Minerals

There are many definitions of the word that are used in the different professions. In the following we will describe minerals as elements that are formed naturally in the earth and that are brought to the surface later on by the forces of geology. In this definition metal is considered a mineral even though there are a lot of scientists and miners that do not go along with this type of terminology. In the following we will we not refer to rocks as minerals but as a mixture of several minerals as well as elements. Minerals are inorganic homogenous substances that occur naturally as a part of the crust of the earth and are made up of a chemical composition. It is enough to know that all matter is made up of elements. Speaking in a scientific way, an element is a substance that cannot be broken down further into more basic substances by a chemical process. There are certain elements such as gold, silver, and iron that are considered a mineral, however most minerals are compounds of two or more elements. Ninety eight percent of the crust of the earth by weight is made up of eight elements which include around forty seven percent of oxygen, around twenty seven percent of silicon, close to eight percent of aluminum, near five percent of iron, around four percent of calcium and with the proportions ranging over two percent of sodium, magnesium and potassium. The rest of the crust is made up of other elements. When used in mining laws though, a mineral can be any substance that is recognized as being a mineral by the standard of the authorities involved, even if is metallic or if it is another substance, when is has been found in public lands in a great quantity or great enough quantity to make that specific land valuable due to its existence. There are three different of these types of minerals which include:

• Locatable: These are both metallic (they include gold, silver, platinum and so forth) as well as non metallic (they include mica, asbestos, fluorspar, and so forth) minerals can be located under the mining laws.
• Salable: According to the law, there are some materials that cannot be located under the mining regulations but they can be bought under the Materials Sales Act of 1947 at their real market value, at either competitive or non competitive sales. These take in the normal varieties of gravel, sand, pumice, stone, cinders, pumicite, and clay. Petrified wood is not subject to location according to the mining laws. There are little amounts though, that can be removed for noncommercial uses by hobbyists. Greater amounts can be bought.
• Leasable: There are some additional minerals and fuels, even though they might not be claimed under the mining laws that can be leased from the government. These minerals include gas, oil, shale, potash, phosphate, sodium, native asphalt, solid, and semi solid bitumen, coal, and bituminous rock. And in certain places, such as Louisiana and New Mexico, sulphur. In some lands, like the ones that are acquired and the ones that are offshore, the minerals are subjected to special leasing regulations and laws.