(a) BLM will reject your application for a preference right lease if:

(1) You did not discover a valuable deposit of mineral(s) covered by the prospecting permit;

(2) You did not submit requested information in a timely manner;

(3) You did not otherwise comply with the requirements of this subpart; or

(4) In the case of sodium, potassium and sulphur, if BLM determines that the lands are not chiefly valuable for the mineral commodity specified in the permit.

(b) If you applied for a lease for minerals BLM administers under the authority of Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1946, BLM may also reject your application if we determine that mining is not the preferred use of the lands in the application. In making this determination, we will consider:

(1) The land use plan;

(2) Unsuitability criteria under subpart 1610 of this title;

(3) Any environmental impacts; and

(4) The purposes of the statute under which the lands were acquired.

(c) We will also reject your application if the surface managing agency does not consent to the lease.