What is Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll.?

Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll., on the Protection and Use of Mineral Wealth (Upper Law) — Law on the Protection and Use of Mineral Wealth (Upper Law).

When it became Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll. effectiveness?

Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll. became effective 01.07.1988.

Is Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll. still valid?

Yes, Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll. is still valid and effective.

Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll. - Law on the Protection and Use of Mineral...

44

THE LAW

of 19 April 1988

on the protection and exploitation of mineral assets (upper law)

The Federal Assembly of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic decided on this law:

ČÁST PRVNÍ

BASIC PROVISIONS

§ 1

Preliminary provisions

The purpose of this Act is to lay down the principles of the protection and economic exploitation of mineral resources, in particular in the search and exploration, opening, preparation and quarrying of mineral deposits, the treatment and processing of minerals carried out in connection with their conquest, as well as the safety of operation and environmental protection in such activities. This law implements the relevant European Union22).

§ 2

Minerals

(1) According to this Act, solid, liquid and gaseous parts of the earth's crust are regarded as minerals.

(2) Under this law, minerals are not considered to be

(a) waters other than mineralised waters from which reserved minerals may be obtained by industry;

(b) natural medicinal waters and natural table mineral waters, even if they may be used for the industrial extraction of reserved minerals, as well as medicinal mud and other products of natural medical resources;

(c) peat,

(d) mud, sand, gravel and boulders in watercourses, unless they contain reserved minerals in conquest quantities;

(e) a cultural layer of soil, which is a vegetation environment.

§ 3

Mineral distribution

(1) Excluded minerals are

(a) radioactive minerals;

(b) all types of oil and flammable natural gas (hydrocarbons), all types of coal and bituminose rock;

(c) minerals from which metals can be industrially produced;

(d) magnesite,

(e) minerals from which phosphorus, sulphur and fluorine may be manufactured or compounds thereof,

(f) stone salt, potassium, boron, bromine and iodine salts,

(g) solids, barium, asbestos, mica, talc, diatomite, glass and foundry sand, mineral dyes, bentonite,

(h) minerals from which rare earth elements and semiconductor properties can be industrially produced;

(i) granite, granodiorite, diorite, gabro, diabas, snake, dolomite and limestone, if they are block-conquerable and polished, and travertine,

j) technically usable mineral crystals and precious stones;

k) Halloween, kaolin, ceramic and refractory clays and clays, gypsum, anhydrite, feldspar, perlite and zeolite,

(l) quartz, quartz, limestone, dolomite, mink, basalt, jingle, trachy, if these minerals are suitable for chemical or technological processing by melting;

(m) mineralised waters from which reserved minerals may be obtained by industry;

(n) technically usable natural gases unless they are among the gases referred to in (b).

(2) Other minerals are non-exclusive.

(3) Critical minerals are radioactive minerals, all types of crude oil and flammable natural gas (hydrocarbons), minerals from which metals, limestone can be industrially produced, provided that they are suitable for chemical and technological processing, minerals from which rare earth elements can be industrially produced, and those with semiconductor properties, and unreserved building stone and gravel minerals, if these unreserved minerals are found on bearings considered to be exclusive 33).

(4) In doubt whether any mineral is a critical mineral reserved or not, the Ministry of Industry and Trade will decide in agreement with the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic.

(5) Search, survey and conquest of exclusive bearings are carried out in the public interest.

§ 4

Mineral deposits

Mineral deposits under this Act (hereinafter referred to as the "bearing ') are natural accumulation of minerals, as well as a base in a deep mine, abandoned by draught, hopper or draught that originated from mining activity (1) and contain minerals.

§ 5

Mineral wealth

(1) The mineral wealth under this Act consists of deposits of reserved minerals ("exclusive deposits").

(2) The mineral wealth of the Czech Republic is owned by the Czech Republic.

§ 5a

Organisation

Legal and natural persons who, in the course of business activity (2), carry out searches, surveys or acquisitions of exclusive bearings or other mining activities, subject to the conditions laid down by the legislation, shall be considered to be organisations under this law.

§ 6

Exclusive bearing

(1) The Ministry of the Environment shall issue an exclusive bearing certificate if a dedicated mineral is found in quantities and qualities that allow it to be reasonably expected to accumulate.

(2) The Ministry of the Environment shall send an exclusive bearing certificate to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Regional Office, the Regional Mining Authority, the zoning authority, the construction office and the organisation for which the search or survey of the exclusive bearing was carried out. 3)

§ 6a

Bearing of strategic importance

(1) The bearing of strategic importance is the bearing of critical minerals which is of particular importance for the protection of the state's raw material or energy security or for the implementation of buildings under the Law on the Acceleration of Construction of a Strategically Important Infrastructure.

(2) The deposits of strategic importance are laid down by a regulation.

§ 7

Bearing of non-reserved minerals

The deposit of an unreserved mineral is part of the property.

ČÁST DRUHÁ

Obligations of the organisation in the use of the exclusive bearing

§ 8

If the exclusive bearing is not conquered after the completion of the search and survey, the legal person entrusted by the Ministry of the Environment (§ 17 (2)) will ensure its protection and registration.

§ 10

(1) The organisation shall:

(a) propose the establishment, modification or, where appropriate, the abolition of a protected bearing area;

(b) maintain a metering and geological documentation;

(c) register the stocks of the exclusive bearing and its changes;

(d) address in due time conflicts of interest in determining the conquest area and in the planned opener, preparation and conquest of the exclusive bearing, in particular with a view to reducing adverse environmental effects;

(e) propose the establishment, modification or cancellation of the conquest area, where appropriate;

(f) register the roughness and pollution during the extraction of the exclusive bearing and the results obtained in the treatment and processing of minerals carried out in connection with their conquest;

g) care for the protection of the exclusive bearing;

(h) to fulfil other obligations laid down by this law and other generally binding legislation.

(2) The obligations in paragraph 1 (a) to (c) and (g) for bearings with unspecified conquest space are also provided by the Czech Geological Service. 3a)

ČÁST TŘETÍ

Bearing survey and management of stocks of exclusive bearings

§ 11

Search and survey of exclusive bearings

(1) Search for and survey for deposits of reserved minerals and exclusive deposits of non-reserved minerals may only be carried out in the exploratory territory, which is determined in accordance with specific legislation.3)

(2) When searching for and exploring exclusive bearings, organisations are obliged to protect and use mineral resources rationally

(a) verify the exclusive bearing in such a way as to detect and evaluate all usable minerals of the bearing and its utility components;

b) verify the development and storage conditions of the exclusive bearing in such a way that the construction of mines and quarries, opening, preparing and capturing the exclusive bearing can be designed and carried out according to the principles of mining technology and to ensure a rational use of the stocks of the exclusive bearing;

(c) use methods and procedures to prevent the use of an exclusive bearing or part of it from being prevented or made difficult and to avoid unjustified losses in the stocks of the exclusive bearing;

d) to identify the facts needed to assess the possible effects of the use of the exclusive bearing on other bearings, water and other natural resources, on the environment and on other legally protected general interests;

(e) in the event of an interruption of the search or survey, to implement measures to ensure that mining works are not thwarted and that further exploration and exploitation of the exclusive bearing is not made difficult.

(3) The organisation is entitled to handle minerals obtained in the search and exploration of exclusive bearings within the scope and under the conditions laid down in the permit issued under the specific regulation.3)

(4) An organisation which has established a territory for the search and exploration of an exclusive bearing shall pay an annual remuneration from that territory in accordance with the special regulation.3)

(5) The implementation of geological works is governed by specific rules. 5)

(6) The Ministry of the Environment, after consulting the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Czech Mining Office, provides in more detail a procedure for searching and exploring exclusive deposits for the protection and economical use of mineral resources.

§ 12

Notification of natural accumulation of dedicated mineral

Anyone who discovers outside the authorised search (§ 11) the natural accumulation of a dedicated mineral is obliged to notify the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Industry and Trade immediately.

§ 13

Stocks of the exclusive bearing and conditions of its usability

(1) Stocks of the exclusive bearing are determined and verified quantities of the reserved minerals of the bearing or part thereof, corresponding to the conditions of usability, regardless of the losses in its conquest.

(2) The conditions for the utilisation of stocks are the basis for calculating the stocks of the exclusive bearing. The conditions for the use of stocks are a set of indicators of quantity, quality of minerals, geological, mining, technical, ecological and other indicators to assess the suitability of stocks of exclusive bearings for use.

§ 14

Classification of stocks of exclusive bearings, assessment and approval of the calculation of stocks of exclusive bearings

(1) The results of the search and survey of the exclusive bearing are evaluated. The evaluation shall include the calculation of the stocks provided by the organisation.

(2) Stocks of the exclusive bearing are classified in the stock calculations

(a) according to the degree of exploration of the exclusive bearing and knowledge of its storage conditions or part thereof, of the quality and technological properties of minerals and of the mining-technical conditions for the stocks sought and the stocks examined. If the exclusive bearing contains several commercial components, their stocks shall be classified according to their degree of exploration and knowledge,

(b) under the conditions of availability for balance-sheet stocks which are available at present and comply with the current technical and economic conditions of use of the exclusive bearing and non-balance-sheet stocks which are currently not available because they do not comply with the current technical and economic conditions of use but which are available in the future, taking into account the expected technical and economic developments;

(c) according to the acceptability of conquest, which is conditional on conquest technology, safety of operation and established safety pillars, free and bound. Bound stocks are stocks in the protection pillars of surface and underground structures, installations and mining works as well as in the pillars set out to ensure the safety of operation and the protection of protected interests. Other supplies are available.

In the calculation of the stocks included in the proposal for the authorisation of mining activities (§ 24 (1)), the organisation shall indicate the stocks it plans for extraction (hereinafter referred to as "extractable stocks'). Extractable stocks are balance sheet stocks, reduced by the value of anticipated mining losses associated with the selected conquest technology or the influence of natural conditions.

(3) The organisation shall provide for the calculation of the stocks of the exclusive bearing and its assessment. The calculation of stocks of the exclusive bearing with assessment is sent by the organisation to the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Regional Mining Office.

(4) The classification of stocks and the procedure for the calculation of stocks of exclusive bearings and the necessity of the calculation will be further adapted by the Ministry of the Environment by a generally binding legislation.

§ 14a

Deduction of stocks of exclusive bearings

(1) The depreciation of stocks of exclusive bearings means their exemption from stock records or their transfer from balance sheet stocks to non-balance sheet stocks.

(2) Stocks of the exclusive bearing can be written off

(a) on grounds of particularly complex technical, safety or geological circumstances related to natural conditions or unforeseen events;

(b) if the stocks of part of the exclusive bearing are not economically effective,

(c) where stocks are concerned, the procurement of which would jeopardise the general interests of the law, in particular the protection of the environment and the importance of the protection outweighs the interest in the recovery of such stocks.

(3) Non-balance sheet stocks of the exclusive bearing may be written off if they are not expected to be used in the future.

(4) Changes in stock levels caused by the exclusive bearing are not considered as a reason to write off stocks of the exclusive bearing.

(a) by supplementing and clarifying the existing knowledge of the development of the bearing and its stocks by exploration and new knowledge found by opening, preparing and capturing; evidence of geological documentation (§ 39),

(b) the acquisition of stocks; evidence of geological documentation and mining records,

(c) extractive losses involving unobtained stocks in the conquered part of the bearing and not written off, and mineral materials exported with noise to or from the drain; evidence of geological documentation and mining records,

(d) re-evaluation of stocks under new conditions of usability, new approved calculation of stocks or by binding or, where appropriate, by releasing stocks; they are demonstrated by the establishment of new conditions of usability with appropriate reassessment of stocks or the approval of a new calculation of stocks or, where appropriate, by a decision to bind or release stocks;

(e) by surrender or acceptance of the bearing; evidence of the transfer of the exclusive bearing or part thereof.

§ 14b

Design to write off stocks of exclusive bearing

(1) If the organisation finds, in the processing of documentation for the construction of a mine or quarry, a plan to open, prepare and conquer an exclusive bearing, a plan to secure mining works and quarries, or to dispose of the main mining works and quarries, 4), as well as their implementation, that it is not possible or appropriate to extract stocks for the reasons set out in Section 14a (2), it shall submit a proposal for their write-off.

(2) The proposal to write off the stocks of the exclusive bearing is also submitted by the competent authorities on the environment section. The organisation shall ensure the completeness of the proposal to write off the stocks of the exclusive bearing.

(3) The proposal to write off the stocks of the exclusive bearing contains:

(a) the name and address of the organisation;

(b) the quantities of balance sheet and non-balance sheet stocks proposed for depreciation by stock blocks and categories, their qualitative characteristics and the proposal to exclude them from stock records or to transfer balance sheet stocks to non-balance sheet stocks;

(c) the reasons for which stocks are proposed for depreciation;

(d) maps and sections with clearly marked parts of the bearing in which depreciation of stocks is proposed, in four copies;

(e) further graphic and written evidence of the bearing and stocks proposed for write-off needed to justify the proposal in more detail;

(f) the opinion of the Regional Mining Office and the Ministry of the Environment.

§ 14c

Decision on depreciation of stocks of the exclusive bearing

(1) The proposal to write off stocks of the exclusive bearing is decided by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in the period of searching and exploration of the exclusive bearing with the agreement of the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic; in the period of the construction of mines and quarries and in the mining of the exclusive bearing, the Ministry of Industry and Trade decides to write off after consulting the Czech Mining Office.

(2) A proposal to write off small quantities of stocks of the exclusive bearing is decided by the District Mining Office. A small quantity of stocks shall mean a quantity of stocks not exceeding a total of 5% of the planned annual production on the bearing in the calendar year, but not exceeding 100 000 tonnes or 50 000 m3 in the case of natural gas.

(3) The decision to write off stocks of the exclusive bearing contains:

(a) the quantity of stocks depreciation, their local destination and the brief justification for depreciation;

(b) a decision as to whether the depreciation stocks are excluded from stock records or transferred from balance sheet stocks to non-balance sheet stocks;

(c) measures for the protection of stocks transferred from balance sheet stocks to non-balance sheet stocks, taking into account the possibility of subsequent use.

(4) The proposal to write off stocks of the exclusive bearing shall be decided by the authorities referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 within one month of the date of submission of the proposal.

(5) The decision to write off the stocks of the exclusive bearing with one copy of the documents referred to in Section 14b will be sent by the Ministry of Industry and Trade to the appellant and the Regional Mining Office. The decision to write off the stocks of the exclusive bearing without the documents mentioned in § 14b will be sent by the Ministry of Industry and Trade to the Ministry of the Environment, the Regional Office and the Czech Geological Service. The decision to write off small quantities of stocks will be sent by the District Mining Office to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of the Environment and the Czech Geological Service. Approved depreciation of stocks of the exclusive bearing shall be indicated by the designer in the metering and geological documentation.

(6) An organisation proposing a write-off of the stocks of the exclusive bearing must not dispose of the technical equipment necessary to obtain and withdraw access to the stocks proposed for write-off until it has received a write-off decision, except where the safety of operation and health at work so require.

ČÁST ČTVRTÁ

_

§ 14d

Raw material policy

(1) Raw material policy in the field of minerals and their resources (hereinafter referred to as "raw material policy") is a strategic document expressing the objectives of the State in the use and protection of mineral resources and other mineral resources. Raw materials policy shall be adopted for a maximum period of 25 years.

(2) Raw materials policy is the basis for the exercise of government administration in the areas of exploration of mineral deposits, the protection of mineral resources and the establishment of conquest areas and one of the grounds for territorial development policy and planning documentation.

(3) The government, on a proposal from the Minister for Industry and Trade, approves the crude policy. For information, the government presents a raw material policy to the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

(4) The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall evaluate the filling of raw materials policy at least every 5 years and inform the Government of the evaluation.

§ 15

Securing the protection of mineral wealth in land planning activities

(1) In order to ensure the timely protection of mineral assets, the zoning authorities and planners of the zoning documentation are obliged to base their planning activities on evidence of the identified and anticipated exclusive deposits provided by the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, in particular through the zoning of analytical material; In doing so, they shall comply with the Specific Regulations (5) and shall be obliged to propose a solution which is most advantageous in terms of the protection and use of mineral assets and other legally protected general interests.

(2) The Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Czech Mining Office apply opinions on the territorial development plan and on the principles of territorial development in terms of the protection and use of mineral wealth. The Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the District Mining Authorities apply opinions on the zoning plan, the regulatory plan and the zoning measure on the construction closure in terms of the protection and use of mineral wealth. In its opinion on the territorial development plan, the principles of territorial development and the territorial plan, the requirement for the definition of the mineral mining area may apply.

§ 16

Protected bearing areas

(1) Protection of the exclusive bearing against the impossibility or difficulty of its conquest is ensured by the establishment of a protected bearing area.

(2) The protected bearing area includes the territory in which construction and equipment not related to the extraction of the exclusive bearing could make it impossible or difficult to conquer the exclusive bearing.

(3) For the deposit of a dedicated mineral, a protected bearing area shall be established during the search or survey period after the issuance of the exclusive bearing certificate (§ 6).

§ 17

Determination of protected bearing area

(1) The protected bearing area is determined by the Ministry of the Environment, after consultation with the regional authority of the Czech Republic, by a decision given in cooperation with the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, the Regional Mining Authority and in agreement with the zoning authority and the construction office.

(2) The procedure for establishing a protected bearing area shall be initiated on a proposal from an organisation or at the initiative of a public authority. The proposal shall be supported by a certificate of exclusive bearing and a design of the boundaries of the protected bearing area.

(3) Only the applicant is a party to the procedure for determining the protected bearing area. The Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic will notify the authorities concerned of the opening of the procedure, the zoning authority and the construction office. The Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic will order oral meetings associated with the local inquiry, if necessary, while at the same time pointing out that the opinions of the above authorities and comments and suggestions of the participant may be applied at the latest at oral hearing, otherwise the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic may not take them into account. If one of the above authorities needs longer time to properly assess, the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic shall, at its request, extend the deadline set before its expiry accordingly.

(4) In the procedure for establishing a protected bearing area, the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic shall examine the design and supporting documents in terms of the requirements for the protection of the exclusive bearing, ensure the views of the authorities referred to in paragraph 3 and consider the comments and suggestions of the participant.

(5) The border of the protected bearing area shall be marked by the designer of the land planning documentation in the coordination drawing.

(6) The Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, after consulting the authority of the Region in its delegated capacity, abolishes the protected bearing area if the reasons for the protection of the exclusive bearing have ceased.

(7) The provisions of paragraphs 1 to 5 apply mutatis mutandis to the modification and cancellation of the protected bearing area.

(8) Details of the determination, modification and cancellation of the protected bearing area and its registration are provided by the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic by a general binding legislation.

§ 18

Restrictions on certain activities in the protected bearing area

(1) In order to protect mineral assets, buildings and equipment not related to the extraction of the exclusive bearing may be established in the protected bearing area only on the basis of the expression of the district mining office under this law.

(2) If it is necessary to place a construction or installation not related to the conquest of an exclusive bearing in a protected bearing area in the legally protected general interest, care must be taken to disrupt the least use of mineral resources. It is only possible to prevent or impede the extraction of exclusive mineral deposits referred to in § 3 (1) (a) to (d) if it is a particularly important construction or installation, or if only a small quantity of stocks of the exclusive bearing are made difficult or impossible by construction or equipment.

(3) In the protected area for special interventions in the earth's crust established for carbon dioxide storage, activities which would lead to a leak in the carbon dioxide storage may not be authorised.

(4) In the protected area for specific interventions in the earth's crust provided for the storage of radioactive waste in underground areas, activities which could lead to disruption of the containment barriers of storage areas and contamination of persons or environmental compartments with a radioactive substance may not be authorised.

§ 19

Placing of structures and equipment in protected bearing area

The location of structures and equipment in a protected bearing area which is not related to mining may be authorised by the competent authority under special legislation10) only on the basis of the expression of the district mining office, which shall propose conditions for the location or, where appropriate, the execution of the construction or installation.

Management of land

§ 20

(1) A body which has been designated as a quarry situated on a State-owned land shall have the right to conclude with it an agreement on the lease of land for the period of the intended acquisition of the land or a purchase contract for the sale of the land, by the administrative office, legal entity or its organisational entity which operates or manages such land. The application containing the specification of the land by the cadastral data addressed to the administration, legal entity or its organisational component managing or managing the land and supported by the confirmation by the Czech Mining Authority that the applicant has been established in the mining area shall be submitted no later than 60 days after the effective decision on the establishment of the mining area. The Czech Mining Authority will not issue a certificate to the land in the mining area where only deep mining takes place if the required land cannot be threatened by mining activities. In addition, the application must be supported by an opinion of the municipality on whose cadastral territory the land is located.

(2) The body which has been authorised to carry on a mining activity takes precedence over other persons interested in the lease or sale of land owned by the State situated in a designated protected bearing area. The application containing the specification of the land by the cadastral data addressed to the administration, legal entity or its organisational component, which operates or manages such land, and supported by a certificate from the Ministry of the Environment stating that the applicant has been designated as a protected bearing area, shall be submitted at the latest by the time of the submission of the application for the establishment of the mining area. In addition, the application must be supported by an opinion of the municipality on whose cadastral territory the land is located.

(3) In the case of sales referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the land shall be transferred at a price which is customary at the place and time.

ČÁST ŠESTÁ

EXHIBITION OF DOLLARS AND LOMS

§ 23

Mining works and mining works

(1) Mining works and mining structures below the surface are authorised by the State Mining Authority.

(2) In addition to the formalities laid down in the general regulations, documentation of mining works and mining structures below the surface must provide

(a) the economical use of exclusive bearings;

(b) the optimal distribution of surface and underground equipment, structures and mining works and the use of the most appropriate conquest methods;

(c) the storage and storage of recovered and temporarily unused minerals and the disposal of waste (drains, quarries and foundry);

(d) protection against destruction or destruction of stocks of adjacent exclusive bearings;

(e) safety of operations and safety and health at work, securing of mining works, ventilation, pumping and drainage of mining waters, protection against explosions, drains, fires and shocks, as well as against rock, coal and gas tears;

(f) reducing adverse effects on the environment;

Citation	Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll., on the Protection and Use of Mineral Wealth (Upper Law)
Regulation Type	-
Author	-
Collection	Code of Laws

Date of Promulgation	19.04.1988
Effective from	01.07.1988
Effective until	-
Status	Valid

Act No. 44 / 1988 Coll.

Law on the Protection and Use of Mineral Wealth (Upper Law)

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