How far below ground do I own?

WaltKowalski

I own a freehold folio. I know the government has the right to any minerals in the land. I was just wondering is there an official depth below the ground that I own?? I'm not planning on digging my way to Oz or anything.....

dermot_sheehan

You own to the centre of the earth,

If the government want to CPO your land more then 10 meters below the surface the amount they pay for it is zero.

WaltKowalski

gabhain7 wrote: »

You own to the centre of the earth,

If the government want to CPO your land more then 10 meters below the surface the amount they pay for it is zero.

Cheers for the response!
Excuse my lack of understanding, but does that mean that they pay for the 1st 10 meters depth?

dermot_sheehan

It means if they want to CPO the surface or anything up to 10 meters down, they pay.

If they want to build a tunnel, for example 20 meters below the surface, they pay nothing.

daithip

In relation to this, and a topical question in my area, then does this mean they own the rights to a water supply from a drilled well at a private dwelling and would be entitled to meter it?

WaltKowalski

I don't have an answer to your question daithip but I did learn the following today -

Me:
Do you know how far beneath ground level you own if you own a freehold folio?

Fountain of Knowledge:
Technically freehold is from heaven to hell…… Cuius est solum, eius est usque ad caelum et ad inferos (Latin, for whoever owns the soil, it is theirs up to the sky and down to the depths)
Land owners rights only apply to a height and depth that is necessary for ordinary use and enjoyment of the property as per Lord Bernstein v Skyview & General Ltd [1978] 1 QB 479

Me:
Ta!

FOK:
OK….there is also a statutory restriction on ownership of minerals and mines under your freehold……also any buried treasure has been deemed to belong to the state…..

Gamrab1974

Recent Court of Appeal decision on this issue: http://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2009/579.html

Para. 59 of the judgment states that it was never part of English law that you owned from heaven to hell.

Victor

gabhain7 wrote: »

If the government want to CPO your land more then 10 meters below the surface the amount they pay for it is zero.

Isn't it more that the presumption is that it is worth zero, unless you can prove otherwise? There would be matter of buildings with deep basements or foundations.

dermot_sheehan

Victor wrote: »

Isn't it more that the presumption is that it is worth zero, unless you can prove otherwise? There would be matter of buildings with deep basements or foundations.

Yep, you're correct presumptive value is zero

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2006/en/act/pub/0027/sec0048.html#sec48