Chile Forum

Is there any issues regarding mineral rights, water rights or of land connected rights that one should be concerned with when buying land? It may not be an issue if you are buying a parcel on the Pacific to worry about mineral rights but inland and especially in area's where mining happens this could be a problem.
I guess my question is does anyone know if mineral rights are conveyed when purchasing property and what about water rights. Do you always have the right to drill for a water well?

A forestry engineer that conducts surveys for our clients in the Patagonia put it the best way. He said, you really only own two meters above the ground and two meters below the ground when you buy property.

The mineral rights are separate, and you can ask for them.

So, are the water rights. Any time you mess with the water table, you must register the well or how much water you are taking from a river. In some parts of the country this is a big issue. In others, no one really cares because there is so much water around. For example, in most of the Patagonia all the water rights are owned by Endesa power company through a fluke of politics years ago. So, no one really cares, and Endesa does not really care either.

Trees also. For the most part, If you cut large trees from your property you need to submit a forestry plan of when you are going to harvest, and what percentage of the property, and so on. This is keep people from just clear cutting.

On mineral rigths I have some experience because I have made several claims by my own:

The "Ley Minera" enable you with rigths very near to property for a mining claim, so you must avoid to purchase any land who has a minning claim made because the owner will have a wide assort of "derechos de servidumbre" over the land (he is enabled to make works and establish there and you as owner are oblied to let it work.

If you want to know wheter a terrain is or not claimed is easy: you had to phone call to the nearest office of "Servicio nacional de geologia y minas" (SERNAGEOMIN) and give them the UTM coordinates of the terrain, they are OBLIED to look in the computer and inform if the land is claimed or not.

It is a fascinant matter because you can obtain ample property rigths over a land just paying a relatively small fee (patente minera) yearly. Many factories and homes are raised in land covered only by mining claim.

The procedure to claim is easy: you take the UTM coordinates with a GPS, then go to the Tribunal de letras with a standard write and claim, then you have 30 days to pay minning fee and inscribe your claim in Conservador de Bienes Raices and to publish at Boletin Minero, total cost of all this is aroun CLP$ 100.000.- in total.

Then you have the minning property on your name and you have 6 months (aprox) to make the measurement and marks with a surveyor, who is a special surveyor licenced by SERNAGEOMIN, he made the map and then again to Tribunal. If all papers and deadlines are ok the judge must sentence that this claiming is your, you publish the sentence again at Boletin Minero and you own a mine and a big terrain (typically 100 hectareas) to exploit, provided nobody opposes you are owner of a lot of rigths over the terrain

Thanks to both of you for the info. Admin. is this something that you would routinely look for when handling a parcel transaction in all but urban cases. I mean do most people really even know if they own the mineral rights to a parcel unless you contact the (SERNAGEOMIN). Here we have simular issues with mineral rights but I have never seen a deed that said anything about mineral rights on it. I'm glad I asked as some of the land I have been looking at is on the outskirts of a small town.
When looking at google earth I've seen area's on the coast that have active mines in what looked like populated area's and it looked unusual to me so maybe this is an option that is utilized.
So I would think that if you wanted to find out soil types that the people at "Servicio nacional de geologia y minas" have the maps and could give you all the info on soils as well.
Tom do you know if what parts or all Chile have been as we say here "GPS'ed" as far as land survey's? Here they are in the process and was wondering how far along Chile was in that respect. Also do you think I would have any problem bringing in a handheld GPS to Chile.
thanks in advance

Well, Chile is a minning country and, specially in north there are big areas with active claims. There are no problem at all if you bring your gps, is perfect. Al minning claims are registred at SERNAGEOMIN computer so, provided the coordinates they are oblied to inform you if there are some claim active.

The claimed land is not as extensive as you may suppose because the miner has to pay a yearly fee to hold it, and if the terrain is not fit to minning works all the expense is worthless

Tom thanks for your insight. In Arica is the prodominant mining copper?
Thanks

No, Arica has big areas protected as natural parks in the high plateau, so is forbidden any minning activity. There are some cooper reserves near the sea in Pampa Camarones (some 40 km south of Arica), but they are not yet developed.

I am involved in non metalic minning, specifically bentonite, quartz and caolin (I ignore the english name for this) http://www.bradanovic.cl/fortuna
I am just beginning

Nice site. Good luck in marketing the products, will Bentonite absord oil? I would think nowadays anything that is helpful to the enviroment has a better chance in succeding.
Do you ever find fossilized sharks teeth in your area? the reason I ask is a man I met in a market in La Serena said that the sharks teeth he was selling came from around Iquique.

In the high plateau you can find sometimes fosilized seashells, I have never heard on a shark tooh but it may be.

Yes, bentonite is highly adsorbent and it has many industrial and home uses, we are specially targeting to kitty litters. To sell is not easy however, as we are just beginning and we are in the "expenses" time.