BC Government - Mines Permit Fees

We are a family of four. I have two children 5 and 7. We are a Single Income family. I have a single cell placer claim which recently my partner and I have applied for a NOW. The staggering cost of the deposit for Timberwest and CRD keys, the cost of the purchase of our dredge, the cost of the 5000.00 bond for reclamation, the cost of the various other equipment/tools for dredging/sluicing/panning, and this new proposed 5000.00, would bring our start-up costs to a staggering 15,000.00 and above. I find this rediculous and outrageous in the fact that our operation is purely based on speculation and extreme high risk, with no way to prove that there is any economic placer deposit present on our 1 cell placer claim until we actualy start to mine it.

I think the ministry (BC Government) should look at charging nothing until the exploration phase has proven a viable economic placer deposit. My single income does not allow for a huge initial investment based on a extremely high risk venture with the amount of taxes we already pay and not to mention the high cost of living in this beatiful Province of BC.