Tasmanian prospecting licence. Some good some bad news.

Hey

Been interested in the idea of prospecting for a while now down here in Tas. Had a couple of questions regarding the rules and regulations.

The TAS MRT site states: Only hand prospecting for material is allowed and only hand-held tools may be used. The use of mechanical machinery or any explosives is prohibited. The use of sluices and trommels and motorised pumps is not permitted. The licence will be withdrawn from any person breaching this condition.

Does this apply to private property? Say I was a landowner, Am I still restricted to panning on my own property and would I still need a license for this?

Also, I was thinking of building a portable river-fed sluice box, wouldn't that be considered a handtool? Seems pretty restrictive.

I was pretty keen for the idea of going out and doing some prospecting but after reading these regulations I'm not so sure.

Hi Hurg where are you from in Tassie? I'm from Bridport near Scottsdale,ex WA.

Hurg said:

Hey

Been interested in the idea of prospecting for a while now down here in Tas. Had a couple of questions regarding the rules and regulations.

The TAS MRT site states: Only hand prospecting for material is allowed and only hand-held tools may be used. The use of mechanical machinery or any explosives is prohibited. The use of sluices and trommels and motorised pumps is not permitted. The licence will be withdrawn from any person breaching this condition.

Does this apply to private property? Say I was a landowner, Am I still restricted to panning on my own property and would I still need a license for this?

Also, I was thinking of building a portable river-fed sluice box, wouldn't that be considered a handtool? Seems pretty restrictive.

I was pretty keen for the idea of going out and doing some prospecting but after reading these regulations I'm not so sure.

Click to expand...

I don't know the Tassie regs, but if they are anything like the mainland states, then the rules apply to private property as well as other areas. In fact it looks like Tassie could be tougher, as sluices and pumps can be used for some activities over here.

Hopefully a Tassie person in the know will give you a better run-down.

Rob.

Hi Hurg,

Good to see another fellow Tasmanian!
The rules do apply across all land, whether private or pucblic. This is because in Australia, inside private freehold property, minerals (particularly gold and silver) are always owned by the Commonwealth and you need a mining lease (and royalty payments) in order to work the deposit. Or a prospecting licence, with its rules. However, if you work within an established mining lease (with the owners permission), there may be loopholes. I haven't explored this.

I have a couple of contacts in MRT. The word is that a small sluice would be treated just like a pan. You also could look at the precise wording of the regulations, consider the grammar, and make up your own mind as to whether any charges would stand up in court if you were using ONLY a sluice or a pump or a trommel, and not all three. I know of people who have been inspected by MRT at Doctors Rocks using a highbanker and been ok. On the other hand I have come across people who are not so helpful, or willing to consider the spirit in which the rules are written. My contacts say that the rules are meant to convey it clearly that dredges will not be tolerated under any circumstances, nor the setting up of serious operations (using pumps, trommels, sluices). If you're shovelling dirt you've dug with a shovel into a river sluice or a bazooka-type fluid bed sluice, you're not likely to get in trouble.

This is all the opinion of my contact, who is not on the enforcement side of things. It's also worth pointing out that the regulations can change depending on the ideology of the people in Government. Finally it is worth exploring the argument that those methods, such as sluices and pans, are processing the material that you have already extracted with hand tools.

Don't give up, it's a very rewarding thing to do, and the perfect excuse to spend time out and keep fit!

Miguel

I just renewed my Tasmanian prospecting licence.

The good news is that the total ban on sluices is now gone. The new condition says: "The use of mechanical machinery or any explosives is prohibited. The use of motorized sluices, trommels, and pumps is not permitted". At least it's now clear that a river sluice is ok, though highbankers still seem to be a bit of a grey area.

The bad news is the licence now has a condition that says: "Prospecting is not permitted in National Parks, Nature Reserves, Nature Recreation Areas, Historic Sites, Wildlife Sanctuaries, Conservation Areas, Forest Reserves and in public and municipal reserves (tips, cemeteries, etc.).".

Now, in Tasmania, mining and mineral exploration is actually permitted in most of those reserve types. In fact just a few weeks ago, I spent a few days prospecting in a gold exploration licence area, with the tenement holder's permission, within a Nature Recreation Area. Some MRT (Minerals Resources Tasmania) personnel seem to think that prospecting is allowed in any reserve type that allows mining, but they included that clause because Parks and Wildlife are getting touchy and would like to control that sort of stuff.

I think that this situation is not good enough, and the rule should be clear. For example, I know I am legally ok to be prospecting, with permission, within a tenement that is inside of one of those reserves. My agreement with various tenement holders is that I photograph and weigh anything I find inside their licence area, and provide them with these data. I could therefore argue that I am actually working, or volunteering, for the tenement holder. The licence conditions should not contradict this.

I am about to write to the Tasmanian Registrar of Mines and ask him to let me know precisely what is, and isn't allowed. I would encourage others to do the same. Otherwise we run the risk of reducing the area of land available for prospecting in Tasmania to pretty much nothing. The Registrar's address is:

Registrar of Mines
PO Box 56, Rosny Park, Tasmania, Australia 7018

these matters are similar to what NAPFA has been working on in NSW. My suggestion is you need to get organised otherwise you won't be heard. Go an see your local state member as well.