Gold Rush Trading Post -The Place to Find Gold!

News from Gold Prospectors Association of America (GPAA)

Public lands For The People Inc. (PLP) is a non profit organization and has been building a group of citizens for 19 years to stop violations of the law by government land regulating agencies, and help protect the rights of the Citizens to use those lands. This Travel Management Plan is one of the issues that the PLP is preparing to file a lawsuit against to stop the closure of Forest Service roads. (Starting with El Dorado NF).

Many of us have noticed recently that when we go into the Forests roads that we have used in the past are no longer open for use, and many wonder what is going on to cause these closures. The reason for the closures is the result of a lawsuit and a court order from 2005. The court order addressed the closures of roads in the Western United States under the environmental protection act. The lawsuit was directed mainly at off road use but in the process of the closure it encompassed access to some private property and many mining claim owners.

PLP is also involved in several lawsuits to protect the rights of miners, prospectors and suction dredgers, and is also involved in SREP vs. US Forest Service, a 7 year lawsuit won by the miners and recently appealed in the 9th Circuit Court to the full En banc of the 9th Circuit Court. If lost This lawsuit would require all miners in riparian areas, including suction dredgers to have a Plan of Operations and a Reclamation Bond. PLP is also battling SB 670; the original Karuk vs. Ca. DFG; the new Hillman Karuk vs. Ca. DFG and finally the Hillman Karuk, DFG, Preliminary Injunction to be heard on the 9th of June 2009. All of these Cases and Bills are to stop all suction dredging in the state of California!

PLP fights these issues with financial support from memberships, donations and fund raising raffles. We would invite all of the prospectors and miners to help the PLP with their efforts. Registering at PLP's Web site, you can get information on how to participate, or call 909-889-3039.