ORS 215.299 Policy on mining resource lands

The Legislative Assembly finds that:

The extraction of aggregate, other minerals and other subsurface resources is an essential contribution to Oregon’s economic well-being.

Oregon has an economic and social interest in locating and providing affordable aggregate, other minerals and other subsurface resources in close proximity to the end user of the materials.

Oregon has an interest in balancing competing land use demands for lands identified as farmlands or forestlands in a manner that protects the economic viability of mining and other resource uses.

To balance competing resource uses, Oregon has an interest in providing significant volumes of high-quality aggregate, other minerals and other subsurface resources that are critical to building Oregon’s communities and infrastructure while preserving farmland for agricultural production.

The Legislative Assembly declares that:

High-value farmland composed predominantly of Class I and Class II soils in the Willamette Valley should not be available for mining unless there is a significant volume of high-quality aggregate and other minerals and other subsurface resources available for extraction.

State agencies and local governments should balance competing resource uses and not restrict the removal of the full depth of aggregate unless public health and safety concerns necessitate the restriction of mining activity.