

Motorized in stream placer mining, including motorized suction dredges in essential salmon habitat water.The 700-PM general permit does not provide coverage for these types of mining discharges:

There are no registration requirements, fees or reporting requirements for this type of equipment and there are fewer restrictions for permit coverage in designated waters. For in-stream, non-motorized mining equipment, such as a hand sluice, rocker box or hand suction device in combination with a hand sluice, there are fewer requirements. Discharges are allowed by equipment type and size in designated streams. The 700-PM permit is not for all areas or water bodies in the state. The 700-PM permit is a five-year permit that replaces the permit issued in 2018.ĭEQ regulates the discharge of wastewater from motorized suction dredges, gravity and siphon suction dredges, and non-motorized mining operations that recover precious metals or minerals from streambed sediments via the 700-PM water quality general permit. Environmental Protection Agency 2019 Willamette Basin Mercury Total Maximum Daily Load. Effective May 13, 2020, the permit prohibits suction dredging in streams that flow from the former Bohemia Mining District and are tributaries to Dorena Lake. This fact sheet includes contact information for local, state and federal agencies in Oregon that may also have requirements related to mining.ĭEQ renewed the 700-PM Water Quality General Permit in May 2020, updating regulations and requirements. DEQ's fact sheet, Water Quality Permits for Metal Mining Activities, describes all water quality permits required for metal mining, prospecting and ore processing operations on public or private land that discharge wastewater to the land and state waters.

This webpage provides information and resources to anyone intending to conduct metal mining operations in Oregon’s streams or rivers.
