Support Metal Detecting
Maybe you’ve seen a metal detectorist (a person who uses a metal detector) in your community before. Did you know that metal detectorists help others by removing potential hazards and trash from our public spaces and recovering lost precious items and returning them to their owners?
But metal detectorists need your help to ensure we can continue recovering important items. Keep reading to learn more about how you can help!
A passion for history and service
Metal detectorists enter the hobby for many reasons including interest in history, and in helping others find their lost precious items.
Lost Item Recovery
Metal detectorists assist others in finding their lost metal items like rings, watches, phones, and more. Websites like The RingFinders help the public find a detectorist near them who can help.
Finding and Preserving History
Many metal detectorists enter the hobby because they are interested in finding items lost in their communities in the distant past. For some this can mean recovering military items, historical artifacts, and other relics.
Cleaning Public Spaces
A benefit of metal detecting is that while searching for items, detectorists remove all trash from the areas they explore. A shared code of ethics from the Federation of Metal Detector & Archaeological Clubs, Inc. is shared by many detecting clubs.
Metal detecting is a hobby enjoyed by many generations, and one very clear benefit to others is the removal of toxic and/or harmful items from our shared spaces. While we enjoy the beaches with our children and pets, we want to ensure that the environment is safe from unnatural harmful items.
Why we need your support
Metal Detecting is illegal on national park beaches
Many beachgoers enjoy public beaches and may not know they are national park territory and are off limits to metal detectorists. So what happens if you lose your phone or diamond ring in the sand at a national park? Unfortunately it means neither you nor a professional detectorist can legally help you recover it.
If you decide to bring a metal detector out yourself, you’d be committing a felony and subject to fines of $10,000 and possible prison time.
Here’s why:
36 Code of Federal Regulations 2.1(a)(7) – the possessing or use of a metal detector magnetometer, side scan sonar, other metal detecting device or subbottom profiler is prohibited.
Archeological Resource Protection Act 1979 – All natural, cultural, and archeological resources are protected and may not be removed or disturbed.
This code was written to protect natural resources including any potential cultural artifacts that could be harmed by digging. This is a very reasonable and was originally meant to protect potentially significant items from damage.
But in modern times with more advanced detectors, professional detectorists can avoid damaging artifacts when helping a citizen locate their lost precious item.
We propose metal detecting should be legalized on national parks beaches.
To provide service to citizens who lose their precious items on national parks beaches, and to remove harmful metal objects during cleaning, we propose metal detecting be permitted for metal detectorists who offer recovery services and who commit to a code of ethics.
Just like beach clean-up teams who remove harmful plastics from the beach, metal detectorists take it one step deeper. We find and remove leaking batteries, nails and screws, sharp rusty steel, hypodermic needles, fishing hooks and traps, and many other potentially harmful objects.
Show your support
Add your name to the list of others who support metal detecting and support our efforts with a cool metal detecting support gear item.
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