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Show 756 HISTORY OF PUBLIC LAND LAW DEVELOPMENT served to the Federal government.405 The Taylor Grazing Act400 in 1934 expressly provided that mining and prospecting might continue in grazing districts organized under the act. Although other examples in the fifties exist, these will be considered below. One significant contribution of Public Law 585 was the multiple-mineral development provisions which attempted to reconcile conflicts which may arise when land is used for Leasing Act operations as well as the mining of solid minerals.407 It is interesting to compare these provisions with an early statute which also attempted to resolve similar problems.408 The sixth section of the act opens with the statement that each kind of mining shall be conducted "so far as reasonably practicable" in a manner compatible with the multiple-use concept. Two standards of conduct are adopted: one dealing with damage to minerals, the other with damage to existing improvements. As for the first, liability of a locator may arise even though in fact there is no multiple use, i.e., no oil and gas lease or permit has been issued. The converse is also true, of course. Each must act "so far as reasonably practicable" in a manner which will avoid damage to the minerals of the other. A stricter standard of conduct is set up with reference to existing improvements on the land. The operations of each are required to be conducted so as not to endanger or "materially" interfere with existing surface or underground improvements. Where damage to existing improvements cannot reasonably be avoided, the courts are authorized to resolve the conflict by providing for compensation for 405 39 Stat. 862 (1916), 43 U.S.C. § § 291-301 (1964). "•48 Stat. 1269 (1934) , 43 U.S.C. § 315 (1964) . <OT68 Stat. 708 (1954) , 30 U.S.C. § 526 (1964). 408 See Part 2, n. 216. the injured party. In order to award fair compensation, the court must first find that the injury or damage which would result from denying the particular use outweighs the injury or damage to the existing improvements. This would seem to be essentially a "balancing-of-the-interests" technique. In lieu of present compensation, the court may authorize security. The statute also sets up a system whereby the operators may be required to exchange information relating to their respective operations. Although the standards of liability are very broad, they do not seem to be more illusive than the rules of negligence in tort law. It is regrettable that there are no judicial decisions construing the act. Action and Reaction Since 1955, Congress has enacted some important legislation affecting mining on the public lands in addition to the multiple-mineral development statutes discussed in the previous section. Much of this legislation was provoked by an honest feeling that a great many un-patented mining claims were being used, to the financial detriment of the United States, for purposes quite unrelated to mining and that valuable surface materials were being lost because of the exclusive right to the possession of the mining claim which miners have traditionally enjoyed. Moreover, during this period, the Interior Department has displayed commendable aggressiveness in attempting to correct violations of what might be called the "spirit" of the mining laws. It is something of an understatement to say that the latter crusade has produced at times an indignant reaction from the mining industry. The government-industry disputes cannot be the subject of this section, however, because for one thing much of the disagreement can be relegated to the category of |