In answer to your first question gemini, a block is roughly 3 km2 or 3 million m2. As for the rest of your post, it is pretty ordinary mate and I hope it made you feel good. I can't recall having a go at someone on this forum, I've bit my tongue sometimes sure, but really? If I were Goldtalk, I'd be pretty offended and have every right to be so.
This bloke is someone with real experience, a contemporary old timer, who takes the time to offer honest words of advice and provide insight that takes years and years to gain. He also has to make a living and good luck to him. I don't know him from a bar of soap, but I go on this forum to try and increase my knowledge about gold prospecting so I hope he keeps posting. I for one take notice of what he has to say, it doesn't mean I necessarily agree with everything, but I do take notice.
Now in relation to the S40 issue, he is spot on. And although you said you don't particularly care what type of leases he was referring to, you should, because S40s only apply to Exploration Licenses. The 4 block E is typical size taken out by small guys because of a whole range of reasons - you could do some research at the DMIRS website to find out more if you are actually interested.
The point being made is that the small guy like me, (yes I have a lease) has put a lot of effort into it. It takes a friggin lot of effort, and time, and money, and negotiation and navigation through the process to actually have a lease granted. I really feel for the bloke who had 50 odd S40s over his 1 block EL. Based on your snide comments to Tony it seems like you wouldn't give a rat's. You obviously feel that is OK and if the leaseholder is upset well tough, he is just being 'greedy'.
That attitude, and your swipe at Goldtalk, beggars belief. And surely your comments do not reflect the values of APLA.
So yes you have 'outed' the fact that a block is roughly 3 million square meters, wow such a lot of ground eh? And 4 of them - woooooh. But ever stop to think how much of that ground is prospective, and how much of that is actually productive? Often it is often very shallow and small maybe only 50m x 100 m (5000 m2), sometimes it is much, much smaller, if you are lucky and it's there at all. So how do you reckon you would feel if you had found something and gone to the effort to finally get a lease granted in your name and then have 150 people spend 2 months detecting it? .
FFS, there's a lot of square meters out there, and if someone wants to do the right thing, its easy, just go for your life putting S40's on Company ground and don't go putting S40s on Els that are pegged by small guys. What Goldtalk is saying is that this is what would be expected, it is respectful and the right thing to do. To me it is like leaving a shovel in the hole. But if people are ignorant of that, or don't care, then maybe excluding 4 block and smaller from the S40 system is not a bad idea and may de-fuse things a bit. BTW there would be no benefit to me if that's what you are thinking.
