An adequate exploration and reclamation plan and an Idaho reclamation bond are absolute requirements before any entry or exploration with motorized equipment on state lands. The surety bond must be written on a form approved by the Department of Lands not to exceed seven hundred and fifty dollars ($750) per acre and conditioned on the payment of all damages to the land and resources thereon caused by the entry and/or exploration. For private mine panels, the Idaho reclamation bond amount must be in an amount determined by the Board of Lands, being the estimated reasonable costs of reclamation required under §47-1512, in the event of failure to reclaim by an operator, of affected lands proposed to be mined during the next calendar year plus ten percent (10%) of such costs as to the acreage of affected land designated by the operator.No suret bond for reclamation submitted pursuant to §47-1512 shall exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for any given acre of such affected land except for special Board decisions rendered after notice and hearing to the operator applicant. Any Idaho reclamation bond required under this statute must be filed and maintained with the Board of Lands on an approved form, payable to the state of Idaho, conditioned that the operator shall faithfully perform all requirements of this chapter and comply with all rules of the Board in effect as of the date of approval of the plan. An operator may at any time file a single bond in lieu of separate bonds provided that the sum of the single bond is equal to the total of the penalties of the separate bonds being combined into a single bond. UNLIKE surety bonds offered to the federal Bureau of Land Management, the Idaho reclamation bond DOES contain a cancelation provision. The surety bond may be cancelled by the surety by the service of written notice on the Director of the Department of Lands. The cancellation becomes effective at the expiration of ninety (90) days after the service of such cancellation notice by the surety on the Director by registered mail. The Idaho reclamation bond also has a reasonable “tail”. Pursuant to §47-1512(h), when an operator completes the reclamation requirements under the law, he or she must notify the board. Within thirty (30) days after the receipt of notice, the Board must notify the operator as to whether or not the reclamation meets the requirements of the his or her reclamation plan. If the requirements of the reclamation plan in question have been met, the amount of bond must be reduced by an amount designated by the Board to reflect the reclamation done or released if completed. The Idaho reclamation bond obligation is not cumulative nor does it contain a forfeiture provision, being limited in claims coverage to only the amount(s) necessary to complete the reclamation plan.
Idaho surety leader, Surety One, Inc. is the premier bonding underwriter for any operation requiring reclamation surety. We offer reclamation bond support of petroleum, coal, uranium, metal mining, and hydraulic fracturing “fracking” operations. We will write these for ALL state departments of environmental protection, the Railroad Commission of Texas, and federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Visit us at www.ReclamationBonds.com, call (787) 333-0222 or (800) 373-2804, or email Underwriting@SuretyOne.com for an Idaho reclamation bond application or further information regarding surety in any state.
