Mineral borehole drilling: legal obligations and data deposit benefits

BGS Data — National Geoscience Data Centre

Statutory obligation

BGS is the governmental body to which notification of borehole drilling must be given and with which a copy of any resulting data must be deposited. This obligation is set out in the Mining Industry Act 1926, s.23 (drilling to a depth of more than 30 m).

National dataset for UK clean energy

By submitting drilling records to BGS’s National Geoscience Data Centre (NGDC), operators will contribute to Britain’s largest borehole index, the BGS Onshore GeoIndex, which holds over 1.8 million borehole records. This register improves data sharing, provides greater oversight for future drilling and safeguards this valuable and costly data for the public good.

Knowledge of the subsurface helps government and industry develop policies and practices that support clean growth and build resilience against a rapidly changing climate. The information obtained from mineral exploration is also crucial for supporting wider knowledge and insight about the subsurface, leading to more efficient and effective policy decisions.

Minerals picture. BGS © UKRI.
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BGS borehole and minerals-related activity. BGS © UKRI.

Key requirements

Who must comply?

Any person sinking a borehole to a depth of more than 30 m for the purpose of searching for or getting minerals must comply with these regulations.

Companies must notify BGS before a borehole is sunk via the notification portal on the website.

When should data be submitted?

Drilling records should then be supplied to BGS on completion of the borehole.

Following the notification, BGS may contact you for more information, including specimens of materials extracted as set out in the legislation.

If drilling has already commenced or been completed, please proceed directly with the data deposit.

What should be submitted?

BGS encourages the use of machine-readable data, therefore data in CSV format is preferred, with a PDF copy of the log.

Deposited data should include the following types of information where possible:

  • geological description
  • borehole construction
  • any groundwater information

How is data submitted?

Drilling records must be deposited through the NGDC Digital Data Deposit Application.

  1. Prepare your data according to the NGDC data deposit guidelines
  2. Access the NGDC Digital Data Deposit Application
  3. Complete the submission portal steps to deposit your data: make sure your data is complete and it is the final version. Your data cannot be edited once it has been deposited

Need more information?

For general NGR and NGDC enquiries or to arrange a visit, please phone 0115 936 3143 or contact our enquiries team

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