Dredging for Gold is Banned but the State wants to Dredge for Mercury?

It was not you Occassionally I took it of topic and you just followed Sorry Homes

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   I haven't read the California rules and regs, but I'd suggest that unless something says you have to turn the recovered mercury over to the state for them to process, you apply for a permit to dredge for and remove mercury.   Any gold recovered, especially as an amalgram is just a byproduct of the mercury recovery operation.   Just make sure your refiner pays you for both the mercury AND the gold.
   Like GD, I agree with Homefire in principle... BUT it's not easy to overturn a bunch of a bad or idiotic (not necessarily the same thing) laws quickly and efficiently--and ignoring a law just because it is stupid is both foolish AND gives the opposition added ammo they don't need.   The best thing to do is to employ some of the same topics they have.   Look for loopholes in the law and exploit them (in a positive and responsible way) when you can AND build a relationship with law-makers at all levels where they look to you as a responsible source of information.   And to be honest, when your talking federal officials you may have a bigger impact and an easier time getting the ear of the congressman or the senator if you can win over the members of his or her staff--starting with the local offices.   Get to know the people there and invite them to go out in the field with you or to be your guest at a local club meeting (where you DON'T announce that they are members of so and so's staff...letting them decide when and if they will let that affiliation be known.)   Our elected officials tend to be dependent on "expert" opinion fed to them and pre-screened by their staff-members (unless it is an area that the official actually has pre-election hands on experience in).   It isn't a quick fix, but it is part of the same slow and steady methodology the other side used to get us where we are now.

BA


BA

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Of course they would.....it's the same mind-set that mandated that everyone use mercury containing CFL lightbulbs.   Drop one of those in your local Home Depot, and they have to call out the hazmat team, especially if there are pregnant women present.

The points I made still hold.

To get things changed (whether in California or elsewhere) or to keep our states and localities from following California's lead, we have to:
1) stay vigilant ---- know and communicate to others what legislation and regulations are proposed at the local, state, federal (and now global) levels.
2) get involved ---- get to know your representatives at as many different levels of government as you feel comfortable.   Especially get to know their staffs (from experience I can tell you that even the lawmakers that tend to vote against our interests do have staff members we can get to know as people and once we're on good terms with them, we have a better chance of getting our points across) especially if
3) stay polite ---- in all your communications written or oral to and with anyone (no matter how hard that might be).
4) become an educational resource ---- like Occassionally pointed out most of the people charged with enforcing the regulations don't even understand the regulations themselves (heck they've got so many regs they have to enforce, it's hard to keep up with them all especially if you got your degree in biology or fish and wildlife sciences and you're having to rely on a history major to interpret environmental or archeological regulations to you)....when they don't know the answer, most folks will  a) take the safe route (which usually means saying "no"), b) make a call based on gut, or c) ask an "expert" who usually is an interested party from the other side since they don't know any experts from our side.
5) let the rest of us know, both here and at other organizations that are dedicated to protecting our hobby and related hobbies and occupations (see previous posts)

BA

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   If we get all of the liberal idiots out of washington, and get people with common sense we would be 10,000 times better off. The reason washington is full of politicians is they do not want a real job in the trenches.

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Topic Locked!

Seem we can't have a debate with out a handful of folks wanting to turn it political. If you hate your government  good for you but this is a treasure hunting forum so go bash your government somewhere else.

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