California Department of Fish and Wildlife
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Suction Dredge Permitting Program

Page updated 6/7/2013

Proposed Emergency Regulatory Action

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is proposing an emergency rulemaking action under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to amend an existing regulation defining "suction dredging" and the "use of any vacuum or suction dredge equipment" for purposes of Fish and Game Code section 5653. The emergency action as proposed will amend California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 1, Subdivision 1, Chapter 8, section 228, subdivision (a). Consistent with the APA, CDFW provided notice of the proposed emergency rulemaking on June 7, 2013.

The documents prepared by CDFW as part of the required notice for the emergency action can be viewed or downloaded by clicking on the following links:

Legislative Status

The legislature and Governor have enacted SB 1018. A part of this legislation applies to suction dredge mining.

The law requires the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to report to the legislature on suggested legislative changes and a fee structure, among other requirements. The previously established date of June 30, 2016 for the current moratorium on suction dredge mining to end has been removed from law. Suction dredging, including the method known as “booming”, is prohibited within 100 yards of any California river, stream or lake (Fish & G. Code, § 5653 subd. (d).).

The Department has prepared the required report, which is available for downloading by clicking on the following link:

Further, there are also several existing lawsuits which will likely affect the future of suction dredge gold mining. For these reasons, the Department cannot currently predict when, or if, suction dredge will be lawful in California or when permits may be available to interested miners.

Approved Suction Dredge Regulations and Related Documents

On April 27, 2012 the Office of Administrative Law approved updated regulations governing suction dredge mining under Fish and Game Code section 5653 et seq., the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the Administrative Procedures Act (APA).

You may review or download the following documents:

CDFW is not selling suction dredge permits at this time, and cannot predict when that might occur (see below). CDFW is currently prohibited by statute from issuing suction dredge permits. (Fish & G. Code, § 5653.1, subd. (a).)

Mining Which is not Prohibited by the Moratorium

The current moratorium originally established by SB 670 and extended by AB 120 and SB 1018 does not prohibit or restrict non-motorized recreational mining activities, including panning for gold. It also does not prohibit or restrict some other forms of mining, including, for example, practices known as high banking, power sluicing, sniping or using a gravity dredge, so long as gravel and earthen materials are not vacuumed with a motorized system from the river or stream.

It is important for you to know that other environmental laws may apply to some of these mining practices. Be aware that Fish and Game Code section 5650 prohibits the placement of materials deleterious to fish, including sand and gravel from outside of the current water level, into the river or stream. Discharge of muddy water from a high banker or power sluice into a live river, stream or lake, is prohibited by this code section. Further, Fish and Game Code section 1602 requires that any person notify the Department of Fish and Game before substantially diverting or obstructing the natural flow of, or substantially changing or using any material from the bed, channel or bank of any river, stream or lake. Additional information is available at /habcon/1600.

You should also know that these activities may be subject to the authority of the appropriate Regional Water Quality Control Board. Information on this topic is available at www.swrcb.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/cwa401/suction_dredge.shtml . If you have questions about the authority of the Regional Water Quality Control Board, or how to comply with any permitting requirements, please contact them directly. You can determine the appropriate office at the following website www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterboards_map.shtml.

Background

Small-scale suction dredge mining activity in California began in the 1960s and peaked during high gold prices in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The existing regulatory framework governing the activity as administered by CDFW is rooted in statutory amendments to the Fish and Game Code that took effect originally in the late 1980's. Under the statute and regulations, any California resident or non-resident could (i.e., before the current moratorium) obtain a suction dredge mining permit from DFG upon payment of a fee required by statute. On average, DFG issued approximately 3,200 suction dredge mining permits/year to California residents, and another 450/year to non-residents, from 1995 through 2009.

DFG's previous regulations governing suction dredge were promulgated after preparing and certifying an environmental impact report under CEQA in 1994. DFG considered proposed amendments to the existing regulations governing suction dredge mining in 1997, releasing a draft subsequent environmental impact report for public review that same year. However, the 1997 Draft SEIR was never completed or certified.

DFG's recent effort to amend the regulations and comply with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was required by a court order issued in a lawsuit brought against DFG by the Karuk Tribe of California. The lawsuit focused on the Klamath, Scott and Salmon River watersheds in northern California; included allegations regarding impacts to various fish species, including coho salmon; and contended that DFG's administration of the suction dredging program violated the (CEQA) and various provisions of the Fish and Game Code.

In December 2006, the Alameda County Superior Court issued an order with the consent of all parties, directing DFG to “conduct further environmental review pursuant to CEQA of its suction dredge mining regulations and to implement, if necessary, via rulemaking, mitigation measures to protect Coho salmon and/or other special status fish species in the watershed of the Klamath, Scott, and Salmon Rivers, listed as threatened or endangered after the 1994 EIR.”

Based on information DFG collected from interested parties, DFG informed the Alameda County Superior Court in early 2008 that DFG could not proceed with the court-ordered environmental review in reliance on an addendum to the 1994 EIR. DFG informed the court at the same time that more than minor additions or changes to the 1994 EIR would be necessary and that statewide issues would need to be addressed in a subsequent environmental document in order to fulfill DFG's obligations under CEQA. As a result, DFG informed the Alameda County Superior Court that it intended to prepare a subsequent environmental impact report to comply with the December 2006 Court Order.

Final Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (FSEIR)

The Final SEIR is now available and includes the following

Draft Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (DSEIR)

For more information

All questions related to the Suction Dredge Permitting Program environmental review may be directed to: Mark Stopher, Senior Policy Advisor, at (530) 225-2275 or Mark.Stopher@wildlife.ca.gov.