1997 Legislative Session: 2nd Session, 36th Parliament
FIRST READING
The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.
MR. SYMONS
HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, enacts as follows:
1 The Mineral Tenure Act is amended by adding the following section:
17.1 Interpretation
(1) In this section
"chief inspector" means the Chief Inspector of Mines under the Mines Act;
"mineral" means mineral as defined in the Mineral Tenure Act;
"mining property" means mineral lands as defined in the Mineral Tenure Act and includes a Crown-granted 2 post claim;
(2) (a) The Province of British Columbia is designated as a mineral reserve and a placer mining reserve in respect of the mineral uranium.
(b) No person shall explore for, develop, mine or produce any mineral for its uranium content on the reserve created under subsection (a).
(3) (a) Subject to section 4, where, during the course of exploring for a mineral, uranium is encountered which, to the knowledge of the person who encounters it, has uranium in a quantity exceeding 0.5 kg of uranium for every tonne of mineral in place, no person shall explore for any mineral on
(i) the mining property, or
(ii) the land covered by a placer lease
where the uranium in that proportion has been encountered.
(b) A person who encounters uranium in the proportion referred to in subsection (1) shall report that fact in writing to the chief inspector within 7 days after he/she learns that the mineral he/she has encountered has uranium that exceeds the proportion referred to in subsection (1).
(4) Where, in the course of developing a mine or producing a mineral from a mineral body, minerals with an average grade of .01% uranium by weight are discovered, the owner, manager or agent of the mine shall
(a) order all development and production to cease, and
(b) within 7 days, inform the chief inspector that minerals containing uranium in that grade have been discovered.
2 This Act comes into effect on Royal Assent.
[ Return to: Legislative Assembly Home Page ]
Copyright © 1997: Queen's Printer, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada