There are serious and potentially disastrous impediments attached to the title for the parkland the Riverside County Board of Supervisors wants to turn over to the City of Wildomar using a Quit Claim deed with no warranties. Specifically there are questions regarding the mineral rights.
The answer to the question about this impediment posed to County Officials is “County Counsel looked at it, and limited mineral rights for the new park do appear to remain with DRH Energy, but they're not allowed to disturb or occupy the surface of the actual property, and I believe it only relates to minerals 500 feet or more below the surface..." "Essentially, it only means that if the City of Wildomar found there was gold or platinum underneath the park and it was better as a mine than a park, DRH would have the rights to it, but that's it. It is apparently a semi-standard clause in such land transfers. No idea why the previous county administration agreed to let it stay in the title, but it is incredibly unlikely to ever come into play."
Mineral rights owners don't need your permission to mine or lease those rights to a mining company: The law grants them "reasonable use" of the surface, though they have to accommodate your use as well. Normally, the term “mineral” is considered to include almost anything of value found under the earth’s surface. As of 2010, it's not on California's list of required disclosures and most homeowners do not get the mineral rights when the purchase their homes. It is that separation of mineral rights from property rights that has created a division between those who care what happens to the land and those who seek to profit from extracting the state's precious oil or minerals regardless of the cost or disruption to the land above or the groundwater below.
Who would bother mining in Wildomar? Known minerals in the area include the metals arsenic, copper, gold, lead-silver-zinc, manganese, and tin; and the nonmetallic commodities clay, coal, limestone, silica, stone (including granitic dimension stone, building stone, meta-volcanic road metal, and slate), along with 50-60 new minerals that are discovered annually. Much of Wildomar is within Mineral Zone MRZ-3, indicating that there no current determinations regarding the significance of mineral resources present. Modern mining and drilling techniques such as slant drilling and tunneling are disturbing the geological order in ways that scientists still don’t fully understand. So anything can happen just ask the people of Bayou Corne, LA, Carlsbad, N.M. or Sugarloaf State Conservation area New South Wales Australia.
Nothing of value you say, but consider the following. From the 1960s to the 1980s, the United States was the leader in global rare earth production. China now produces about 90-95% of the world’s rare earth oxides, which they have restricted the exportation of thus creating a worldwide shortage necessitating new mining operations in the U.S.
I ask the citizens of Wildomar to insist these impediments be removed from the title deed to these 2 properties before the city accepts this property and spends hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to turn into a park. This is something that many other cities and counties have done successfully to protect the public's investment. If the City cannot or will not remove these , then the city needs to refuse to accept title.
The following links and graphs will provide readers with more detailed background information.
Photo 1 is a section found in Resolution No. 2013-76 Notice of Intention to Convey Real Property in the City of Wildomar, County of Riverside, California. Assessor’s Parcel Numbers 375-350-009 and 376-350-017 by Quit Claim Deed for the new park on the east side of town. http://rivcocob.org/agenda/2013/06_04_13.htm item no. 3-14 of the policy calendar.
Photo 2, 3 are potential results if these impediments are not removed before the city accepts this property.
Photo 4 Close up of photo 1 section listing impediments.
