Western Australia is one of the best places for gold prospecting in the world, and hence attract many people who are just starting, as well as professional prospectors. It is important to know that there are a set of rules that apply to all gold prospectors and fossickers in Western Australia. It is also critical to be aware that the maximum penalty for an individual prospecting illegally is $150,000.
The Seven Golden Rules for Gold Prospecting
There are Seven Gold Rules for Gold Prospecting in Western Australia: 1) Put Safety First; 2) Obtain a Miner’s Right Permit; 3) Obtain a 40E Permit; 4) Get Written Permission; 5) Comply with all Legal Requirements; 6) Show Respect when Prospecting on Crown Land; and 7) Fill any Holes.
Rule number 1: Put Safety First.
There are several important safety aspects to keep in mind when planning a gold prospecting trip in the Australian Outback., including:
Make sure you carry more water than you can possibly drink. A car breakdown in the middle of nowhere could mean spending some time waiting for rescue, and you never know how long this can take. Remember that mobile reception is rare, hence you need to be prepared for the worst.
Carry plenty of fuel, as it is easy to get lost and it might require more driving than initially planned.
Have with you at all times good quality maps for the area you are working on, as they might be required to help you find your way out of the bush.
Carry in your vehicle a first aid kit. I strongly suggest carrying a small first aid kit in your backpack at all times with you while prospecting, as you never know when you might need help. Ideally, I also recommend completing a remote first aid course to help you understand not just the threats you are exposed to, but how to get alive out of a tricky situation.
Some sort of communication device should be carried at all times. There are a multiple devices available including GPS, personal location beacons (EPIRBs), Spot devices, and satellite phones.
Rule number 2: Obtain a Miner’s Right Permit.
The state of Western Australia dictates that a Miner’s Right must be obtained prior to commencing prospecting activities. This is the most common prospecting permit used by tourists vising Western Australia.
This permit allows the holder of the Miner’s Right to prospect on Crown land with hand-held tools, such as metal detectors, and to take and keep samples or specimens up to 20 kilograms. It also allows to pass and re-pass over land, in order to gain access to Crown land for prospecting purposes.
A Miner’s Right gives you access to the following activities on Crown land:
- Prospect for minerals (including gold).
- Conduct geological mapping and tests for minerals.
- Undertake limited sampling. However, this is restricted to a maximum of 20 kilograms and must be collected using hand held equipment.
- Mark out (peg) mining/prospeccting tenements.
- Fossick for rocks, minerals and gemstones.
- Collect water and camp with the intention of prospecting.
The Miner’s Right, however, does not authorise these activities on private or reserved land (except where the purpose is a common, mining, or public utility).
A Miner’s Right can be obtained for $25 from any Mining Registrar’s office, or from the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) Mineral House in East Perth.
More information about obtaining a Miner’s Right can be found clicking in the link below:
http://www.dmp.wa.gov.au/Documents/Minerals/Miners_Rights.pdf
Rule number 3: Obtain a 40E permit.
Section 40E of the Mining Act 1978 allows Miner’s Right holders to apply for a mermit to prospect on land within a granted exploration license. The 40E permit is not required when the prospector has written consent from the tenement holder.
Permit holders using hand-held tools have the right to gain access for a period of 3 months to a nominated area of Crown land, a conservation land, or a granted exploration license (described by graticular blocks).
Access is restricted to a maximum of 10 nominated graticular blocks within one granted Exploration License – one block is equivalent to approximately 310 hectares. The set fee is Au$25.00.
Prospecting activities are limited to Crown land within a granted exploration license. “Crown land” under this designation includes all vacant Crown land, pastoral lease land and reserve land for common, mining and public utility.
It does not allow to prospect within a national park, a nature reserve, part of a townsite or other classified reserve (e.g., a cemetery) or private property (e.g., farmland).
Consent from exploration license holders is not required. However, license holders are notified by the DMIRS of the issue of a permit, and have 21 days to advice permit holders of any concerns relating to the nominated area (e.g., drilling activities).
Prospectors must plan ahead and allow a period of 21 advice days before the permit becomes operational. When a permit is issued, access is not allowed for the first 21 days or until permit holders receive licensee statements, whichever happens first.
Rule number 4: Get Written Permission.
Written permission is required to prospect within a tenement granted to a third party, e.g., an exploration and/or mining company. This is required in all types of tenements:
- Mining Leases,
- Exploration Licenses (unless you have a 40E permit), and
- Prospecting Licenses
It is worth noting here that most exploration companies in Western Australia will welcome prospectors to do metal detecting over their leases, as generally these companies are only interested in hard rock mineral occurrences. Obtaining the approval can be as simple as making a phone call; it all comes down to common sense, courtesy and respect.
Rule number 5: Comply With All Legal Requirements
It is mandatory to comply with all legal requirements when prospecting within a pastoral lease.
Additionally, it is important to note that prospecting within 100 metres of any occupied building is forbidden. Similarly, it is not allowed to prospect within 400 metres of any livestock watering point without the express consent of the pastoralist.
Further information about the 40E permit can be obtained here.
Permit holders must advice exploration license holders and DMIRS of any mineral recovered within 14 days. The advice form of minerals recovered within a section 40E permit area can be downloaded here.
Rule number 6: Show Respect When Prospecting on Crown Land.
When obtaining a Miner’s Right permit, users need to be aware that this allows to prospect within Crown land. In Australia, Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland) is land owned and managed by the State Government. Approximately 92% of all land within Western Australia is categorised as Crown land, with the remaining 8% falling under the freehold title land category.
Crown Land can be used for different purposes by different people. For example, pastoral leases are titles issued for the lease of an area of Crown land to use for the limited purpose of grazing of stock and associated activities. Over one third of Western Australia’s State area is subject to pastoral leasing.
Therefore, bear in mind when gold prospecting in Western Australia that the prospecting ground or tenement may overlap a pastoral lease, hence be respectful of other people you might encounter within the land you are prospecting on.
Rule number 7: Fill Any Holes.
During gold prospecting using a metal detector, it is common to dig many holes, small or large. Remember that cattle and other fauna can break a leg when accidentally stepping into a hole. Hence, it is important that any dug material that has been disturbed during prospecting activities be repaired immediately, prior to moving forward with metal detecting.
Additionally, remember the golden rule: leave the place in the same or better condition than you found it. Remove all rubbish from camping sites etc., and help maintain the natural beauty of Western Australia – other prospectors will appreciate it.