Solo Creek Quartz Dig Site Closure

Associated Documents

Forest Order

Solo Creek Quartz Dig Site Area Closure 

PROHIBITIONS 

Pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 551 and 36 C.F.R. § 261.50 (a) the following is prohibited on the National Forest System (NFS) lands in the Priest Lake Ranger District, Idaho Panhandle National Forests, described below and shown on the attached map incorporated into this Order as Exhibit A (the “Described Area”): 

1. It is prohibited to go into or be upon any area which is closed for the protection of public health or safety. 36 CFR § 261.53(e). 

EXEMPTIONS 

Pursuant to 36 C.F.R. § 261.50(e), the following persons are exempt from this Order: 

1. Persons with a permit specifically authorizing the otherwise prohibited act or omission. 

2. Any Federal, State, or local officer, or member of an organized rescue or fire fighting force in the performance of an official duty. 

DESCRIBED AREA 

Including Idaho Panhandle National Forest System Lands administered by the Priest Lake Ranger District, on the west side of the Idaho-Washington state boundary, Section 1 of Township 34 N., Range 45 E. of the Willamette Meridien, in the Upper West Branch Priest River watershed, encompassing approximately 5 acres of land (see Exhibit A, map of closed area) This area is found on the south side of NFSR-659, and begins approximately 0.7 miles SW of the intersection of NFSR-659 and NFSR-312 and ends 0.85 miles from the same road junction. The area is commonly referred to as the Solo Creek quartz dig site and extends approximately 500 feet south of NFSR-659. 

PURPOSE 

The purpose of this Order is to close the area for public health and safety, to protect the public from the adverse effects caused by many years of unauthorized quartz crystal mining, until the site hazards can be managed, and the site rehabilitated/reclaimed. The lands described in the closure area have been subjected to years of unauthorized excavation and removal of quartz crystals with poor stewardship and without any reclamation. As a result, the area has become unsafe due to steep slopes and undercut areas that could collapse, and many hazard trees that are present, one of which came down between June & July 2023 in the middle of the diggings. 

IMPLEMENTATION 

1. This Order shall be in effect from October 23, 2024, at 12:00 am (midnight), through October 23, 2025, at 12:00 am (midnight), unless rescinded. 

2. A map identifying the Described Area is attached and made part of this Order as Exhibit A. For a digital version of this Order and Exhibit A, go to Idaho Panhandle National Forests - Alerts & Closures (usda.gov) – https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/ipnf/alerts-notices 

3. Unless otherwise expressly defined in this Order, the terms used in this Order are defined by the regulations of the Secretary of Agriculture, 36 C.F.R. Chapter II, Parts 200-299. If there are terms in this Order that are not expressly defined in the Order or 36 C.F.R. Chapter II, Parts 200-299, their meaning shall be determined by their plain language definitions. 

4. A violation of the above prohibitions is punishable as a Class B misdemeanor by a fine of not more than $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for organizations, or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. 16 U.S.C. § 551; 18 U.S.C. §§ 3559, 3571, and 3581. 

5. Contact the Priest Lake Ranger District at 32203 Highway 57, Priest Lake, ID 83856, (208) 443-2512, or the National Forest Supervisor’s Office at 3232 Nursery Rd, Coeur d’Alene, ID, 83815, (208) 765-7223, for more information about this Order. 

6. This Order supersedes any previous Orders prohibiting the same or similar acts in the same Described Area. 

Signed and issued on October 11, 2024.

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