Dear Mike,
No not uncommon. The mineral owners simply protecting themselves (& their
property), against 'fast' mining; viz., fast output possibly leaving the mine
worthless in a short period of time, rather than good mining with proper forward
development. The conditions you example are more common with coal and
quarrying, and v.rarely apply to metalliferous mines - in the latter rare instances it
is usually phased over a period of years allowing the mine to afford to
develop.
Regards, and Happy New Year to All, Bernard
|