Has anyone got permission to detect on a lease in Victoria?

[rickyraccoon1970]

Hey folks. I am looking at a few areas where I would love to detect but are covered by large leases of mining companies in Victoria. I am just wondering if anyone has made the effort to contact the lease holder to get permission to detect these areas? Would love to hear of your experiences both successful and not so.
Cheers!

 

[jethro]

Are these Leases mining licences or exploration licences? As you do not need the permission of an exploration licence holder in victoria,

 

[rickyraccoon1970]

Are these Leases mining licences or exploration licences? As you do not need the permission of an exploration licence holder in victoria,

Hey Jethro,

No the leases are actual current mining tenaments where they are conducting underground mining. The areas where the actual mining operation is located is only a very small portion of the entire lease.

For example if you look on geovic at Inglewood in particular you will see that MG Gold have most of the land north of the town under lease. However the area where they are actively mining is very small and well fenced off. The rest of the lease covers many old diggings and surfaced areas that would be gret to detect if possible.

I am thinking I should just make the effort and write them a letter asking for permission. I know in WA there are actually incentives for Commercial Miners to allow us amateur prospectors access to detect. Not sure if this also applies here in wowserville.

Cheers,

Rick

 

[user 4386]

You can always try asking. There is no incentive for them, but it has been known. however mining leases are usually fairly small, and equipment may move around them with little prior notice, even in areas not apparently being mined. They can have other reasons for saying no than simply a desire to prevent you getting any gold (eg conditions of their public liability insurance, and their responsibility to protect the public on a mining lease - Victoria has only just now introduced the new law of "Workplace Manslaughter", with gaol terms). For example an "inactive" area might be designated for future waste rock disposal, everyone employed on site knows and has OH&S training, a prospector no one realised was there has a truckload of gravel dumped on him.....

Easier to confine your prospecting to Exploration Licence areas - no permission required from holder (although other government restrictions can apply), no liability to the exploration holder....and little chance of having rock dumped on you.