Our chief goals are to restore ecosystems and watersheds affected by past mining practices; to provide the geologic expertise and scientific information necessary for sustained forest management and for watershed health and restoration; to manage and protect paleontological resources; and to manage the vast and diverse mineral resources of the national forest in a fashion that ensures sustained ecosystems and maintains healthy watersheds.  Exploration, development, and production of mineral and energy resources and reclamation of activities are part of the Forest Service ecosystem management responsibility. The Forest Service will administer its minerals program to provide commodities for current and future generations commensurate with the need to sustain the long term health and biological diversity of ecosystems.

Locatable Minerals: Find the Forest Service surface management regulations,  plan of operations form, notice of intent instructions, and mineral production annual summaries.

Energy Leasable Minerals: Find the Forest Service's Energy Implementation Plan, geophysical forms, energy regulations, and links to the White House National Energy Policy, and Bureau of Land Management energy information.

Mineral Materials or Salable Minerals: Find links to mineral materials sales contract, mineral material annual  production, Forest Service mineral  minerals regulations and manual sections.

Reserved and Outstanding Minerals: Forest Service manual section and Secretarial orders related to private and reserved mineral estates.

Forest Service Manual Sections for Minerals and Geology Management: Link to Forest Service manual sections for minerals and geology on National Forest System lands.

Anatomy of A Mine: From Prospect to Production. Intermountain Research Station, General Technical Report INT-GTR-35 Revised, February 1995. Reviews mining laws and regulations and their application to mining in Western States. Describes prospecting, exploration, mine development and operation, and reclamation factors.

National Minerals Policy Statement: To foster and encourage mineral development on National Forest System lands in an ecologically sound manner.

Mineral Production from National Forest System Lands: Link to annual mineral production summaries from FY 2000 to the present.

Minerals Inventories of National Forest System Lands: Link to the Forest Service Minerals and Geology  Inventory hosted on the Ouachita National Forest Web Page.

Training Guide for Reclamation Bond Estimation and Administration: Requirements for reclamation and bonding for mineral operations on National Forest System lands.

Sustainable Minerals Development: Joint statement of support between the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.