually for free . . . unlike the oil, gas and coal industries, which must pay royalties," but that would change with passage of a bill that a House committee is scheduled to hear on Thursday, writes Margot Roosevelt of the Los Angeles Times.

The decades-old debate about the law -- which also gives mining priority over ranching, hunting, fishing, conservation and recreation on federal land -- was heightened this week when the Environmental Working Group said in a release that "A modern-day Gold Rush is threatening California’s national parks, national monuments, wilderness and roadless areas," with more than a third of the 21,300 claims in the state having been filed since July 2003.

Parks cannot be mined, but often border other federal land than can be, such as national forests. "Mining is the dirtiest of all resource developments, accounting for more Superfund toxic cleanup sites than any other industry," the Times reports. "It also requires vast amounts of water for the processing of metal ore at a time when shortages are plaguing California and other western states."

The bill to be considered Thursday by the House Committee on Natural Resources "would impose royalties on mining companies and recognize the value of water quality, fish and wildlife habitat in the consideration of claims," the Times reports. "Roadless areas would be off-limits to new mines. Environmentalists are seeking an amendment for buffers that would protect the Grand Canyon, Yosemite and other national parks." (Read more)