72-308.

Mineral rights; lease; terms; rights and duties of lessee.

A mineral prospector's lease shall be issued to the highest and best bidder. The lease issued shall provide that the royalty shall be not less than five percent, in addition to the rent to be determined by the Board of Educational Lands and Funds after examination and report by the Conservation and Survey Division of the University of Nebraska and before leasing. Such minerals or substances shall be set apart in pipelines, tanks, or other receptacles, suitable for receiving the same, to the credit and benefit of the state or, at the option of the state and by the approval of the board, the lessee shall pay the board each thirty days the gross market value thereof in cash. The state shall reserve the right to fully use and enjoy, for tillage or other agricultural use, the area leased for minerals, except such parts thereof as may be necessary for mining and development purposes, and a right-of-way over and across the premises to the place of mining or operating, and for pipelines. The lessee shall pay for all damages to growing crops, caused by such operations, and for the use of the land necessarily occupied. The lessee shall have the privilege of using sufficient water from the premises leased to run necessary boilers and engines incident to and used in the operations of the drills, mines, or development of products covered by the lease, and the right to remove the machinery, fixtures, and buildings placed on the premises by the lessee or those acting under the lessee. The state, or its authorized agent, may pay for and retain any structures or improvements sought to be removed by the lessee upon the abandonment, expiration, or cancellation of the lease.