Miners Stake 9 Claims on 3 Million Utah Acres Cut From Monuments

Q: Why did mining companies rush to file claims on Utah's former monument lands weeks before the legal opening date?

They rushed because Trump’s July 13 proclamations signaled that nearly 3 million acres removed from Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante would soon be reopened to mining, and companies wanted to be early in line for potentially valuable mineral ground. The filings by Kimmerle Mining and Craig Rosequist appear to be an attempt to stake a position immediately after the policy change, especially in areas long known for uranium, coal and other metals. In Bears Ears, Kimmerle had an added motive: company executive Kyle Kimmerle had previously argued in court that monument protections blocked access to valuable deposits, so the reduction directly advanced a longstanding business interest. The rush also reflects how mining claims on federal land can create leverage if a company is first to identify promising ground. Even if the exact acreage was unclear, filing quickly could help operators signal intent, map targets and prepare for the moment the land officially opens. But the strategy carried legal risk. The proclamations set Sept. 11 as the effective opening date for new claims, and federal guidance indicates claims staked before that date “vest no rights against the United States.” That is why the Bureau of Land Management is expected to reject the July and August filings. So the early claims were less about immediate legal success than about trying to secure a head start on lands suddenly made attractive for future mineral development.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 14

At least nine mining claims were filed on land removed from Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante about a month after President Trump cut the monuments’ boundaries.
More than 90% of both monuments was stripped of protection on July 13, opening nearly 3 million acres to potential mining, oil and gas drilling, and other commercial use.
Kimmerle Mining filed seven claims in former Bears Ears land on July 14, a day after the proclamations; Craig Rosequist filed two more on Aug. 6 in land cut from Grand Staircase.
The proclamations said new claims could be filed starting Sept. 11, so the Bureau of Land Management is likely to reject the early filings even as they signal industry interest in uranium and other minerals.