Removal orders
409 Removal orders
Where a person is alleged to be in occupation of or upon any land, or to have erected or possess or control any building or structure or to have made any other improvement to land that is the subject of a mining claim or the surface area of a mining lease, without any authority that the person is required to have by this Act or any other Act relating to mining or in contravention of this or that Act, upon the application of—
an authorised officer; or
a police officer; or
a person who claims to be entitled to occupy that land; or
a holder of any authority granted under this Act or any other Act relating to mining in respect of that land (other than a prospecting permit, exploration permit or mineral development licence);
that person may be summonsed to appear before the Land Court at a time and place therein named to show cause why the person should not be removed from that land or ordered to remove any building, structure or other improvement.
If a person summonsed pursuant to subsection (1) fails to appear at the time and place specified or having appeared fails to show sufficient cause to the satisfaction of the Land Court, the Land Court may order—
the removal of the person summonsed from the land in question;
the removal, disposal or destruction of any building, structures or other improvements erected on or made to the land in contravention of this Act or any other Act relating to mining;
the removal, seizure or disposal of any machinery or equipment upon the land that is or is capable of being used in contravention of this Act or of any other Act relating to mining and is not lawfully upon that land.
An order made pursuant to subsection (2) may direct the person summonsed to appear to—
remove himself or herself from the land in question; or
remove, dispose of or destroy buildings, structures or other improvements; or
remove machinery or equipment;
forthwith or within a time specified in the order and may further direct that if action referred to in paragraph (b) or (c) specified to be taken in the order is not taken in the time specified, an authorised officer and all persons acting under the authorised officer’s direction, using such force as is necessary, may enter upon the land and do all things necessary to seize and dispose of buildings, structures, improvements, machinery and equipment specified in the order.
Anything seized by an authorised officer pursuant to subsection (3) shall be forfeited to and becomes the property of the Crown and shall be disposed of in such manner as the Minister determines.
At the time of making an order pursuant to subsection (2) or at any later time, the Land Court may issue a warrant addressed to the person who commenced proceedings and to all police officers requiring the appropriate action to be taken and the warrant shall be sufficient authority for that person or any police officer to execute the warrant according to its tenor using such force as is necessary for the purpose.
The costs reasonably incurred by an authorised officer in taking any action under this section shall be a debt due and owing to the Crown by the person who failed to take the action ordered by the Land Court and may be recovered in the Land Court.
In an action under subsection (6) for the recovery of a debt due to the Crown, the production to the Land Court of a certificate by the chief executive certifying the amount of that debt shall be evidence and, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, conclusive evidence of the debt and the amount thereof.
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