Unauthorized entry into other people's mining areas is also unlicensed mining —— What is the case of unlicensed mining in Qianxi County, Hebei Province?

In March, 2008, the Bureau of Land and Resources of Qianxi County, Hebei Province, received a letter from Zhang Guowu, the owner of iron ore mining right in Qianxi County, which reflected the problem of illegal stone mining, and immediately instructed law enforcement officers to conduct a serious investigation. According to the investigation, Shicong 1999 started to mine iron ore in Niutouyu Mountain, Shimenzi Village, qianxi county, and four adits have been formed on the front and back surfaces, including three adits in Niutouyu Mountain, Heishan North Branch 1 adit, and there are two shafts in the adit. The adit of illegal stone mining reflected by Zhang Guowu is located in the north fork of Heishan in Shimenzi Village, within the mining area designated by the iron ore mining license. Before the autumn of 2006, Hanerzhuang Township Government and Qianxi County Land and Resources Bureau had repeatedly stopped illegal mining activities of Shishi, and at the end of 2006, the cave entrance was blocked by explosion. Around the Spring Festival in 2008, Shi continued to illegally mine the southwest iron ore, which destroyed safety pillar and caused serious damage to mineral resources. In April, 2008, the County Bureau of Land and Resources entrusted the Fifth Geological Brigade of Hebei Geological Exploration Bureau to conduct on-the-spot investigation on the first floor roadway of stone mining in the southwest of the iron mine, which is located in the mining area designated by the iron mine mining license, and the estimated illegal mining amount of ore is 1.04 million tons. The illegally mined ore from three adits at the top of Niutouyu Mountain has been sold by stone, and 3,444.3 tons of illegally mined ore from Heishan North Branch is still piled up near the adit.

On April 29, 2008, the law enforcement officers of the County Land and Resources Bureau issued a Notice of Evidence Preservation to Stone to seal up the ore in Beicha, Montenegro. In view of the fact that stone enters the iron ore mining license without authorization for illegal mining, it belongs to the situation of unauthorized entry into other people's mining areas in unlicensed mining, which constitutes an illegal act of unlicensed mining. Qianxi County Land and Resources Bureau made the following treatment according to law: 3,444.3 tons of ore mined by Heishan North Branch were confiscated according to law, and 50% of the illegal income was fined. Stone enters other people's mining areas without authorization, and the amount of illegal mining is huge. Suspected of a crime, handed over to the county public security bureau for investigation. In May, 2008, it was found that 3,444.3 tons of reserved ore was illegally mined in Zhao Hongyu iron mine area after investigation by law enforcement officers and the Fifth Geological Brigade of Hebei Geological Exploration Bureau. In order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of mining rights holders, 3,444.3 tons of iron ore preserved as evidence was returned to Zhao Hongyu Iron Mine. In July 2008, Hebei Provincial Department of Land and Resources appraised the quantity of mineral products illegally mined by Shi who entered other people's mining areas without authorization. In August, 2008, qianxi county People's Court tried the case of Shi's unauthorized entry into other people's mining areas to steal mineral resources, and sentenced him to four years' imprisonment.

Analysis of this case is an unlicensed mining case that entered someone else's mining area without authorization.

Article 19 of the Mineral Resources Law stipulates: "No unit or individual may enter the mining areas of state-owned mining enterprises or other mining enterprises established by others according to law." Those who enter other people's mining areas in violation of regulations shall bear legal responsibility. Article 39 of the Mineral Resources Law stipulates that it shall be ordered to stop mining, compensate for losses, confiscate mined mineral products and illegal income, and may also be fined; Those who refuse to stop mining and cause damage to mineral resources shall also bear criminal responsibility. The facts of this case are clear, and the key is how to apply the law to determine the legal responsibility.

According to the different violations of the law by the parties, legal liability usually includes civil liability, administrative liability and criminal liability. For unlicensed mining, if you enter the state-planned mining areas of great value to the national economy without authorization and exploit the specific minerals protected by the state without authorization, these mining areas do not have mining rights and belong to blank areas. The parties mainly bear administrative or criminal responsibility for their illegal acts. Administrative responsibilities mainly include confiscation of mined mineral products and illegal income, and may also be fined. However, if the parties enter other people's mining areas to exploit mineral resources, it will involve civil liability issues. In this case, how to determine the legal responsibility and how to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of miners?

The mining right holder may, according to the relevant provisions of the Civil Law, bring a civil lawsuit against the infringer, that is, the illegal party, and demand to stop the infringement and compensate the losses. The unauthorized exploitation of mineral resources by the parties concerned also violates the state's order on the management of mineral resources, and the administrative organs have the right to punish them according to law and confiscate the mined mineral products. But in this case, should the 3,444.3 tons of ore mined by Stone in Heishan North Branch be nationalized or returned to iron ore?

Mining right refers to the right to mine mineral resources and obtain the mined mineral products within the scope stipulated in the mining license obtained according to law. In this case, although the mineral products were mined within the scope stipulated in the mining license, they were not mined by the mining right owner. The right of the mining right holder to obtain the mineral products he mined does not mean that the mining right holder certainly owns the ownership of mineral resources within the mining area. For mineral products mined by illegal parties, the mining right holder does not invest in human and material resources mining and does not own the ownership, which should be confiscated by the state.

Therefore, in this case, the 3,444.3 tons of ore mined by Stone in Heishan North Branch should be confiscated and nationalized, and the iron ore should be returned.