10-Q

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

[X] QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2015

[  ] TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ________ to ________

COMMISSION FILE NUMBER 000-50033

IRELAND INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

NEVADA	91-2147049
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

2360 West Horizon Ridge Parkway, Suite 100
Henderson, Nevada	89052
(Address of principal executive offices)	(Zip Code)

(702) 932-0353
(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
[X] Yes    [  ] No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).
[X] Yes    [  ] No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer [  ]	Accelerated filer [  ]
Non-accelerated filer   [  ] (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)	Smaller reporting company [X]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).
[  ] Yes    [X] No

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer's classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date:
As of November 9, 2015, the Registrant had 158,697,875 shares of common stock outstanding.

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS.

The accompanying unaudited financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 8-03 of Regulation S-X, and, therefore, do not include all information and footnotes necessary for a complete presentation of financial position, results of operations, cash flows, and stockholders' equity in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of the results of operations and financial position have been included and all such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature. Operating results for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 are not necessarily indicative of the results that can be expected for the year ending December 31, 2015.

As used in this Quarterly Report, the terms “we,” “us,” “our,” “Ireland,” and the “Company” mean Ireland Inc. and its subsidiaries, unless otherwise indicated. All dollar amounts in this Quarterly Report are expressed in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated.

2

 IRELAND INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(UNAUDITED)

		September 30, 2015			December 31, 2014
ASSETS
Current assets
Cash	$	774,396		$	259,495
Other receivables		977			6,380
Prepaid expenses		240,951			260,484
Total current assets		1,016,324			526,359
Property and equipment, net		1,158,412			1,319,506
Mineral properties		15,882,179			15,882,179
Reclamation bonds		1,121,146			1,129,472
Deposits		10,262			10,262
Total non-current assets		18,171,999			18,341,419
Total assets	$	19,188,323		$	18,867,778
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities
Accounts payable	$	114,773		$	390,888
Accounts payable - related party		40,168			237,551
Accrued payroll and related taxes		52,691			58,637
Due to related party		23,290			23,290
Derivative liability		-			348,450
Total current liabilities		230,922			1,058,816
Long-term liabilities
Asset retirement obligation		672,338			672,338
Total long-term liabilities		672,338			672,338
Total liabilities		903,260			1,731,154
Commitments and contingencies - Note 8
Stockholders' equity
Common stock, $0.001 par value; 400,000,000 shares       authorized, 158,397,875 and 150,772,875       shares, respectively, issued and outstanding		158,396			150,771
Additional paid-in capital		66,293,524			65,626,112
Accumulated other comprehensive income		-			5,478
Accumulated deficit		(48,166,857	)		(48,645,737	)
Total stockholders' equity		18,285,063			17,136,624
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$	19,188,323		$	18,867,778

See Accompanying Notes to these Consolidated Financial Statements
F-1

IRELAND INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
(UNAUDITED)

		For the three months ended						For the nine months ended
		September 30, 2015			September 30, 2014			September 30, 2015			September 30, 2014
Revenue	$	-		$	-		$	-		$	-
Operating expenses
Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses		445,496			534,757			1,299,614			1,978,144
Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses - related party		105,880			105,000			333,917			344,279
General and administrative		471,651			391,447			1,369,345			1,349,035
Depreciation		88,485			236,069			459,560			706,326
Gain on asset disposal		-			-			-			(1,000	)
Mineral and property holding costs		-			58,000			-			106,000
Abandonment of mineral rights		-			16,245,954			-			16,245,954
Total operating expenses		1,111,512			17,571,227			3,462,436			20,728,738
Loss from operations		(1,111,512	)		(17,571,227	)		(3,462,436	)		(20,728,738	)
Other income (expense)
Interest income		3,322			4,774			13,518			14,642
Rental income - related party		5,068			7,305			65,070			24,219
Change in derivative liability		5,939,750			66,045			3,866,450			1,314,283
Interest expense		-			(83	)		(772	)		(2,289	)
Total other income (expense)		5,948,140			78,041			3,944,266			1,350,855
Income (loss) before income taxes		4,836,628			(17,493,186	)		481,830			(19,377,883	)
Income tax expense		(569	)		(746	)		(2,950	)		(2,644	)
Net income (loss)	$	4,836,059		$	(17,493,932	)	$	478,880		$	(19,380,527	)
Income (loss) per common share - basic	$	0.03		$	(0.12	)	$	0.00		$	(0.13	)
Income (loss) per common share - dilutive	$	0.03		$	(0.12	)	$	0.00		$	(0.13	)
Weighted average common shares outstanding -
Basic		156,709,016			148,577,078			154,408,131			147,604,829
Dilutive		185,822,875			148,577,078			179,546,318			147,604,829
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Net income (loss)	$	4,836,059		$	(17,493,932	)	$	478,880		$	(19,380,527	)
Other comprehensive income (loss) Unrealized loss on investments, net of deferred tax		(1,057	)		(1,385	)		(5,478	)		(4,910	)
Total comprehensive income (loss)	$	4,835,002		$	(17,495,317	)	$	473,402		$	(19,385,437	)

See Accompanying Notes to these Consolidated Financial Statements
F-2

IRELAND INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
(UNAUDITED)

								Accumulated
								Other						Total
	Common Stock				Additional			Comprehensive			Accumulated			Stockholders'
	Shares		Amount		Paid-in Capital			Income			Deficit			Equity
Balance, December 31, 2013	146,559,542	$	146,558	$	64,156,279		$	12,771		$	(28,582,800	)	$	35,732,808
Stock-based compensation	-		-		245,281			-			-			245,281
Issuance of warrants for cash, net	-		-		2,819,390			-			-			2,819,390
Derivative liability	-		-		(1,951,423	)		-			-			(1,951,423	)
Exercise of special warrants	1,250,000		1,250		(1,250	)		-			-			-
Issuance of shares for cash, net	1,513,333		1,513		307,487			-			-			309,000
Unrealized loss on investments, net of $2,644 deferred tax	-		-		-			(4,910	)		-			(4,910	)
Net loss, September 30, 2014	-		-		-			-			(19,380,527	)		(19,380,527	)
Balance, September 30, 2014	149,322,875	$	149,321	$	65,575,764		$	7,861		$	(47,963,327	)	$	17,769,619
Balance, December 31, 2014	150,772,875	$	150,771	$	65,626,112		$	5,478		$	(48,645,737	)	$	17,136,624
Stock-based compensation	-		-		387,390			-			-			387,390
Issuance of warrants for cash, net	-		-		3,795,647			-			-			3,795,647
Issuance of shares for cash	200,000		200		9,800			-			-			10,000
Exercise of Special Warrants	7,425,000		7,425		(7,425	)		-			-			-
Derivative liability	-		-		(3,518,000	)		-			-			(3,518,000	)
Unrealized loss on investments, net of $2,950 deferred tax	-		-		-			(5,478	)		-			(5,478	)
Net income, September 30, 2015	-		-		-			-			478,880			478,880
Balance, September 30, 2015	158,397,875	$	158,396	$	66,293,524		$	-		$	(48,166,857	)	$	18,285,063

See Accompanying Notes to these Consolidated Financial Statements
F-3

IRELAND INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(UNAUDITED)

		For the nine months ended
		September 30, 2015			September 30, 2014
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net income (loss)	$	478,880		$	(19,380,527	)
Adjustments to reconcile income (loss) from operations to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation		459,560			706,326
Gain on asset disposal		-			(1,000	)
Abandonment of mineral rights					16,245,954
Stock-based compensation		387,390			245,281
Change in derivative liability		(3,866,450	)		(1,314,283	)
Deferred income taxes		2,950			2,644
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Other receivables		5,403			(7,115	)
Prepaid expenses and deposits		19,533			161,770
Reclamation bonds and other deposits		(101	)		1,987
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		(479,444	)		78,943
Net cash used in operating activities		(2,992,279	)		(3,260,020	)
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Purchase of property and equipment		(298,467	)		(28,945	)
Proceeds from asset disposal		-			1,000
Net cash used in investing activities		(298,467	)		(27,945	)
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Proceeds from equity issuances		3,810,000			3,149,000
Financing issuance costs		(4,353	)		(20,610	)
Net cash provided by financing activities		3,805,647			3,128,390
NET CHANGE IN CASH		514,901			(159,575	)
CASH AT BEGINNING OF PERIOD		259,495			708,371
CASH AT END OF PERIOD	$	774,396		$	548,796
		-
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Interest paid	$	772		$	2,289
Income taxes paid	$	-		$	-
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Investor warrants issued with non-customary anti-dilution provisions	$	3,518,000		$	1,951,423

See Accompanying Notes to these Consolidated Financial Statements
F-4

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES

Description of business - Ireland Inc. (the “Company”) is primarily focused on the acquisition and exploration of mining properties and has been in the exploration stage since its formation. The Company has not yet realized any revenues from its planned operations. Upon identification of commercially minable reserves, the Company expects to actively prepare the site for mineral extraction and enter the development stage.

History - The Company was incorporated on February 20, 2001 under the laws of the State of Nevada under the name Merritt Ventures Corp. On December 19, 2005, the Company changed its name to Ireland Inc.

Basis of presentation - The financial statements present the consolidated balance sheets, statements of operations and comprehensive loss, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows of the Company. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared without audit in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In the opinion of management, all adjustments and disclosures necessary for the fair presentation of these interim statements have been included. All such adjustments are, in the opinion of management, of a normal recurring nature. The results reported in these interim consolidated financial statements are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be reported for the entire year. These interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2015.

Going concern - The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming the Company will continue as a going concern.

Since its formation, the Company has incurred comprehensive cumulative net losses of $48,166,857 as of September 30, 2015. The Company has not commenced its commercial mining and mineral processing operations; rather, it is still in the exploration stage, raising substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The Company will seek additional sources of capital through the issuance of debt or equity financing, but there can be no assurance the Company will be successful in accomplishing its objectives.

The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent on additional sources of capital and the success of the Company’s plan. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if the Company is unable to continue as a going concern.

Principles of consolidation - The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Columbus Minerals Inc. (“CMI”) (including its wholly-owned single-member LLC subsidiary, Columbus Salt Marsh LLC (“CSM”)) and Rand Metals LLC (“Rand”). Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.

F-5

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES (continued)

Use of estimates - The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. By their nature, these estimates are subject to measurement uncertainty and the effect on the financial statements of changes in such estimates in future periods could be significant. Significant areas requiring management’s estimates and assumptions include the valuation of stock-based compensation and the derivative liability, impairment analysis of long-lived assets, asset retirement obligations and the realizability of deferred tax assets. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Reclassification – Certain prior year and prior period amounts have been reclassified for consistency with the current period presentation. These reclassifications had no effect on the reported results of operations. In the third quarter of 2015, the Company’s U.S. Treasury Notes and certificates of deposit were reclassified as reclamation bonds on the consolidated balance sheet. Previously, such investments had been classified as restricted investments held for reclamation bonds. The corresponding reclassifications have also been made to the consolidated statement of cash flows for the nine month period ended September 30, 2014. This change in classification does not materially affect previously reported cash flows from operations or from financing activities and had no effect on the previously reported consolidated statement of operations for any period.

Fair value of financial instruments - Fair value accounting establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs of valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

Level 1	Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for identical, unrestricted assets or liabilities;
Level 2	Quoted prices in markets that are not active, or inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability; and
Level 3	Prices or valuation techniques that require inputs that are both significant to the fair value measurement and unobservable (supported by little or no market activity).

The Company’s financial instruments consist of a derivative liability. The Company calculates the fair value of its derivative liability using the Binomial Lattice model, a level 3 input. The change in fair value of the derivative liability is classified in other income (expense) in the consolidated statement of operations. The Company generally does not use derivative financial instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market or foreign currency risks.

There have been no changes in valuation techniques or transfers of assets between levels for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 or 2014.

Mineral properties - Costs of acquiring mineral properties are capitalized upon acquisition. Exploration costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are expensed as incurred while the project is in the exploration stage. Development costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are capitalized as incurred while the property is in the development stage. When a property reaches the production stage, the related capitalized costs are amortized using the units-of-production basis over the proven and probable reserves.

F-6

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES (continued)

Mineral exploration and development costs - Exploration expenditures incurred prior to entering the development stage are expensed and included in mineral exploration and evaluation expenses.

Property and equipment - Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided principally on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which range from 3 to 20 years. The cost of repairs and maintenance is charged to expense as incurred. Expenditures for property betterments and renewals are capitalized. Upon sale or other disposition of a depreciable asset, cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in the consolidated statement of operations.

Impairment of long-lived assets - The Company reviews and evaluates its long-lived assets for impairment at each balance sheet date due to its planned exploration stage losses and documents such impairment testing. Mineral properties in the exploration stage are monitored for impairment based on factors such as the Company’s continued right to explore the property, exploration reports, drill results, technical reports and continued plans to fund exploration programs on the property.

The tests for long-lived assets in the exploration, development or producing stage that have a value beyond proven and probable reserves will be monitored for impairment based on factors such as current market value of the mineral property and results of exploration, future asset utilization, business climate, mineral prices and future undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the related assets. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying amount of an asset to the estimated future net undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by the asset, including evaluating its reserves beyond proven and probable amounts.

The Company's policy is to record an impairment loss in the period when it is determined that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable either by impairment or by abandonment of the property. The impairment loss is calculated as the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds its fair value. While the Company incurred losses from operations, these losses have not been in excess of planned expenditures on the specific mineral properties in order to ultimately realize their value.

Asset Retirement Obligation – Future obligations to retire an asset, including site closure, are recorded as a liability at fair value in the period incurred. The fair value determination is based on estimated future cash flows, the current credit-adjusted risk-free interest rate and an estimated inflation factor. The value of the liability is evaluated at least annually or as new information becomes available. As reclamation work is performed or liabilities are otherwise settled, the recorded amount of the liability will be reduced.

Future reclamation expenditures are difficult to estimate in many circumstances due to the early stage nature of the exploration project, the uncertainties associated with defining the nature and extent of environmental disturbance, the application of laws and regulations by regulatory authorities and changes in reclamation technology. Changes in estimates are reflected in the consolidated statement of operations in the period an estimate is revised.

F-7

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES (continued)

Per share amounts - Basic earnings (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding. In computing diluted earnings per share, the weighted average number of shares outstanding is adjusted to reflect the effect of potentially dilutive securities, such as stock options and warrants. Potentially dilutive shares are excluded from the calculation when their inclusion would be anti-dilutive, such as periods when a net loss is reported or when the exercise price of the instrument exceeds its fair market value. 70,889,357 and 76,154,857 stock options and warrants were outstanding at September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, but were not considered in the computation of diluted earnings per share as their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

Stock-based compensation - Stock-based compensation awards are recognized in the financial statements based on the grant date fair value of the award which is estimated using the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The Company believes that this model provides the best estimate of fair value due to its ability to incorporate inputs that change over time, such as volatility and interest rates, and to allow for the actual exercise behavior of option holders. The compensation cost is recognized over the requisite service period which is generally equal to the vesting period. Upon exercise, shares issued will be newly issued shares from authorized common stock.

The fair value of performance-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The total value of the award is recognized over the requisite service period only if management has determined that achievement of the performance condition is probable. The requisite service period is based on management’s estimate of when the performance condition will be met. Changes in the requisite service period or the estimated probability of achievement can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

The fair value of market-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of an option pricing model which uses a combination of Monte Carlo simulation and a Trinomial Lattice function. The requisite service period for market-based awards is derived from the model. Achievement of the market condition earlier than estimated can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

Income taxes - The Company follows the liability method of accounting for income taxes. This method recognizes certain temporary differences between the financial reporting basis of liabilities and assets and the related income tax basis for such liabilities and assets. This method generates either a net deferred income tax liability or asset as measured by the statutory tax rates in effect. The effect of a change in tax rates is recognized in operations in the period that includes the enactment date. The Company records a valuation allowance against any portion of those deferred income tax assets when it believes, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred income tax asset will not be realized.

For acquired properties that do not constitute a business, a deferred income tax liability is recorded on GAAP basis over income tax basis using statutory federal and state rates. The resulting estimated future income tax liability associated with the temporary difference between the acquisition consideration and the tax basis is reflected as an increase in the total purchase price which is then applied to the underlying acquired assets in the absence of there being a goodwill component associated with the acquisition transactions.

F-8

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES (continued)

Recent accounting standards - From time to time, new accounting pronouncements are issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) that are adopted by the Company as of the specified effective date. The Company has evaluated all of the recent accounting pronouncements and unless otherwise discussed, believes they will not have a material effect on the financial statements.

In November 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2014-16, Determining Whether the Host Contract in a Hybrid Financial Instrument Issued in the Form of a Share Is More Akin to Debt or to Equity. The ASU clarifies how current guidance should be interpreted in evaluating the economic characteristics and risks of a host contract in a hybrid financial instrument that is issued in the form of a share. The ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. The Company is currently assessing the impact, if any, of implementing this guidance on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-15, Presentation of Financial Statements – Going Concern. The new standard requires management of public and private companies to evaluate whether there is substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern and, if so, disclose that fact. Management will also be required to evaluate and disclose whether its plans alleviate that doubt. The new standard is effective for interim and annual periods ending after December 15, 2016. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-12, Compensation - Stock Compensation - Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved after the Requisite Service Period, which is effective for financial statements issued for interim and annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2015. The guidance requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period be treated as a performance condition and should not be reflected in the estimate of the grant-date fair value of the award. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

2. PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

Property and equipment consisted of the following:

		September 30, 2015							December 31, 2014
				Accumulated			Net book				Accumulated			Net book
		Cost		depreciation			value		Cost		depreciation			value
Furniture and fixtures	$	61,405	$	(37,962	)	$	23,443	$	61,405	$	(28,896	)	$	32,509
Computers and equipment		57,785		(33,848	)		23,937		52,275		(26,162	)		26,113
Land		30,000		-			30,000		30,000		-			30,000
Site improvements		2,925,731		(2,748,414	)		177,317		2,925,731		(2,553,280	)		372,451
Site equipment		2,179,803		(1,505,255	)		674,548		1,886,846		(1,295,080	)		591,766
Vehicles		23,595		(23,595	)		-		23,595		(23,595	)		-
Building		500,000		(270,833	)		229,167		500,000		(233,333	)		266,667
	$	5,778,319	$	(4,619,907	)	$	1,158,412	$	5,479,852	$	(4,160,346	)	$	1,319,506

Depreciation expense was $88,485 and $236,069 for quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $459,560 and $706,326 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 respectively.

F-9

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

3. MINERAL PROPERTIES

Mineral properties consisted of the following:

		September 30,		December 31,
		2015		2014
Columbus Project	$	15,811,948	$	15,811,948
DDB Claims		70,231		70,231
Ending balance	$	15,882,179	$	15,882,179

Columbus Project - On February 20, 2008, the Company acquired a 100% interest in the Columbus Project by way of merger with Columbus Brine Inc. (“CBI”). Prior to the merger, the Company held a 15% interest in the Columbus Project by satisfying its option agreement requirements. Pursuant to the option assignment agreement, the Company granted and continues to have a 5% net smelter return royalty to NMC, one of the principal stockholders of the Company.

On August 31, 2014, the Company elected not to renew 51% of the acquired mining claims by declining to pay the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) maintenance fees for the abandoned claims. A loss of $16,136,105 was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2014.

DDB Claims - The Company had a lease agreement for mining claims with the DDB Syndicate. The DDB Syndicate is owned by the Company’s CEO, a former member of our Board of Directors, former officers and directors of CBI and their relatives and affiliates of NMC. The DDB Claims were located in 2007, prior to any of these related persons’ involvement with the Company.

On November 20, 2012, the Company exercised its option provided in the lease agreement to purchase the DDB Claims for a purchase price of $180,080. On August 31, 2014, the Company elected not to renew 61% of the DDB claims by declining to pay the BLM maintenance fees for the abandoned claims. A loss of $109,849 was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Reclamation Bonds - The Company maintains required reclamation bonding with the BLM. As of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, reclamation bonding amounted to $1,121,146 and $1,129,472, respectively.

Asset Retirement Obligation – The asset retirement obligation relates to the Columbus Project and amounted to $672,338 as of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014. The estimated costs were discounted using a credit adjusted risk-free rate of 4.31% and an inflation rate of 3.21% at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively.

F-10

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

4. DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY

As further discussed in Note 5, the Company issued 14,200,000 Special Warrants (“2014 Special Warrants”) in 2014 and 19,000,000 Special Warrants (“2015 Special Warrants”) in 2015 each at a price of $0.20 per warrant.

The Special Warrants have anti-dilution provisions, including the provision for the holders to participate in subsequent equity financings at no additional cost by converting the Special Warrants into shares or units offered in a subsequent equity financing for a total subscription price equal to the total subscription price paid for the Special Warrants.

The Company determined that the anti-dilution provision shields the Special Warrant holders from the dilutive effects of subsequent equity financings and therefore the economic characteristics and risks of the Special Warrants are not clearly and closely related to the Company’s common stock. Accordingly, the Special Warrants are treated as a derivative liability and are carried at fair value.

As of September 30, 2015, 8,075,000 of the 2014 Special Warrants were converted into 2015 Special Warrants.

The following table sets forth the changes in the derivative liability for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015 and the year ended December 31, 2014:

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Beginning balance	$	(348,450	)	$	-
Issuance of Special Warrants		(3,518,000	)		(1,951,423	)
Exercise of Special Warrants		505,000			165,628
Change in fair value		3,361,450			1,437,345
Ending balance	$	-		$	(348,450	)

The Company estimates the fair value of the derivative liability by using the Binomial Lattice pricing-model, with the following assumptions used for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015 and the year ended December 31, 2014:

	September 30,	December 31,
	2015	2014
Dividend yield	-	-
Expected volatility	94.96% - 104.00%	91.07% - 137.42%
Risk-free interest rate	0.08% - 0.28%	0.04% - 0.14%
Expected life (years)	-	0.10 - 1.0

The expected volatility is based on the historical volatility levels on the Company’s common stock. The risk-free interest rate is based on the implied yield available on US Treasury zero-coupon issues over equivalent lives of the warrants. The expected life is impacted by all of the underlying assumptions and calibration of the Company’s model. Significant increases or decreases in inputs would result in a significantly lower or higher fair value measurement.

F-11

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

5. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, stockholders’ equity activity consisted of the following:

2015 Special Warrant offering - The Company sold 19,000,000 2015 Special Warrants at a price of $0.20 for gross proceeds of $3,800,000.

The 2015 Special Warrants may be converted during their term, at no additional cost to the holder, on a 1:1 basis into units (each a “Unit”) consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring February 28, 2020. Alternatively, the 2015 Special Warrants provide the holder the right to exchange their 2015 Special Warrants for equal participation in a subsequent equity financing. All 2015 Special Warrants outstanding at February 28, 2016 automatically convert into Units.

The 2015 Special Warrants extend for a term ending on the earlier of February 28, 2016 or the date that is one month after the Company completes a Qualified Financing, defined as any financing or number of financings for total gross proceeds of $7,000,000 or more. Total fees related to issuance of the 2015 Special Warrants amounted to $4,353.

The remaining 8,075,000 outstanding 2014 Special Warrants were exchanged for 2015 Special Warrants.

Exercise of Special Warrants – 3,425,000 and 4,000,000 of 2014 and 2015 Special Warrants, respectively, were converted into Units consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring March 29, 2019 and February 28, 2020, respectively.

Exercise of stock options – The Company received $10,000 from the exercise of 200,000 stock options.

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2014, stockholders’ equity activity consisted of the following:

U.S. Special Warrant Offering - The Company sold 14,200,000 2014 Special Warrants at a price of $0.20 for gross proceeds of $2,840,000.

The 2014 Special Warrants were convertible during their term, at no additional cost to the holder, on a 1:1 basis into units (each a “Unit”) consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring March 29, 2019. Alternatively, the 2014 Special Warrants provide the holder the right to exchange their Special Warrants for equal participation in a subsequent equity financing. All Special Warrants outstanding on March 31, 2015 automatically converted into Units. Total fees related to the issuance of Special Warrants amounted to $20,610.

Issuance of Common Stock - The Company issued 1,250,000 shares of common stock from the exercise of 2014 Special Warrants and 180,000 shares of common stock from the exercise of stock options for aggregate gross proceeds of $9,000.

F-12

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

5. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY (continued)

Private Placement - On August 15, 2014, the Company completed the sale of 1,333,333 units (each a “Unit”) to NMC. The sale of the Units was made pursuant to a subscription agreement entered into on March 25, 2014 whereby NMC agreed to purchase Units for an aggregate purchase price of $300,000 on or before August 15, 2014. The per Unit purchase price of $0.225 was determined as the greater of the average closing price for the Company’s common stock over the ten trading days prior to completion of the sale and $0.20 per Unit. Each Unit consists of one share of the Company’s common stock and one warrant to purchase an additional share of common stock at $0.45 per share, expiring March 29, 2019.

Warrant Amendments - On January 15, 2014, April 28, 2014, May 5, 2014 and on July 17, 2014, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined, without any negotiations with the warrant holders, to amend 22,572,827 private placement warrants granted in connection with the 2007, 2009 and 2010 private placement offerings, and 4,000,000 additional warrants issued to consultants in 2009 and 2010 (collectively, the “Expiring Warrants”). The expiration date of the Expiring Warrants was extended to April 30, 2014, June 30, 2014, July 31, 2014 and December 31, 2014. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the Expiring Warrants remain the same. The Company calculated the fair values of the warrant modifications using the Binomial Lattice model with the following assumptions and outputs:

	January	April 28,	May 5,	July 17,
	15, 2014	2014	2014	2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.04%	0.015%	0.01%	0.06%
Expected volatility	58.97%	85.93%	81.21%	112.00%
Expected life (years)	0.30	0.20	0.10	0.40
Fair value	$ -	$ -	$ -	$ -

Additionally, on May 5, 2014 and on July 17, 2014, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined, without any negotiations with the warrant holders, to amend 2,509,099 private placement warrants granted in connection with the 2011 private placement offerings, and 500,000 additional warrants issued to a consultant in 2011 (collectively, the “Expiring Warrants”). The expiration date of the Expiring Warrants was extended from June 30, 2014 to September 30, 2014 and to December 31, 2014. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the Expiring Warrants remain the same. The Company calculated the fair value of the warrant modification using the Binomial Lattice model with the following assumptions and outputs:

	May 5, 2014	July 17, 2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.03%	0.02%
Expected volatility	97.58%	65.52%
Expected life (years)	0.20	0.20
Fair value	$ -	$ -

Subsequent to September 30, 2014, all of these warrants were further extended to December 31, 2015.

F-13

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

5. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY (continued)

The following summarizes the exercise price per share and expiration date of the Company’s outstanding warrants issued to investors to purchase common stock at September 30, 2015:

Shares Underlying
Outstanding Warrants	Exercise Price	Expiration Date
22,572,827	$0.75	December 2015
12,069,099	0.80	December 2015
23,075,000*	0.20	February 2016
8,896,901	0.95	November 2016
6,125,000	0.40	March 2019
1,333,333	0.45	March 2019
4,000,000	0.40	February 2020
78,072,160

* The exercise price of these warrants has been paid by the investors. Upon exercise, the holders will receive one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable at $0.40.

F-14

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

6. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

Stock-based compensation includes grants of stock options and purchase warrants to eligible directors, employees and consultants as determined by the Board of Directors.

Stock option plans - On March 27, 2007, the Board of Directors adopted the 2007 Stock Incentive Plan (the “Plan”). Under the terms of the Plan, options to purchase up to 6,000,000 shares of the common stock, subject to an increase each quarter equal to 15% of the increase in the total number of outstanding shares during the previous quarter, may be granted to officers, directors, employees and eligible consultants. As of September 30, 2015, the Company had granted 17,496,916 options under the Plan with a weighted average exercise price of $0.47 per option. 15,442,197 options were outstanding as of September 30, 2015.

Stock warrants - Upon approval of the Board of Directors, the Company grants stock warrants to consultants for services performed.

Valuation of awards - At September 30, 2015, the Company had options outstanding that vest on three different types of vesting schedules:

1.	Service-based;
2.	Performance-based; and
3.	Market-based.

For service-based and performance-based stock option grants, the Company utilizes the Binomial Lattice pricing model to estimate the fair values of options and warrants granted in exchange for services. For market-based stock option grants, the Company utilizes a combination of a Monte Carlo simulation and a Trinomial Lattice function to estimate the fair values of options in exchange for services. The Company used the following assumptions to estimate the fair values of the options granted for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

Dividend yield	-
Expected volatility	71.55 - 165.7%
Risk-free interest rate	0.02 – 1.32%
Expected life (years)	0.10 – 4.25

Inputs used in these models are determined as follows:

1.	The expected life represents the weighted-average period the awards are expected to remain outstanding and is a derived output of the option pricing models. The expected life is impacted by all of the underlying assumptions and calibration of the Company’s models.
2.	The requisite service period for market-based stock option awards is a derived output of the hybrid Monte Carlo-Trinomial Lattice model.
3.	Volatility is based on the average historical volatility levels of a representative peer group or the Company’s common stock depending on the life of the options.
4.	The risk-free interest rate is based on the implied yield available on U.S. Treasury zero- coupon issues over the equivalent contractual lives of the options.

F-15

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

6. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION (continued)

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, the Company’s stock based compensation activity was as follows:

a)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 400,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
b)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 400,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest upon the Company’s stock price achieving defined targets. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
c)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to the Company’s independent directors and certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 2,700,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest 25% each on April 1, 2015, June 30, 2015, September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2015. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest. The options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
d)	On February 25, 2015, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined to amend 650,531 stock options by extending their expiration dates. The options were granted at various dates between March 8, 2010 and July 22, 2010 and have a weighted average exercise price of $0.64 per share. The expiration dates of all of the options were extended to December 31, 2015. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the extended options remain the same. The modification resulted in additional compensation expense of $25,387.

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2014, the Company’s stock based compensation activity was as follows:

a)

On September 11, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain employees under the Plan for an aggregate of 130,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.24 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

b)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 325,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

F-16

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

6. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION (continued)

c)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 325,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest upon the Company’s stock price achieving defined targets. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

d)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to the Company’s independent directors and certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest 25% each on March 31, 2014, June 30, 2014, September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2014. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest. The options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

The total expense related to the granting, vesting and modification of all stock-based compensation awards was $172,553 and $56,514 for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $387,390 and $245,281 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Such expenses are included in general and administrative expense and mineral exploration and evaluation expense.

The following table summarizes the Company’s stock-based compensation activity for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

							Weighted
							Average
				Weighted			Remaining
				Average Grant		Weighted	Contractual		Aggregate
	Number of			Date Fair		Average	Life		Intrinsic
	Shares			Value		Exercise Price	(Years)		Value
Outstanding, December 31, 2014	17,054,697		$	0.32	$	0.58	3.17
Options/warrants granted	3,500,000			0.15		0.40	5.94
Options/warrants exercised	(200,000	)		0.38		0.05	-
Options/warrants expired	(112,500	)		0.36		0.80	-
Options/warrants cancelled	-			-		-	-
Outstanding, September 30, 2015	20,242,197		$	0.29	$	0.55	3.06	$	310,800
Exercisable, September 30, 2015	14,937,197		$	0.38	$	0.70	1.87	$	310,800

Aggregate intrinsic value represents the value of the Company’s closing stock price on the last trading day of the quarter ended in excess of the weighted-average exercise price multiplied by the number of options outstanding or exercisable.

F-17

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

6. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION (continued)

The following table summarizes the changes of the Company’s stock-based compensation awards subject to vesting for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

				Weighted Average
	Number of			Grant Date
	Shares			Fair Value
Unvested, December 31, 2014	3,830,000		$	0.28
Granted	3,500,000			0.15
Vested	(2,025,000	)		0.15
Unvested, September 30, 2015	5,305,000		$	0.24

As of September 30, 2015, there was $231,559 of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested stock-based compensation awards. The weighted average period over which this cost will be recognized was 0.86 years as of September 30, 2015.

F-18

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

7. INCOME TAXES

The Company is a Nevada corporation and is subject to federal income taxes. Nevada does not impose a corporate income tax.

Significant components of the Company’s net deferred income tax assets and liabilities at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014 were as follows:

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Deferred income tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$	12,971,007		$	11,932,233
Option compensation		2,000,633			1,906,018
Property, plant & equipment		917,442			841,689
Exploration costs		417,558			478,937
Asset retirement obligation		235,318			235,318
Gross deferred income tax assets		16,541,958			15,394,195
Less: valuation allowance		(11,053,401	)		(9,902,688	)
Net deferred income tax assets		5,488,557			5,491,507
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Unrealized gain on investments		-			(2,950	)
Acquisition related liabilities		(5,488,557	)		(5,488,557	)
Net deferred income tax liabilities	$	-		$	-

A valuation allowance was established for deferred tax assets related to asset retirement obligations and net operating loss carryforwards due to the uncertainty of realizing these deferred tax assets based on conditions existing at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively.

The realizability of deferred tax assets are reviewed at each balance sheet date. The majority of the Company’s deferred tax liabilities are depletable. Such depletion will begin with the processing of mineralized material once production has commenced. Therefore, the deferred tax liabilities will reverse in similar time periods as the deferred tax assets. The Company assesses both positive and negative evidence to determine whether it is more likely than not that such reversal will occur to realize the deferred tax assets prior to their expiration.

The acquisition related liabilities are a result of the estimated future federal income tax liability associated with the temporary difference between the acquisition consideration and the tax basis. The deferred tax liabilities were reflected as an increase to the total purchase price which has been applied to the underlying mineral and Columbus project assets in the absence of there being a goodwill component associated with the acquisition transactions.

F-19

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

7. INCOME TAXES (continued)

A reconciliation of the tax provision for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 at U.S federal tax rates to the actual tax provision recorded in the financial statements consisted of the following components:

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	1,693,655		$	(6,122,615	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(2,063,843	)		(1,575	)
Change in valuation allowance		370,757			6,124,936
Income tax expense	$	569		$	746

A reconciliation of the tax provision for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 at US federal tax rates to the actual tax provision recorded in the financial statements consisted of the following components:

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	168,642		$	(6,782,259	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(1,316,405	)		(438,042	)
Change in valuation allowance		1,150,713			7,222,945
Income tax expense	$	2,950		$	2,644

The Company had cumulative net operating losses of approximately $37,060,026 as of September 30, 2015 for federal income tax purposes. Cumulative net operating losses from December 31, 2006 and previous years are effectively nil due to the annual limitation imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as a result of the ownership percentage change limitations. The net operating loss carryforwards will expire between 2027 and 2035.

The Company and its subsidiary file income tax returns in the United States. These tax returns are subject to examination by taxation authorities provided the years remain open under the relevant statutes of limitations, which may result in the payment of income taxes and/or a decrease in the net operating losses available for carryforwards. The Company has losses from inception to date, and thus all years remain open for examination. While the Company believes that its tax filings do not include uncertain tax positions, the results of potential examinations or the effect of changes in tax law cannot be ascertained at this time. The Company currently has no tax years under examination.

F-20

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

8. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Lease obligations – The Company rents office space under an operating lease agreement. The lease expires in August 2017 and provides an option to renew the lease for an additional four years. In the normal course of business, it is expected that this lease will be renewed or replaced by a lease of a similar property.

The lease requires for increases in future annual rental payments of 4% per year. Under the lease agreement, the Company is also required to pay monthly operating expenses of approximately $748.

The following table represents future base rent payments for each of the twelve month periods ending September 30,

		Minimum
		Lease
		Commitment
2016	$	52,250
2017		44,983
Thereafer		-
	$	97,233

Rental expense for office space was $14,629 and $16,700 for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $43,886 and $45,420 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

Columbus Project – Pursuant to the option assignment agreement dated March 30, 2007, as amended August 8, 2007, the Company granted a 5% net smelter return royalty to NMC, one of the principal stockholders of the Company. The Columbus Project is further discussed in Note 3.

Stand-by letter of credit – A financial institution has issued a stand-by letter of credit to the BLM for up to $100,000 on behalf of the Company. The stand-by letter of credit was issued to guarantee the Company’s compliance with reclamation bonding requirements. The letter of credit expires on June 24, 2016 and will be automatically renewed for one year periods unless either party elects not to renew. The Company is required to maintain a $100,000 certificate of deposit with the financial institution. The Company is also required to pay an annual fee of 2% of the total value of the letter of credit. As of September 30, 2015, no draws have been made on the letter of credit.

Consultant bonus – In April 2012, the Company entered into an Agreement for Services (the “Agreement”) with a consulting firm. The Company agreed to pay the firm at their standard rates in exchange for services provided. In addition, the Company agreed to pay bonuses to the firm upon completion of milestones as defined in the Agreement. The bonuses consist of cash payments up to $400,000 and issuance of up to 3,000,000 warrants at a price of $0.90 per share and expiring March 31, 2017. The Agreement does not contain any performance commitments; therefore, the fair value of the warrants will be measured and recognized on the dates that the milestones are reached. As of September 30, 2015, no milestones have been reached for which a bonus was due or paid.

F-21

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

8. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (continued)

Registration Rights Agreement - In connection with the November 30, 2012 private placement, the Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement (“RRA”) with the purchasers. Pursuant to the RRA, the Company agreed to certain demand registration rights. If the Company is not able to comply with the registration requirements, the Company will be required to pay cash penalties equal to 1.0% of the subscription proceeds on the date of such failure, and each month thereafter, up to a maximum of 6% of the subscription proceeds. The maximum penalty amounts to $346,979; however, the RRA also provides that no liquidated damages are payable so long as the securities could be resold using Rule 144. As of September 30, 2015, the Company had incurred and paid cumulative penalties of $5,757. Additionally, as of September 30, 2015, the Company was not in compliance with the registration requirements; however, any penalty is limited to use of the cashless exercise rights to the extent available.

9. CONCENTRATIONS

Concentration of credit risk - The Company maintains its cash accounts in financial institutions. Cash accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) for up to $250,000 per financial institution. The Company has never experienced a material loss or lack of access to its cash accounts; however, no assurance can be provided that access to the Company’s cash accounts will not be impacted by adverse conditions in the financial markets. At September 30, 2015, the Company had $519,468 in excess of FDIC insured limits.

Concentration of activity - The Company currently utilizes a metallurgical consulting firm to perform significant portions of its exploration work programs. A change in the lead metallurgical consulting firm could cause a delay in the progress of the Company’s exploration programs and would cause the Company to incur significant transition expense and may affect operating results adversely.

10. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

DOSA - DOSA is a consulting firm owned by the Company’s CEO. Services provided by NMC are coordinated for the Company by DOSA. No management fees are billed to the Company for these services. Details of these transactions are provided below. The CEO’s salary and reimbursable expenses are also paid to DOSA.

NMC - NMC is the Company’s largest shareholder. NMC and its affiliates own approximately 26.7% of the Company’s outstanding common stock and is the Company’s lead consultant on technical exploration matters.

The following table provides details of transactions between the Company and NMC for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014.

		Three Months		Three Months		Nine Months		Nine Months
		Ended		Ended		Ended		Ended
		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,
		2015		2014		2015		2014
Reimbursement of expenses	$	880	$	-	$	18,917	$	29,279
Consulting services provided		105,000		105,000		315,000		315,000
Mineral and exploration expense – related party	$	105,880	$	105,000	$	333,917	$	344,279

F-22

IRELAND INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(UNAUDITED)

10. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (continued)

At September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the Company owed DOSA $40,168 and $237,551, respectively, for NMC fees and reimbursements.

Searchlight Minerals Corp. (“SMC”) – The Company leases corporate office space on month-to-month terms to SMC. NMC is a shareholder in both the Company and SMC. Additionally, the Company’s CFO, Treasurer and director is also a director of SMC and one of the Company’s consultants is an officer and director of SMC. Total rent income earned was $5,068 and $7,305 for the three month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $15,070 and $24,219 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. No amounts were due from SMC as of September 30, 2015 or December 31, 2014.

Cactus Mining – Cactus Mining is an affiliate of NMC. For the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, Cactus Mining paid the Company $50,000 for use of onsite laboratory facilities and personnel for the month of March 2015.

Former officers - Due to related parties includes amounts due to former officers of the Company. At September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the remaining amount of due to related parties was $23,290, respectively.

F-23

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q constitute "forward-looking statements.” These statements, identified by words such as “plan,” "anticipate,” "believe,” "estimate,” "should,” "expect" and similar expressions include our expectations and objectives regarding our future financial position, operating results and business strategy. These statements reflect the current views of management with respect to future events and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from those described in the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include those set forth under the caption "Part II, Item 1A. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. We advise you to carefully review the reports and documents we file from time to time with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), particularly our periodic reports filed with the SEC pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”).

OVERVIEW

We were incorporated on February 20, 2001 under the laws of the State of Nevada. We are an exploration stage mineral exploration company focused on the discovery and extraction of precious metals from mineral deposits in the Southwestern United States.

In February 2008, we acquired our lead project, a prospective gold, silver and calcium carbonate property located in Esmeralda County, Nevada, that we call the “Columbus Project.” The Columbus Project consists of 466 mineral claims covering approximately 23,418 acres, plus an additional 80 acres of private land, for a total of 23,498 acres including a 380 acre Permitted Mine Area (60-acre mill site and mill facility, 266-acre mine site with 54 acres defined as “undisturbed area”). Our current permits allow us to mine up to 792,000 tons per year to 40 feet in depth for the purpose of extracting precious metals and calcium carbonate from the Permitted Mine Area. In addition, we own 80 acres of land in the southeast quadrant of the project. Our current exploration efforts are focused on the North and South Sand Zones of the Columbus Project.

The discussion provided in this Quarterly Report should be read in conjunction with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 31, 2015.

RECENT CORPORATE DEVELOPMENTS

There were no significant corporate developments from the beginning of our September 30, 2015 fiscal quarter to the filing of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

PLAN OF OPERATIONS

During the next twelve months, we intend to proceed with our exploration program for the Columbus Project.

The Columbus Project

The technical program for the Columbus Project has two primary objectives: (a) to identify the mineral resources and (b) to determine the feasibility of mining and extracting precious metals from the project.

(a)

Mineralization: Exploration work to date has identified three different host materials (sand, clay, brine) each of which could potentially contain commercial quantities of gold and silver mineralization within the project area. The sand zones outcrop on the western side of the Columbus basin and dip gently eastward. The clay zones also outcrop and overlay the sand zones. The brine zone occurs as an aquifer at some 400 feet depth underlying the sand/clay zones.

Our recent exploration efforts have focused on the sand material, specifically in an approximate 2,000 acre area of interest on the west side of our project site. Through three drill programs, we have identified the North Sand Zone and the South Sand Zone. The North Sand Zone has been the site of the source material for our recent extraction tests.

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	To date, 34 holes have been drilled in the 0.67 square mile (429 acres) North Sand Zone, and 3 holes in the 0.48 square mile (307 acres) South Sand Zone. Drilling has been completed to depths ranging from 165 feet to 400 feet in both sand zones. We have yet to drill through the sand zone with any of our drilling to date.
	During the last quarter of 2015, we intend to re-start the pilot plant and then, if successful, to begin re- assaying drill samples from the North and South Sand Zones in order to update the mineralization grade for these areas using the recently modified and updated “TPAC” process. “TPAC” involves thermal pre- treatment (TP) of the sands, followed by autoclave and/or open vessel leaching (AC). The TPAC process is the main process which liberates the gold into the pregnant leach solution (PLS). Many proprietary extraction processes have been tested on lab scale samples (0.2-2 kg) of the TPAC-PLS over the last several months. Lab scale work has been sufficiently encouraging to warrant gold extraction test work on larger samples (0.5-5 ton) processed through the slightly modified on site pilot plant. The pilot plant test work is currently underway.
	We have also been granted the permit for our Phase Four drill program, which will consist of 31 drill holes to a depth of at least 200 feet. The drill program will cover an additional 0.48 square miles adjacent to the southern boundary of the North Sand Zone. The goal of this program is to expand the boundaries and improve the definition of the North Sand Zone. Following completion of the Phase Four drill program, we will re-evaluate the boundaries of the sand zones, the quantity of the tonnage contained therein and the quality of the mineralization estimates within these areas. It is anticipated that additional drill programs will follow. Our Phase Four drill program is currently on hold while we focus our resources on re-assaying drill samples and optimizing the TPAC process under laboratory conditions.
(b)	Mining and Recovery Methodology: We currently have a Water Pollution Control permit for the Columbus Project that allows for the extraction of precious metals and the production of calcium carbonate on the 380-acre site (266-acre mine site, 60-acre mill site, and 54 acres defined as “undisturbed area”) at a mine rate of up to 792,000 tons per year. As previously reported, we are currently focused on the extraction of precious metals from the sand zone areas of the Columbus Project – specifically, the North and South Sand Zones.
	Over the past six months we have completed hundreds of laboratory extraction tests which have led to slight modifications of the TPAC process for PLS and caused the gold extraction from the PLS to be improved enough to warrant larger scale testing. The next step, before re-assaying the drill holes, is to determine if these lab processes are scalable on larger (0.5-5 ton) pilot plant runs. Pilot plant runs, with slight modifications to the circuit, are already underway. Results will be available as work progresses.
	Tests completed during 2012-2014 led to the development of the TPAC extraction process. Early testing has resulted in significant increases in gold extraction on splits taken from a single drill hole location in the North Sand Zone. However, the TPAC method is expected to significantly increase the cost of gold extraction from the Columbus Project. As a result, we have not yet determined our targeted precious metals extraction rates for this extraction method. Testing and optimization of the TPAC process on the Columbus Project sands, gravity (ITC) concentrates and leach (PLS) precipitates under laboratory conditions is ongoing, and is expected to continue during 2015.

Readers are cautioned that we have not yet established any proven or probable reserves. There is no assurance that we will be able to establish that any commercially extractable ore reserves exist on the Columbus Project or that we will enter into commercial production.

We anticipate spending approximately $2,835,000 on our exploration program and $200,000 on our capital expenditures for the Columbus Project during the twelve months ending September 30, 2016.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with United States generally accepted accounting principles requires our management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amount of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Our management routinely makes judgments and estimates about the effects of matters that are inherently uncertain.

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We have identified certain accounting policies, described below, that are most important to the portrayal of our current financial condition and results of operations. Our significant accounting policies are also disclosed in the notes to our interim consolidated financial statements for the period ended September 30, 2015 included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Use of Estimates – The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. By their nature, these estimates are subject to measurement uncertainty and the effect on the financial statements of changes in such estimates in future periods could be significant. Significant areas requiring estimates and assumptions include the valuation of stock-based compensation, impairment analysis of long-lived assets, accrued reclamation and remediation costs and realizability of deferred tax assets and derivative liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Mineral Properties - Costs of acquiring mineral properties are capitalized upon acquisition. Exploration costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are expensed as incurred while the project is in the exploration stage. Development costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are capitalized as incurred while the property is in the development stage. When a property reaches the production stage, the related capitalized costs are amortized using the units-of-production basis over the proven and probable reserves.

Mineral Exploration and Development Costs - Exploration expenditures incurred prior to entering the development stage are expensed and included in “Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses”.

Property and Equipment - Property and equipment is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is principally provided on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which are generally 3 to 20 years. The cost of repairs and maintenance is charged to expense as incurred. Expenditures for property betterments and renewals are capitalized. Upon sale or other disposition of a depreciable asset, cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in the consolidated statement of operations.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets - We review and evaluate our long-lived assets for impairment at each balance sheet date due to our planned exploration stage losses and document such impairment testing. Mineral properties in the exploration stage are monitored for impairment based on factors such as our continued right to explore the property, exploration reports, drill results, technical reports and continued plans to fund exploration programs on the property.

The tests for long-lived assets in the exploration, development or producing stage that have a value beyond proven and probable reserves will be monitored for impairment based on factors such as current market value of the mineral property and results of exploration, future asset utilization, business climate, mineral prices and future undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the related assets. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying amount of an asset to the estimated future net undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by the asset, including evaluating its reserves beyond proven and probable amounts.

Our policy is to record an impairment loss in the period when it is determined that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable either by impairment or by abandonment of the property. The impairment loss is calculated as the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds its fair value.

Asset Retirement Obligation - Future obligations to retire an asset, including site closure, are recorded as a liability at fair value in the period incurred. The fair value determination is based on estimated future cash flows, the current credit-adjusted risk-free interest rate and an estimated inflation factor. The value of the liability is evaluated at least annually or as new information becomes available. As reclamation work is performed or liabilities are otherwise settled, the recorded amount of the liability will be reduced.

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Future reclamation expenditures are difficult to estimate in many circumstances due to the early stage nature of the exploration project, the uncertainties associated with defining the nature and extent of environmental disturbance, the application of laws and regulations by regulatory authorities and changes in reclamation technology. Changes in estimates are reflected in the consolidated statement of operations in the period an estimate is revised.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Our financial position was as follows at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014:

		September 30,
		2015		December 31, 2014
Cash	$	774,396	$	259,495
Current liabilities	$	230,922	$	1,058,816
Accrued reclamation costs	$	672,338	$	672,338
Stockholders' equity	$	18,285,063	$	17,136,624

During the nine months ended September 30, 2015, our liquidity position was affected by the following:

• We received gross proceeds of $3,800,000 from the sale of 2015 Special Warrants and $10,000 from the exercise of stock options.

• The proceeds received from equity transactions allowed us to purchase equipment totaling $298,467, pay down accounts payable by $479,444 and pay BLM claim maintenance fees of $187,807.

• Continued work on our technical program and general and administrative activities consumed approximately $2,300,000.

Looking Forward

We have budgeted for the following cash expenditures for the twelve months ending September 30, 2016:

Columbus Project
•	Property Payments	$	188,000
•	Drilling Program and Mineralization Estimates		1,228,000
•	Pilot Plant / Project Feasibility		1,419,000
	Total for Columbus Project	$	2,835,000
General and Administration
	Total for General and Administration	$	1,555,000
Total Expected Expenses		$	4,390,000
Total Expected Capital Expenditures		$	200,000
Total Expected Cash Expenditures		$	4,590,000

During the next twelve months, we will continue to focus our efforts on developing the Columbus Project, resulting in the following expectations:

• Our management anticipates that the minimum cash requirements for funding our proposed exploration programs and our continued operations through September 30, 2016 will be approximately $4,590,000. As of September 30, 2015, we had cash reserves in the amount of approximately $774,000. Our current financial resources are not expected to be sufficient to allow us to meet the anticipated cash expenditures for the twelve month period ending September 30, 2016. In March and April 2015, we completed the sale of 19,000,000 2015 Special Warrants for total gross proceeds of $3,800,000 under our 2015 Special Warrant Offering. As a result of completing the sale of the 2015 Special Warrants, we anticipate that our existing financial resources are sufficient only to pay for the anticipated costs of our exploration program until November 2015. We will require additional financing to complete our exploration plans. If we are unable to obtain additional financing, we will adjust our operating plan depending upon our existing financial resources.

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• Our twelve month budget includes capital expenditures of $200,000; however, we do not have any purchase commitments for capital assets.

Certain key factors will affect our future financial and operating results. These include, but are not limited to the following:

• We have not yet earned any operational revenues since our inception. We may not generate sufficient revenues from our proposed business plan in the future to achieve profitable operations. If we are not able to achieve profitable operations at some point in the future, we eventually may have insufficient working capital to maintain our operations as we presently intend to conduct them or to fund our expansion plans. Our current financial resources may not be sufficient to allow us to meet our anticipated cash expenditures during for the next 12 months and we may require additional financing. We do not have any additional financing arrangements in place, and there is no assurance that we will be able to raise financing sufficient to meet our needs or on terms that are acceptable to us.

• Obtaining additional financing is subject to a number of factors, including the market prices for base and precious metals, investor interest in our mineral projects, and the performance of equity markets in general. These factors may make the timing, amount, terms or conditions of additional financing unavailable to us. If adequate funds are not available or if they are not available on acceptable terms, our ability to fund our business plan could be significantly limited and we may be required to suspend our business operations.

For these reasons, our financial statements filed herewith include a statement that these factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our ability to continue as a going concern will be dependent on our raising of additional capital and the success of our business plan.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Revenue. We have not earned any operational revenues since our inception and we do not anticipate earning revenues until our mineral properties enter into commercial production, of which there are no assurances. Our pilot production plant at the Columbus Project is currently being operated for pre-feasibility testing purposes only. We are currently in the exploration stage of our business and we can provide no assurances that we will be able to establish the existence of probable or proved mineral reserves on our properties, or if such reserves are established, that we will be able to enter into commercial production.

Nine Month period ended September 30, 2015 and 2014.

Operating Expenses

Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses decreased by 34% to $1,299,614 during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2015 from $1,978,144 during the nine month period ended September 30, 2014. The decrease was due to reduced claim maintenance fees, reduced operating expenses and metallurgical work performed by a third party consultant in 2014.

Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses – related party decreased by 3% to $333,917 for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2015 from $344,279 during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2014. The decrease is due to reduced reimbursable metallurgy and travel expenses paid to Nanominerals in 2015.

General and administrative expenses increased 2% to $1,369,345 during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2015 from $1,349,035 during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2014.

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Abandonment of mineral rights expense of $16,245,954 was recorded in Q3 2014 (Q3 2015 $0) as an election was made not to renew 198 mineral claims that previously formed part of the Columbus Project by declining to pay the BLM maintenance fees for those claims.

Other income and (expenses) increased by 192% to $3,944,266 during the nine month period ended September 30, 2015 from $1,350,855 during the nine month period ended September 30, 2014. The increase is primarily due to additional Special Warrants underlying the derivative liability and the decreased stock price affecting the derivative liability valuation at the end of Q3 2015.

Income tax benefit increased by 12% to expense of $2,950 during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2015 from an expense of $2,644 during the nine month period ended September 30, 2014.

Net Income (loss). The aforementioned factors resulted in a net income of $478,880, or $0 per common share, for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, as compared with a net loss of $19,380,527, or $0.13 per common share, for the nine month period ended September 30, 2014.

Three Month period ended September 30, 2015 and 2014.

Operating Expenses

Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses decreased by 17% to $445,496 during the three month period ended September 30, 2015 from $534,757 during the three months ended September 30, 2014. The decrease was due to decreased claim maintenance fees and reduced operating expenses.

Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses – related party increased by 1% to $105,880 for the three month period ended September 30, 2015 from $105,000 for the three month period ended September 30, 2014. The increase is due to increased reimbursable expenses incurred by Nanominerals.

General and administrative expenses increased by 20% to $471,651 for the three month period ended September 30, 2015 from $391,447 during the three month period ended September 30, 2014. The increase is due to additional stock based compensation recognized related to the April 2015 option grants, partially offset by a decrease in administrative salary expenses.

Abandonment of mineral rights expense of $16,245,954 was recorded in Q3 2014 (Q3 2015 $0) as an election was made not to renew 198 mineral claims that previously formed part of the Columbus Project by declining to pay the BLM maintenance fees for those claims.

Other Income (Expenses) increased by 7,522% to $5,948,140 during the three month period ended September 30, 2015 from $78,041 during the three month period ended September 30, 2014. The increase is primarily due to additional Special Warrants underlying the derivative liability and the decreased stock price affecting the derivative liability valuation at the end of Q3 2015.

Net Income (loss). The aforementioned factors resulted in a net income of $4,836,059 or $0.03 per common share, for the three month period ended September 30, 2015, as compared with a net loss of $17,493,932, or $0.12 per common share, for the three month period ended September 30, 2014.

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

We have no significant off-balance sheet arrangements that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on our financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that is material to stockholders.

RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

From time to time, new accounting pronouncements are issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) that are adopted by us, as of the specified effective date. Unless otherwise discussed, management believes that the impact of recently issued standards did not or will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements upon adoption.

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In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-12, Compensation - Stock Compensation - Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved after the Requisite Service Period, which is effective for financial statements issued for interim and annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2015. The guidance requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period be treated as a performance condition and should not be reflected in the estimate of the grant-date fair value of the award. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2014, the FASB issued “ASU” 2014-15, Presentation of Financial Statements – Going Concern. The new standard requires management of public and private companies to evaluate whether there is substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern and, if so, disclose that fact. Management will also be required to evaluate and disclose whether its plans alleviate that doubt. The new standard is effective for annual periods ending after December 15, 2016, and interim periods within annual periods beginning after December 15, 2016. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In November 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2014-16, Determining Whether the Host Contract in a Hybrid Financial Instrument Issued in the Form of a Share Is More Akin to Debt or to Equity. The ASU clarifies how current guidance should be interpreted in evaluating the economic characteristics and risks of a host contract in a hybrid financial instrument that is issued in the form of a share. Specifically, the amendments clarify that an entity should consider all relevant terms and features, including the embedded derivative feature being evaluated for bifurcation, in evaluating the nature of a host contract. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2015. The Company is currently assessing the impact, if any, of implementing this guidance on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK.

Not Applicable.

ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES.

As of September 30, 2015, an evaluation was performed under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures. These controls and procedures are based on the definition of disclosure controls and procedures in Rule 13a-15(e) and Rule 15d-15(e) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Based on that evaluation as of September 30, 2015, our management, including the CEO and CFO, concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective to ensure that the information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in SEC rules and forms.

Management, including our CEO and CFO, have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures provide reasonable assurance that the controls and procedures will meet their desired control objectives. In designing and evaluating our control system, management recognized that any control system, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance of achieving the desired control objectives. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, that may affect our operations have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision -making can be faulty and that breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake.

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During the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2015, there were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

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PART II - OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS.

None.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS.

The following are some of the important factors that could affect our financial performance or could cause actual results to differ materially from estimates contained in our forward-looking statements. We may encounter risks in addition to those described below. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us, or that we currently deem to be immaterial, may also impair or adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operation.

We will require additional financing to complete our exploration programs for our mineral project.

We expect to spend approximately $4,590,000 during the twelve months ending September 30, 2016 on the exploration of our Columbus Project and the general costs of operating and maintaining our business and mineral properties. We do not currently have sufficient financial resources to pay for our anticipated expenditures for that period. In March and April 2015, we completed the sale of 19,000,000 2015 Special Warrants for total gross proceeds of $3,800,000 under our 2015 Special Warrant Offering. As a result of completing the sale of the 2015 Special Warrants, we anticipate that our existing financial resources are sufficient only to pay for the anticipated costs of our exploration program until November 2015. We will require additional financing to complete our exploration plans. In addition, actual costs of completing our exploration plans could be greater than anticipated and we may need additional financing sooner than anticipated. If we are unable to obtain sufficient financing to complete our exploration plans, we will scale back our plans depending upon our existing financial resources.

Our ability to obtain future financing will be subject to a number of factors, including the variability of market prices for gold and silver, investor interest in our mineral projects, and the performance of equity markets in general. These factors may make the timing, amount, terms or conditions of additional financing unavailable to us. If we are not able to obtain financing when needed or in an amount sufficient to enable us to complete our programs, we may be required to scale back our exploration programs.

If we complete additional financings through the sale of our common stock, our existing stockholders will experience dilution.

The most likely source of future financing presently available to us is through the sale of shares of our common stock. The only other anticipated alternative for the financing of further exploration would be the offering by us of an interest in our mineral properties to be earned by another party or parties carrying out further exploration thereof, which is not presently contemplated. Issuing shares of our common stock, for financing purposes or otherwise, will dilute the interests of our existing stockholders.

In order to maintain the rights to our mineral properties, we will be required to make annual filings with federal and state regulatory agencies and/or be required to complete assessment work or pay fees in respect of those properties.

In order to maintain the rights to our mineral projects, we will be required to make annual filings and pay fees with federal and state regulatory authorities. On June 16, 2011, the Governor of Nevada approved Senate Bill 493 (SB 493), which repealed a one-time tiered fee hike on mining claims in Nevada. SB 493 also eliminated a number of tax deductions that had previously been available for companies with mining operations in Nevada. We are currently an exploration stage company and do not have significant mineral extraction activities or any revenues from mining operations and do not expect the elimination of these tax deductions to have a significant impact on our current exploration activities or financial prospects. However, if we do, in the future engage in significant mineral extraction operations, of which there is no assurance, the elimination of these tax deductions could affect our future financial results.

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In 2012 there was an increase in claim maintenance fees related to association placer claims. Previously, maintenance fees for placer mineral claims were $140 per year per placer claim, with claims being up to 160 acres each. Beginning in 2012, these fees were increased to $140 for every 20 acres of a placer claim, and beginning September 1, 2014, these fees were increased again to $155 for every 20 acres. These increases effectively increased the fee for a 160 acre claim from $140 per year to $1,240.

In addition to claim maintenance fees, we may be required by federal and/or state legislation or regulations to complete minimum annual amounts of mineral exploration work on our mineral properties. A failure by us to meet the annual maintenance requirements under federal and state laws could cause our mineral rights to lapse.

Because we are a mineral exploration company, we face a high risk of business failure.

To date, our primary business activities have involved the acquisition of mineral claims and the exploration of these claims. We have not earned any revenues as of the date of this report. Potential investors should be aware of the difficulties normally encountered by exploration stage companies and the high rate of failure of such enterprises. The likelihood of success must be considered in light of the problems, expenses, difficulties, complications and delays encountered in connection with the exploration of the mineral properties that we plan to undertake. These potential problems include, but are not limited to, unanticipated problems relating to exploration, and additional costs and expenses that may exceed current estimates.

Because we anticipate that our operating expenses will increase prior to earning revenues, we may never achieve profitability.

Prior to commencing mineral production, we anticipate that we will incur increased operating expenses without realizing any revenues. We therefore expect to incur significant losses into the foreseeable future. We recognize that if we are unable to generate significant revenues from the exploration of our mineral claims and the production of minerals thereon, if any, we will not be able to earn profits or continue operations. There is no history upon which to base any assumption as to the likelihood that we will prove successful, and we may not be able to ever generate any operating revenues or achieve profitable operations. If we are unsuccessful in addressing these risks, our business will most likely fail.

Because of the inherent dangers involved in mineral exploration, there is a risk that we may incur liability or damages if and when conducting mineral exploration activities.

The search for valuable minerals involves numerous hazards. As a result, when conducting exploration activities we may become subject to liability for such hazards, including pollution, cave-ins and other hazards against which we cannot insure or against which we may elect not to insure. The payment of such liabilities may have a material adverse effect on our financial position.

Because of the speculative nature of exploration of mining properties, there is substantial risk that no commercially exploitable minerals will be found.

We have not yet established proved or probable reserves on the Columbus Project or on our other mineral properties. The search for valuable minerals as a business is extremely risky. Although we have been encouraged by the results of the exploration work conducted by us to date, further exploration work is required before proven or probable reserves can be established, and there are no assurances that we will be able to establish any proven or probable reserves. Exploration for minerals is a speculative venture, necessarily involving substantial risk. The expenditures to be made by us may not result in the discovery of commercial quantities of ore. Problems such as unusual or unexpected formations and other conditions are involved in mineral exploration and often result in unsuccessful exploration efforts. We intend to report the results of our exploration activities promptly after those results have been received and analysed. However, there is no assurance that the test results reported by us will be indicative of extraction rates throughout our mineral properties.

As a result of the public’s lack of familiarity with the assaying methods used by us to analyze samples taken from the sand and clay zones of the Columbus Project, we may occasionally encounter resistance to the reliability of our grade estimates for the Columbus Project. Although we use proven assaying methods, only report extracted and weighed gold and silver and have instituted rigorous testing to ensure the reliability of our exploration results, we may face resistance in the future, which could negatively impact our business, our ability to obtain future financing, and our stock price.

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Contrary to popular belief, pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical tests on a rock sample do not determine the amount of gold or silver present in a sample. Instead, these tests report the amount of gold or silver that is extracted from the sample by the analytical method used. We have engaged in extensive research and testing to determine the best pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical methods for extracting gold and silver from the sands and clays present at the Columbus Project. Our research has indicated that caustic fusion (head ore, concentrates) and thiosulphate or cyanide leaching (concentrates) are the best pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical methods for extracting gold and silver from the Columbus Project. The pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical methods that were chosen by us result in the actual physical extraction of gold and silver from the tested samples.

Caustic fusion is a standard pyrometallurgical method that uses fluxes melted at low temperature to dissolve the sample rock and liberate the contained minerals or metals for subsequent extraction and analysis. Caustic fusion was developed in South Africa over 100 years ago and was first used to liberate diamonds from their refractory kimberlites. It has since been used to quantify other minerals/metals in rocks by analyzing the fused product. Caustic fusion has proven to be a very effective method for extracting gold and silver from the refractory minerals (organics, silicates) in the sand and clay at Columbus, and has been confirmed by extracting comparable precious metal values from bulk leach tests (+/- 1 ton samples).

Fire assaying is the most common pyrometallurgical method used for extracting gold and silver from rock. Fire assaying relies on the use of standardized chemical fluxes to reduce the melting point of the minerals entombing the gold and silver so that they can be liberated and then collected in a lead “button” and examined. Although this process works well for extracting gold entombed in sulfides (e.g. pyrite) and silica, such as that found in Carlin-type gold deposits, the chemical fluxes used in fire assaying methods are ineffective at liberating the gold and silver from refractory minerals (organics and silicates (Fe-Mg-Al-Si-Ox)) as are found at the Columbus Project. As a result, in our tests, fire assaying has shown to be ineffective at extracting commercial values of gold and silver from the sand and clay from the Columbus Project. Similarly, aqua regia digestion has also proven to be ineffective at extracting gold and silver from the sands and clays at Columbus.

To ensure the reliability of our results, we have instituted rigorous QA/QC protocols, including blind random sampling, and the inclusion of blanks, standards and duplicates. To further ensure reliability, we measure only the actual amount of gold and silver physically extracted from our test samples when reporting assay results. We also have extracted gold and silver from large samples (+/- 200-3000 lbs.) by thiosulphate leaching, with the extraction results being comparable to caustic fusion assay results on the same samples, thereby confirming the reliability of the caustic fusion process. However, because caustic fusion is not commonly used and understood for gold and silver assaying, and because gold and silver in the sands and clays at Columbus cannot be confirmed by metal-in-hand extraction using fire assay or aqua regia digestion, we may encounter some resistance to our analytical methods and assay results, which could negatively impact our business, our ability to obtain additional financing, and our stock price.

Even if we establish proven or probable reserves on our mineral claims, we may not be able to successfully reach commercial production.

We anticipate using a low cost, high volume surface dredge operation to mine the Columbus Project. Our pre-feasibility program for the Columbus Project is designed to test and optimize our planned mining process for the Columbus Project. There is no assurance that this pre-feasibility program will result in a decision to enter into commercial production.

In addition, expanding our production facilities to accommodate commercial operations is expected to require substantially more financial resources than what we currently have available to us. There is a risk that we will not be able to obtain such financing if and when needed.

Although we have installed the leach circuit of the onsite pilot production module for the Columbus Project, there is no assurance that this project is commercially feasible.

We have begun testing and optimizing the onsite pilot production module at the Columbus Project. This pilot production module is part of our pre-feasibility study for the Columbus Project and is designed to evaluate the commercial viability of the Columbus Project. There is no assurance that the results of our pre-feasibility program will result in a decision to enter into commercial production.

13

Even if we can successfully reach commercial production, any change to mining laws or regulations or levy of additional taxes in the future may make our planned production process nonviable economically.

Several bills have been introduced by the US federal government that would levy resource taxes on mineral exploration companies. Any levy of additional taxes would have an adverse effect on our business. In addition, laws and regulations governing the exploration of mineral properties and the mining process are subject to change. Changes to mining laws and regulations that would have the effect of increasing the cost of mineral exploration and mining activities would adversely impact our business.

We are subject to compliance with government regulations. The costs of complying with these regulations may change without notice, and may increase the anticipated cost of our exploration programs.

There are several government regulations that materially restrict the exploration of minerals. We will be required to obtain work permits, post bonds and perform remediation work for any physical disturbance to the land in order to comply with these laws. While our planned exploration program budgets for regulatory compliance, there is a risk that new regulations could increase our costs of doing business and prevent us from carrying out our exploration program.

In addition, if our applications for permits from the relevant regulatory bodies are denied, we may not be able to proceed with our exploration programs.

If we decide to pursue commercial production, we may be subject to an environmental review process that may delay or prohibit commercial production.

Our planned method for mining the Columbus Project is not expected to generate any significant long term environmental impact. However, we have not yet had a comprehensive environmental review conducted on our planned mining operations for the Columbus Project.

Compliance with an environmental review process may be costly and may delay commercial production. Furthermore, there is the possibility that we would not be able to proceed with commercial production upon completion of the environmental review process if government authorities do not approve our mine or if the costs of compliance with government regulation adversely affected the commercial viability of the proposed mine.

The market for our common stock is limited and investors may have difficulty selling their stock.

Our shares are currently traded on the over the counter market, with quotations entered for our common stock on the OTC Pink marketplace tier under the symbol “IRLD.” However, the volume of trading in our common stock is currently limited. As a result, holders of our common stock may have difficulty selling their shares.

Because our common stock is a penny stock, stockholders may be further limited in their ability to sell their shares.

Our shares constitute a penny stock under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and are expected to remain classified as a penny stock for the foreseeable future. Classification as a penny stock makes it more difficult for a broker-dealer to sell the stock into a secondary market, which makes it more difficult for a purchaser to liquidate his or her investment. Any broker-dealer engaged by the purchaser for the purpose of selling his or her shares will be subject to Rules 15g-2 through 15g-9 of the Exchange Act. Rather than having to comply with these rules, some broker-dealers will refuse to attempt to sell a penny stock.

No assurance that forward looking assessments will be realized.

Our ability to accomplish our objectives and whether or not we are financially successful is dependent upon numerous factors, each of which could have a material effect on the results obtained. Some of these factors are in the discretion and control of management and others are beyond management’s control. The assumptions and hypotheses used in preparing any forward-looking assessments contained herein are considered reasonable by management. There can be no assurance, however, that any projections or assessments contained herein or otherwise made by management will be realized or achieved at any level.

14

If we are, or were, a U.S. real property holding corporation, non-U.S. holders of our common stock or other security convertible into our common stock could be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the gain from the sale, exchange or other disposition of such security.

If we are or ever have been a U.S. real property holding corporation (a “USRPHC”) under the Foreign Investment Real Property Tax Act of 1980, as amended (“FIRPTA”) and applicable United States Treasury regulations (collectively, the “FIRPTA Rules”), unless an exception applies, certain non-U.S. investors in our common stock (or options or warrants for our common stock) would be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the gain from the sale, exchange or other disposition of shares of our common stock (or such options or warrants), and such non-U.S. investor would be required to file a United States federal income tax return. In addition, the purchaser of such common stock, option or warrant would be required to withhold from the purchase price an amount equal to 10% of the purchase price and remit such amount to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

We have not conducted a formal analysis of whether we are or have ever been a USRPHC. However, we believe that we may be a USRPHC. In general, under the FIRPTA Rules, a company is a USRPHC if its interests in U.S. real property comprise at least 50% of the fair market value of its assets. If we are or were a USRPHC, so long as our common stock is “regularly traded on an established securities market” (as defined under the FIRPTA Rules), a non-U.S. holder who, actually or constructively, holds or held no more than 5% of our common stock is not subject to U.S. federal income tax on the gain from the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common stock under FIRPTA. In addition, other interests in equity of a USRPHC may qualify for this exception if, on the date such interest was acquired, such interests had a fair market value no greater than the fair market value on that date of 5% of our common stock. Any of our common stockholders (or owners of options or warrants for our common stock) that are non-U.S. persons should consult their tax advisors to determine the consequences of investing in our common stock (or options or warrants).

We have not held an annual meeting for the election of directors since our incorporation.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Nevada Revised Statutes (the “NRS”), directors are to be elected at the annual meeting of the stockholders. Pursuant to the NRS and our bylaws, our board of directors is granted the authority to fix the date, time and place for annual stockholder meetings. However, no date, time or place has yet been fixed by our board for the holding of an annual stockholder meeting. Pursuant to the NRS and our bylaws, each of our directors holds office after the expiration of his term until a successor is elected and qualified, or until the director resigns or is removed. Under the provisions of the NRS, if an election of our directors has not been made by our stockholders within 18 months of the last such election, then an application may be made to the Nevada district court by stockholders holding a minimum of 15% of our outstanding stockholder voting power for an order for the election of directors in the manner provided in the NRS.

FOR ALL OF THE AFORESAID REASONS AND OTHERS SET-FORTH AND NOT SET-FORTH HEREIN, AN INVESTMENT IN OUR SECURITIES INVOLVES A CERTAIN DEGREE OF RISK. ANY PERSON CONSIDERING TO INVEST IN OUR SECURITIES SHOULD BE AWARE OF THESE AND OTHER FACTORS SET-FORTH IN THIS REPORT AND IN THE OTHER REPORTS AND DOCUMENTS THAT WE FILE FROM TIME TO TIME WITH THE SEC AND SHOULD CONSULT WITH HIS/HER LEGAL, TAX AND FINANCIAL ADVISORS PRIOR TO MAKING AN INVESTMENT IN OUR SECURITIES. AN INVESTMENT IN OUR SECURITIES SHOULD ONLY BE ACQUIRED BY PERSONS WHO CAN AFFORD TO LOSE THEIR TOTAL INVESTMENT.

ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS.

None.

ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES.

None.

15

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES.

The information concerning mine safety violations or other regulatory matters required by Section 1503(a) of the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and Item 104 of Regulation S-K is included in Exhibit 95-1 to this Report on Form 10-Q.

ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION.

None.

ITEM 6. EXHIBITS.

The following exhibits are either provided with this Quarterly Report or are incorporated herein by reference:

Exhibit Number	Description of Exhibit
3.1	Articles of Incorporation.(1)
3.2	Certificate of Amendment to Articles - Name Change from Merritt Ventures Corp. to Ireland Inc.(2)
3.3	Certificate of Change – 4-for-1 Stock Split.(3)
3.4	Bylaws.(1)
4.1	Form of Warrant.(15)
10.1	2007 Stock Incentive Plan.(4)
10.2	Consulting Agreement between the Company and RJ Falkner & Company, Inc., dated for reference as of November 5, 2007.(5)
10.3	Consultant Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement between the Company and R. Jerry Falkner, dated effective as of November 5, 2007.(5)
10.4	Mining Lease Agreement dated November 30, 2007 between DDB Syndicate and Columbus S.M., LLC.(7)
10.5	Management Employment Agreement for David Z. Strickler.(14)
10.6	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Douglas D.G. Birnie.(9)
10.7	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Robert D. McDougal.(9)
10.8	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Michael A. Steele.(9)
10.9	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Mark H. Brennan.(9)
10.10	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for David Z. Strickler, Jr.(10)
10.11	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement dated April 8, 2011 for Mark H. Brennan.(11)
10.12	Amended and Restated Option Agreement dated July 20, 2011 between Sierra Mineral Management Inc. and Ireland Inc.(12)
10.13	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Douglas D.G. Birnie.(13)
10.14	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for Robert D. McDougal.(13)
10.15	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement for David Z. Strickler, Jr.(13)
10.16	Form of Securities Purchase Agreement.(15)
10.17	Form of Registration Rights Agreement.(15)
10.18	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective February 15, 2013 for Douglas D.G. Birnie.(16)
10.19	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective February 15, 2013 for Robert D. McDougal.(16)
10.20	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective February 15, 2013 for David Z. Strickler, Jr.(16)
10.21	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective February 15, 2013 for Mark H. Brennan.(16)
10.22	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 16, 2013 for Steven A. Klein.(17)
10.23	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective January 17, 2014 for Douglas D.G. Birnie.(19)
10.24	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective January 17, 2014 for Robert D. McDougal.(19)
10.25	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective January 17, 2014 for David Z. Strickler, Jr.(19)
10.26	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective January 17, 2014 for Mark H. Brennan.(19)

16

Exhibit Number	Description of Exhibit
10.27	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective January 17, 2014 for Steven A. Klein. (19)
10.28	Form of Special Warrant Subscription Agreement.(18)
10.29	Nanominerals Subscription Agreement.(18)
10.30	Termination and Mutual Release Agreement dated August 27, 2014 between the Company and Sierra Mineral Management Inc.(20)
10.31	Form of Special Warrant Subscription Agreement.(22)
10.32	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 1, 2015 for Douglas D.G. Birnie.(23)
10.33	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 1, 2015 for Robert D. McDougal.(23)
10.34	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 1, 2015 for David Z. Strickler, Jr.(23)
10.35	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 1, 2015 for Mark H. Brennan.(23)
10.36	Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement effective April 1, 2015 for Steven A. Klein.(23)
31.1	Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
31.2	Certification of Principal Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
32.1	Certification of Principal Executive Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
32.2	Certification of Principal Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
95.1	Mine Safety Disclosures.
99.1	Columbus Project Claims Summary.(21)
101.INS	XBRL Instance Document.
101.SCH	XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema.
101.CAL	XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase.
101.DEF	XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase.
101.LAB	XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase.
101.PRE	XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase.

Notes:

(1)	Filed as an exhibit to our Registration Statement on Form SB-2 originally filed April 18, 2002, as amended.
(2)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-KSB for the year ended December 31, 2005 filed April 12, 2006.
(3)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed April 30, 2007.
(4)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-KSB for the year ended December 31, 2006 filed April 5, 2007.
(5)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed November 9, 2007.
(6)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-KSB for the year ended December 31, 2003 filed September 28, 2004.
(7)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 filed March 31, 2008.
(8)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 filed April 15, 2010.
(9)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed July 28, 2010.
(10)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 filed March 30, 2011.
(11)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed April 13, 2011.
(12)	Filed as an exhibit to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2011 filed August 19, 2011.
(13)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed August 26, 2011.
(14)	Filed as an exhibit to our original Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011 filed March 30, 2012.
(15)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed December 6, 2012.
(16)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, filed April 15, 2013.
(17)	Filed as an exhibit to our Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 on Form S-1/A filed April 19, 2013.
(18)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed March 28, 2014.
(19)	Filed as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, filed March 31, 2014.
(20)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed September 4, 2014.
(21)	Filed as an exhibit to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2014 filed November 19, 2014.
(22)	Filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed March 4, 2015.
(23)	Filed as an exhibit to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed May 15, 2015.

17

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

			IRELAND INC.
Date:	November 16, 2015	By:	/s/ Douglas D.G. Birnie
			DOUGLAS D.G. BIRNIE
			Chief Executive Officer, President and Secretary
			(Principal Executive Officer)
Date:	November 16, 2015	By:	/s/ Robert D. McDougal
			ROBERT D. MCDOUGAL
			Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
			(Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting
			Officer)

EX-31.1

CERTIFICATIONS

I, Douglas D.G. Birnie, certify that;

(1)	I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of Ireland Inc.;
(2)	Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
(3)	Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
(4)	The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a)	Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
b)	Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
c)	Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
d)	Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

(5) The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a)	All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
b)	Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: November 16, 2015

	/s/ Douglas D.G. Birnie
By:	Douglas D.G. Birnie
Title:	President, Secretary and Chief Executive Officer

EX-31.2

CERTIFICATIONS

I, Robert D. McDougal, certify that;

(1)	I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of Ireland Inc.;
(2)	Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
(3)	Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
(4)	The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a)	Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
b)	Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
c)	Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
d)	Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

(5) The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a)	All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
b)	Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: November 16, 2015

	/s/ Robert D. McDougal
By:	Robert D. McDougal
Title:	Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

EX-32.1

CERTIFICATION OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
PURSUANT TO 
18 U.S.C. SECTION 1350,
AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO
SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

I, Douglas D.G. Birnie, the Chief Executive Officer of Ireland Inc. (the “Company”), hereby certify pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that, to the best of my knowledge:

(i)	the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of the Company, for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2015, and to which this certification is attached as Exhibit 32.1 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and
(ii)	the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

By:	/s/ Douglas D.G. Birnie
Name:	DOUGLAS D.G. BIRNIE
Title:	Chief Executive Officer
Date:	November 16, 2015

A signed original of this written statement required by Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 has been provided to the Company and will be retained by the Company and furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission or its staff upon request.

This certification accompanies the Form 10-Q to which it relates, is not deemed filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is not to be incorporated by reference into any filing of the Company under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (whether made before or after the date of the Form 10-Q), irrespective of any general incorporation language contained in such filing.

EX-32.2

CERTIFICATION OF CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
PURSUANT TO 18 U.S.C. SECTION 1350,
AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO
SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

I, Robert D. McDougal, the Chief Financial Officer of Ireland Inc. (the “Company”), hereby certify pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that, to the best of my knowledge:

(i)	the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of the Company, for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2015, and to which this certification is attached as Exhibit 32.2 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and
(ii)	the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

By:	/s/ Robert D. McDougal
Name:	ROBERT D. MCDOUGAL
Title:	Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
Date:	November 16, 2015

A signed original of this written statement required by Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 has been provided to the Company and will be retained by the Company and furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission or its staff upon request.

This certification accompanies the Form 10-Q to which it relates, is not deemed filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is not to be incorporated by reference into any filing of the Company under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (whether made before or after the date of the Form 10-Q), irrespective of any general incorporation language contained in such filing.

EX-95.1

MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Our activities at the Permitted Mine Area of the Columbus Project are subject to regulation by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) and the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (the “Mine Act”). Our wholly owned subsidiary, Columbus S.M., LLC (“Columbus SM”) is the “operator” for our activities at the Permitted Mine Area.

The following disclosure is provided pursuant to Section 1503 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and Section 104 of Regulation S-K.

Citations, Notices, Orders, Fatalities and Assessments Under the Mine Act

				Quarter Ended September 30, 2015
									Received
								Received	Notice of
	Total # of				Total # of	Total $ Value		Notice of	Potential
	“Significant	Total # of	Total # of	Total # of	Imminent	of Proposed	Total	Patterns of	Patterns of
	and	Orders	Citations	Flagrant	Danger	MSHA	Number of	Violations	Violations
	Substantial”	Issued	and Orders	Violations	Orders	Assessments	Mining	Under	Under
Mine / MSHA ID	Violations	Under	Under	Under	Under	Under Mine	Related	s.104(e)	s.104(e)
Number	Under s.104	s.104(b)	s.104(d)	s.110(b)(2)	s.107(a)	Act	Fatalities	(Yes/No)	(Yes/No)
Columbus Project (Mine ID: 601674)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	No	No

Pending Legal Actions Before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (the “FMSHRC”)

	Quarter Ended September 30, 2015
	Total # of Legal	Total # of Legal	Total # of Legal
	Actions Pending as of	Actions Instituted	Actions Resolved
Mine / MSHA ID Number	Last Day of Period	During Period	During Period
Columbus Project (Mine ID: 601674)	0	0	0

XML

Fair Value Assumptions of Derivative Liability (Details)	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%
Expected life (years)	0 years
Maximum [Member]
Expected volatility	104.00%	137.42%
Risk-free interest rate	0.28%	0.14%
Expected life (years)		1 year
Minimum [Member]
Expected volatility	94.96%	91.07%
Risk-free interest rate	0.08%	0.04%
Expected life (years)		0 years

XML

Schedule of Transactions Between the Company and NMC (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
NMC [Member]
Reimbursement of expenses	$ 880	$ 0	$ 18,917	$ 29,279
Consulting services provided	105,000	105,000	315,000	315,000
Mineral and exploration expense related party	105,880	105,000	333,917	344,279
Related Party Transactions [Member]
Mineral and exploration expense related party	105,880	105,000	333,917	344,279
General [Member]
Mineral and exploration expense related party	$ 445,496	$ 534,757	$ 1,299,614	$ 1,978,144

XML

Schedule of Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit) (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
Income tax benefit based on statutory tax rate	$ 1,693,655	$ (6,122,615)	$ 168,642	$ (6,782,259)
Non-deductible items	(2,063,843)	(1,575)	(1,316,405)	(438,042)
Change in valuation allowance	370,757	6,124,936	1,150,713	7,222,945
Income tax expense benefit	$ 569	$ 746	$ 2,950	$ 2,644

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2007	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Nov. 30, 2012	Apr. 30, 2012
Lease obligations [Member]
Operating Leases, Rent Expense		$ 14,629	$ 16,700	$ 43,886	$ 45,420
Payments For Rent Increase				4.00%
Payment For Operating Expenses				$ 748
Columbus Project [Member]
Net Smelter Return Royalty Percentage	5.00%
Standby Letters of Credit [Member]
Stand By Letter Of Credit Value				100,000
Certificates of Deposit, at Carrying Value		$ 100,000		$ 100,000
Required to pay of the total value of the letter of credit		2.00%		2.00%
Consultant Bonus [Member]
Contingent Consultant Bonus Cash Value							$ 400,000
Contingent Consultant Bonus Number of Warrants							3,000,000
Contingent Consultant Bonus Exercise Price Of Warrants							$ 0.90
Registration Payment Arrangement, Arrangement [Domain] [Member]
Registration Payment Arrangement Cash Penalties of Subscription Proceeds						1.00%
Registration Payment Arrangement, Maximum potential penalty		$ 5,757		$ 5,757
Registration Payment Arrangement, Arrangement [Domain] [Member] | Maximum [Member]
Registration Payment Arrangement Cash Penalties of Subscription Proceeds						6.00%
Registration Payment Arrangement, Maximum potential penalty						$ 346,979

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RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Transactions Between the Company and DOSA [Table Text Block]

		Three Months		Three Months		Nine Months		Nine Months
		Ended		Ended		Ended		Ended
		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,
		2015		2014		2015		2014
Reimbursement of expenses	$	880	$	-	$	18,917	$	29,279
Consulting services provided		105,000		105,000		315,000		315,000
Mineral and exploration expense – related party	$	105,880	$	105,000	$	333,917	$	344,279

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Schedule of Share-based Payment Award, Stock Options, Valuation Assumptions (Details)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Expected Dividend Rate	0.00%
Maximum [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Expected Volatility Rate	165.70%
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Risk Free Interest Rate, Maximum	1.32%
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Expected Term	4 years 3 months
Minimum [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Expected Volatility Rate	71.55%
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Risk Free Interest Rate, Minimum	0.02%
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Fair Value Assumptions, Expected Term	1 month 6 days

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Schedule of Mineral Properties (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Ending Balance	$ 15,882,179	$ 15,882,179
Columbus Project [Member]
Ending Balance	15,811,948	15,811,948
DDB Claims [Member]
Ending Balance	$ 70,231	$ 70,231

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Schedule of Future Minimum Rental Payments for Operating Leases (Details) - Minimum Lease Commitment [Member]	Sep. 30, 2015 USD ($)
2016	$ 52,250
2017	44,983
Thereafter	0
Future Minimum Payments Due Total	$ 97,233

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MINERAL PROPERTIES

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

MINERAL PROPERTIES [Text Block]

3. MINERAL PROPERTIES

Mineral properties consisted of the following:

		September 30,		December 31,
		2015		2014
Columbus Project	$	15,811,948	$	15,811,948
DDB Claims		70,231		70,231
Ending balance	$	15,882,179	$	15,882,179

Columbus Project - On February 20, 2008, the Company acquired a 100% interest in the Columbus Project by way of merger with Columbus Brine Inc. (“CBI”). Prior to the merger, the Company held a 15% interest in the Columbus Project by satisfying its option agreement requirements. Pursuant to the option assignment agreement, the Company granted and continues to have a 5% net smelter return royalty to NMC, one of the principal stockholders of the Company.

On August 31, 2014, the Company elected not to renew 51% of the acquired mining claims by declining to pay the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) maintenance fees for the abandoned claims. A loss of $16,136,105 was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2014.

DDB Claims - The Company had a lease agreement for mining claims with the DDB Syndicate. The DDB Syndicate is owned by the Company’s CEO, a former member of our Board of Directors, former officers and directors of CBI and their relatives and affiliates of NMC. The DDB Claims were located in 2007, prior to any of these related persons’ involvement with the Company.

On November 20, 2012, the Company exercised its option provided in the lease agreement to purchase the DDB Claims for a purchase price of $180,080. On August 31, 2014, the Company elected not to renew 61% of the DDB claims by declining to pay the BLM maintenance fees for the abandoned claims. A loss of $109,849 was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Reclamation Bonds - The Company maintains required reclamation bonding with the BLM. As of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, reclamation bonding amounted to $1,121,146 and $1,129,472, respectively.

Asset Retirement Obligation – The asset retirement obligation relates to the Columbus Project and amounted to $672,338 as of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014. The estimated costs were discounted using a credit adjusted risk-free rate of 4.31% and an inflation rate of 3.21% at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively.

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Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Stock Options, Activity (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2015
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Number, Beginning of Period		17,054,697
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value, Beginning of Period	0.32	0.29	0.29
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price, Beginning of Period		$ 0.58
Share-based Compensation, Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Outstanding Options, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term, Beginning of Period	3 years 2 months 1 day	3 years 22 days
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Intrinsic Value		$ 310,800	$ 310,800
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures		3,500,000
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		$ 0.15
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Weighted Average Exercise Price		$ 0.40
Share-based Compensation, Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Options, Granted Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term		5 years 11 months 8 days
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercises in Period		(200,000)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercises in Period, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		0.38
Share-based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award, Exercised, Weighted Average Exercise Price		0.05
Share-based Compensation Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Options Exercised Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term		0 years
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Expirations in Period		(112,500)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Expirations in Period, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		0.36
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Expirations in Period, Weighted Average Exercise Price		$ 0.80
Share-based Compensation Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Options Expired, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term		0 years
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Forfeitures in Period		0
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Forfeitures in Period, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		0
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Forfeitures in Period, Weighted Average Exercise Price		$ 0
Share-based Compensation Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Options Cancelled, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term		0 years
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Number, End of Period	17,054,697	20,242,197
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value, End of Period	0.32	0.29
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price, End of Period	$ 0.58	$ 0.55
Share-based Compensation, Shares Authorized Under Stock Option Plans, Exercise Price Range, Outstanding Options, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term, End of Period	3 years 2 months 1 day	3 years 22 days
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Intrinsic Value, End of Period		$ 310,800
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercisable, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value, End of Period			$ 0.38
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercisable, Weighted Average Exercise Price, End of Period		$ 0.70
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercisable, Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term, End of Period		1 year 10 months 13 days
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercisable, Intrinsic Value, End of Period		$ 310,800

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DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Warrants and Rights Outstanding	$ 19,000,000	$ 14,200,000
Equity Issuance Amount Per Share	$ 0.20
Special Warrants 2014 were converted into Special Warrants 2015	8,075,000

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MINERAL PROPERTIES (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended			3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2014	Nov. 30, 2012	Feb. 29, 2008	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2014	Feb. 20, 2008	Feb. 19, 2008
Equity Issuance Amount Per Share						$ 0.20
Payments to Acquire Property, Plant, and Equipment						$ 298,467	$ 28,945
Asset Retirement Obligation				$ 235,318		235,318		$ 235,318
Other Asset Impairment Charges				0	$ 16,245,954	0	$ 16,245,954
Columbus Project [Member]
Mineral Property, Interest Held									100.00%	15.00%
Net Smelter Return Royalty Percentage			5.00%
Elected not to renew acquired mining claims	51.00%
Other Asset Impairment Charges	$ 16,136,105
Reclamation bonds [Member]
Restricted Investments				1,121,146		1,121,146		$ 1,129,472
Asset Retirement Obligation [Member]
Asset Retirement Obligation				$ 672,338		$ 672,338
Adjusted risk free rate of assets retirement obligation						4.31%
Adjusted inflation rate of assets retirement obligation								3.21%
DDB Claims [Member]
Payments to Acquire Property, Plant, and Equipment		$ 180,080
Elected not to renew acquired mining claims	61.00%
Other Asset Impairment Charges								$ 109,849

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Schedule of Nonvested Share Activity (Details)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015 shares
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Unvested Options Outstanding Number	3,830,000
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Unvested Options Outstanding Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value	0.28
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Options Grants In Period Net of Forfeitures	3,500,000
Share-based Compensation, Options Subject to Vesting, Grants in Period, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value	0.15
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Vested Options Outstanding Number	(2,025,000)
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Vested Options Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value	0.15
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Forfeitures in Period	0
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Unvested Options Outstanding Number	5,305,000
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award Unvested Options Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value	0.24

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STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2014	May. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2014	May. 05, 2014	Jan. 15, 2014
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercises in Period			(200,000)
Equity Issuance Amount Per Share			$ 0.20
Warrants and Rights Outstanding			$ 19,000,000		$ 14,200,000
Payments of Stock Issuance Costs			$ 4,353	$ 20,610
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price			$ 0.55		$ 0.58
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			78,072,160
Common Stock, Shares Authorized			400,000,000		400,000,000
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share			$ 0.001		$ 0.001
Proceeds from Issuance of Common Stock			$ 3,810,000	$ 3,149,000
Expiration Date December 2015 1 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.75
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			22,572,827
Expiration Date December 2015 2 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.80
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			12,069,099
Expiration Date February 2016 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.20
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			23,075,000
Expiration Date November 2016 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.95
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			8,896,901
Expiration Date March 2019 1 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.40
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			6,125,000
Expiration Date March 2019 2 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.45
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			1,333,333
Expiration Date February 2020 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights			$ 0.40
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding			4,000,000
2015 Special Warrant Offering [Member]
Sale of Special Warrants			19,000,000
Special Warrant Price			0.20
Proceeds for Sale of Special Warrants			$ 3,800,000
Qualified Financing Defined Proceeds			7,000,000
Total fees related to issuance of Special Warrants			$ 4,353
Special Warrants 2014 Exchanged for Special Warrants 2015			8,075,000
Exercise of Special Warrants [Member]
Investment Warrants, Exercise Price			$ 0.40
Exercise of Special Warrants [Member] | 2014 Special Warrants [Member]
Special Warrants Exercised			3,425,000
Exercise of Special Warrants [Member] | 2015 Special Warrants [Member]
Special Warrants Exercised			4,000,000
Exercise of Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercises in Period			200,000
Proceeds from Stock Options Exercised			$ 10,000
Issuance of common stock [Member]
Stock Issued During Period, Exercise of Special Warrants			$ 1,250,000
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercises in Period			180,000
Proceeds from Stock Options Exercised			$ 9,000
U.S. Special Warrant Offering [Member]
Investment Warrants, Exercise Price			$ 0.40
Sale of Special Warrants			14,200,000
Special Warrant Price			0.20
Proceeds for Sale of Special Warrants			$ 2,840,000
Total fees related to issuance of Special Warrants			$ 20,610
Private Placement Offering to NMC [Member]
Investment Warrants, Exercise Price	$ 0.45		$ 0.40
Component of units issued during period per unit amount	$ 0.20
Proceeds from Issuance of Common Stock	$ 300,000
Sale of Units	1,333,333
Purchase Price of Units	$ 0.225
Warrant Amendment [Member]
Stock Issued During Period, Shares, New Issues		500,000
Amended warrants						2,509,099
Warrant Amendment [Member] | Private Placement [Member]
Amended warrants							22,572,827
Warrant Amendment [Member] | Consultant [Member]
Class of warrants or rights, issued							4,000,000
Private Placement and Acquisition Warrants [Member]
Investment Warrants, Exercise Price			$ 0.40

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STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended					3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Apr. 30, 2015	Feb. 28, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Jan. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2007	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Feb. 25, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Mar. 27, 2007
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures								3,500,000
Equity Issuance Amount Per Share								$ 0.20
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Number						20,242,197		20,242,197			17,054,697
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Exercisable, Number						14,937,197		14,937,197
Share-based Compensation						$ 172,553	$ 56,514	$ 387,390	$ 245,281
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Nonvested Awards, Total Compensation Cost Not yet Recognized						231,559		231,559
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)						$ 569	$ 746	$ 2,950	$ 2,644
Share Based Compensation Arrangement Weighted Average Period Cost Recognized								10 months 10 days
Stock option plans [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Number of Shares Authorized												6,000,000
Increase equal to total number of outstanding shares					15.00%
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Number						15,442,197		15,442,197
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Issued, Number						17,496,916		17,496,916
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price								$ 0.47
650,531 stock options amended by extending their expiration dates [Member]
Extended expiration date stock options										650,531
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price		$ 0.64
Share-based Compensation		$ 25,387
Company granted non-qualified stock options for 400,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.40 per option 1 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures	400,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price	$ 0.40
Company granted non-qualified stock options for 400,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.40 per option 2 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures	400,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price	$ 0.40
Company granted non-qualified stock options for 2,700,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.40 per option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures	2,700,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price	$ 0.40
Options Vested Rate	25.00%
Company granted non-qualified stock options for an aggregate of 325,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.28 per option 1 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures				325,000
Company granted non-qualified stock options for an aggregate of 325,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.28 per option 2 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures				325,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price				$ 0.28
Company granted non-qualified stock options for an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.28 per option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures				1,250,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price				$ 0.28
Remaining options vesting rate				25.00%
Company granted non-qualified stock options for an aggregate of 1,30,000 shares at an exercise price of 0.24 per option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Net of Forfeitures			130,000
Stock option granted, weighted average exercise price			$ 0.24

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PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT [Text Block]

2. PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

Property and equipment consisted of the following:

		September 30, 2015							December 31, 2014
				Accumulated			Net book				Accumulated			Net book
		Cost		depreciation			value		Cost		depreciation			value
Furniture and fixtures	$	61,405	$	(37,962	)	$	23,443	$	61,405	$	(28,896	)	$	32,509
Computers and equipment		57,785		(33,848	)		23,937		52,275		(26,162	)		26,113
Land		30,000		-			30,000		30,000		-			30,000
Site improvements		2,925,731		(2,748,414	)		177,317		2,925,731		(2,553,280	)		372,451
Site equipment		2,179,803		(1,505,255	)		674,548		1,886,846		(1,295,080	)		591,766
Vehicles		23,595		(23,595	)		-		23,595		(23,595	)		-
Building		500,000		(270,833	)		229,167		500,000		(233,333	)		266,667
	$	5,778,319	$	(4,619,907	)	$	1,158,412	$	5,479,852	$	(4,160,346	)	$	1,319,506

Depreciation expense was $88,485 and $236,069 for quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $459,560 and $706,326 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 respectively.

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INCOME TAXES (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	105 Months Ended	175 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2015
Federal net operating loss carryforward	$ 0	$ 37,060,026

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Schedule of Warrants, Valuation Assumptions (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2014	May. 31, 2014	Apr. 30, 2014	Jan. 31, 2014
January 15, 2014, April 28, 2014, May 5, 2014 and July 17, 2014 [Member]
Risk-free interest rate	0.06%	0.01%	0.015%	0.04%
Expected volatility	112.00%	81.21%	85.93%	58.97%
Expected life (years)	4 months 24 days	1 month 6 days	2 months 12 days	3 months 18 days
Fair value of warrants amended	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
May 5, 2014 and July 17, 2014 [Member]
Risk-free interest rate	0.02%	0.03%
Expected volatility	65.52%	97.58%
Expected life (years)	2 months 12 days	2 months 12 days
Fair value of warrants amended	$ 0	$ 0

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CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Current assets
Cash	$ 774,396	$ 259,495
Other receivables	977	6,380
Prepaid expenses	240,951	260,484
Total current assets	1,016,324	526,359
Property and equipment, net	1,158,412	1,319,506
Mineral properties	15,882,179	15,882,179
Reclamation bonds	1,121,146	1,129,472
Deposits	10,262	10,262
Total non-current assets	18,171,999	18,341,419
Total assets	19,188,323	18,867,778
Current liabilities
Accounts payable	114,773	390,888
Accounts payable - related party	40,168	237,551
Accrued payroll and related taxes	52,691	58,637
Due to related party	23,290	23,290
Derivative liability	0	348,450
Total current liabilities	230,922	1,058,816
Long-term liabilities
Asset retirement obligation	672,338	672,338
Total long-term liabilities	672,338	672,338
Total liabilities	903,260	1,731,154
Commitments and contingencies	0	0
Stockholders' equity
Common stock, $0.001 par value; 400,000,000 shares authorized, 158,397,875 and 150,772,875 shares, respectively, issued and outstanding	158,396	150,771
Additional paid-in capital	66,293,524	65,626,112
Accumulated other comprehensive income	0	5,478
Accumulated deficit	(48,166,857)	(48,645,737)
Total stockholders' equity	18,285,063	17,136,624
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$ 19,188,323	$ 18,867,778

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Schedule of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Deferred income tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$ 12,971,007	$ 11,932,233
Option compensation	2,000,633	1,906,018
Property, plant and equipment	917,442	841,689
Exploration costs	417,558	478,937
Asset retirement obligation	235,318	235,318
Gross deferred income tax assets	16,541,958	15,394,195
Less: valuation allowance	(11,053,401)	(9,902,688)
Net deferred income tax assets	5,488,557	5,491,507
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Unrealized gains on investments	0	(2,950)
Acquisition related liabilities	(5,488,557)	(5,488,557)
Net deferred income tax liabilities	$ 0	$ 0

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY - USD ($)	Common Stock [Member]	Additional Paid-in Capital [Member]	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Member]	Accumulated Deficit [Member]	Total
Beginning Balance at Dec. 31, 2013	$ 146,558	$ 64,156,279	$ 12,771	$ (28,582,800)	$ 35,732,808
Beginning Balance (Shares) at Dec. 31, 2013	146,559,542
Stock-based compensation		245,281			245,281
Issuance of warrants for cash, net		2,819,390			2,819,390
Derivative liability		(1,951,423)			(1,951,423)
Exercise of special warrants	$ 1,250	(1,250)
Exercise of special warrants (Shares)	1,250,000
Issuance of shares for cash, net	$ 1,513	307,487			309,000
Issuance of shares for cash, net (Shares)	1,513,333
Unrealized loss on investments, net of $2,644 deferred tax			(4,910)		(4,910)
Net income (loss)				(19,380,527)	(19,380,527)
Ending Balance at Sep. 30, 2014	$ 149,321	65,575,764	7,861	(47,963,327)	17,769,619
Ending Balance (Shares) at Sep. 30, 2014	149,322,875
Beginning Balance at Dec. 31, 2013	$ 146,558	64,156,279	12,771	(28,582,800)	35,732,808
Beginning Balance (Shares) at Dec. 31, 2013	146,559,542
Exercise of special warrants					165,628
Ending Balance at Dec. 31, 2014	$ 150,771	65,626,112	5,478	(48,645,737)	17,136,624
Ending Balance (Shares) at Dec. 31, 2014	150,772,875
Stock-based compensation		387,390			387,390
Issuance of warrants for cash, net		3,795,647			3,795,647
Derivative liability		(3,518,000)			(3,518,000)
Exercise of special warrants	$ 7,425	(7,425)			505,000
Exercise of special warrants (Shares)	7,425,000
Issuance of shares for cash, net	$ 200	9,800			10,000
Issuance of shares for cash, net (Shares)	200,000
Unrealized loss on investments, net of $2,950 deferred tax			$ (5,478)		(5,478)
Net income (loss)				478,880	478,880
Ending Balance at Sep. 30, 2015	$ 158,396	$ 66,293,524		$ (48,166,857)	$ 18,285,063
Ending Balance (Shares) at Sep. 30, 2015	158,397,875

XML

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2014
Rental Income, Nonoperating	$ 5,068	$ 7,305	$ 65,070	$ 24,219
Due to Related Parties, Current	23,290		23,290		$ 23,290
Other Receivables, Net, Current	977		$ 977		6,380
NMC [Member]
Majority Stockholder Ownership Percentage			26.70%
Due to Related Parties, Current	40,168		$ 40,168		$ 237,551
Former officers [Member]
Due to Related Parties, Current	23,290		23,290
Searchlight Minerals Corp [Member]
Rental Income, Nonoperating	$ 5,068	$ 7,305	15,070	$ 24,219
Cactus Mining [Member]
Related Party Transaction, Amounts of Transaction			$ 50,000

XML

STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Share-based Payment Award, Stock Options, Valuation Assumptions [Table Text Block]

Dividend yield	-
Expected volatility	71.55 - 165.7%
Risk-free interest rate	0.02 – 1.32%
Expected life (years)	0.10 – 4.25

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Stock Options, Activity [Table Text Block]

							Weighted
							Average
				Weighted			Remaining
				Average Grant		Weighted	Contractual		Aggregate
	Number of			Date Fair		Average	Life		Intrinsic
	Shares			Value		Exercise Price	(Years)		Value
Outstanding, December 31, 2014	17,054,697		$	0.32	$	0.58	3.17
Options/warrants granted	3,500,000			0.15		0.40	5.94
Options/warrants exercised	(200,000	)		0.38		0.05	-
Options/warrants expired	(112,500	)		0.36		0.80	-
Options/warrants cancelled	-			-		-	-
Outstanding, September 30, 2015	20,242,197		$	0.29	$	0.55	3.06	$	310,800
Exercisable, September 30, 2015	14,937,197		$	0.38	$	0.70	1.87	$	310,800

Schedule of Nonvested Share Activity [Table Text Block]

				Weighted Average
	Number of			Grant Date
	Shares			Fair Value
Unvested, December 31, 2014	3,830,000		$	0.28
Granted	3,500,000			0.15
Vested	(2,025,000	)		0.15
Unvested, September 30, 2015	5,305,000		$	0.24

XML

Property, Plant and Equipment (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Cost	$ 5,778,319	$ 5,479,852
Accumulated depreciation	(4,619,907)	(4,160,346)
Net book value	1,158,412	1,319,506
Furniture and fixtures [Member]
Cost	61,405	61,405
Accumulated depreciation	(37,962)	(28,896)
Net book value	23,443	32,509
Computers and equipment [Member]
Cost	57,785	52,275
Accumulated depreciation	(33,848)	(26,162)
Net book value	23,937	26,113
Land [Member]
Cost	30,000	30,000
Accumulated depreciation	0	0
Net book value	30,000	30,000
Site improvements [Member]
Cost	2,925,731	2,925,731
Accumulated depreciation	(2,748,414)	(2,553,280)
Net book value	177,317	372,451
Site equipment [Member]
Cost	2,179,803	1,886,846
Accumulated depreciation	(1,505,255)	(1,295,080)
Net book value	674,548	591,766
Vehicles [Member]
Cost	23,595	23,595
Accumulated depreciation	(23,595)	(23,595)
Net book value	0	0
Building [Member]
Cost	500,000	500,000
Accumulated depreciation	(270,833)	(233,333)
Net book value	$ 229,167	$ 266,667

XML

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Future Minimum Rental Payments for Operating Leases [Table Text Block]

		Minimum
		Lease
		Commitment
2016	$	52,250
2017		44,983
Thereafer		-
	$	97,233

XML

DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES [Text Block]

1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES

Description of business - Ireland Inc. (the “Company”) is primarily focused on the acquisition and exploration of mining properties and has been in the exploration stage since its formation. The Company has not yet realized any revenues from its planned operations. Upon identification of commercially minable reserves, the Company expects to actively prepare the site for mineral extraction and enter the development stage.

History - The Company was incorporated on February 20, 2001 under the laws of the State of Nevada under the name Merritt Ventures Corp. On December 19, 2005, the Company changed its name to Ireland Inc.

Basis of presentation - The financial statements present the consolidated balance sheets, statements of operations and comprehensive loss, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows of the Company. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared without audit in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In the opinion of management, all adjustments and disclosures necessary for the fair presentation of these interim statements have been included. All such adjustments are, in the opinion of management, of a normal recurring nature. The results reported in these interim consolidated financial statements are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be reported for the entire year. These interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2015.

Going concern - The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming the Company will continue as a going concern.

Since its formation, the Company has incurred comprehensive cumulative net losses of $48,166,857 as of September 30, 2015. The Company has not commenced its commercial mining and mineral processing operations; rather, it is still in the exploration stage, raising substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The Company will seek additional sources of capital through the issuance of debt or equity financing, but there can be no assurance the Company will be successful in accomplishing its objectives.

The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent on additional sources of capital and the success of the Company’s plan. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if the Company is unable to continue as a going concern.

Principles of consolidation - The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Columbus Minerals Inc. (“CMI”) (including its wholly-owned single-member LLC subsidiary, Columbus Salt Marsh LLC (“CSM”)) and Rand Metals LLC (“Rand”). Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.

Use of estimates - The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. By their nature, these estimates are subject to measurement uncertainty and the effect on the financial statements of changes in such estimates in future periods could be significant. Significant areas requiring management’s estimates and assumptions include the valuation of stock-based compensation and the derivative liability, impairment analysis of long-lived assets, asset retirement obligations and the realizability of deferred tax assets. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Reclassification – Certain prior year and prior period amounts have been reclassified for consistency with the current period presentation. These reclassifications had no effect on the reported results of operations. In the third quarter of 2015, the Company’s U.S. Treasury Notes and certificates of deposit were reclassified as reclamation bonds on the consolidated balance sheet. Previously, such investments had been classified as restricted investments held for reclamation bonds. The corresponding reclassifications have also been made to the consolidated statement of cash flows for the nine month period ended September 30, 2014. This change in classification does not materially affect previously reported cash flows from operations or from financing activities and had no effect on the previously reported consolidated statement of operations for any period.

Fair value of financial instruments - Fair value accounting establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs of valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

Level 1	Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for identical, unrestricted assets or liabilities;
Level 2	Quoted prices in markets that are not active, or inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability; and
Level 3	Prices or valuation techniques that require inputs that are both significant to the fair value measurement and unobservable (supported by little or no market activity).

The Company’s financial instruments consist of a derivative liability. The Company calculates the fair value of its derivative liability using the Binomial Lattice model, a level 3 input. The change in fair value of the derivative liability is classified in other income (expense) in the consolidated statement of operations. The Company generally does not use derivative financial instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market or foreign currency risks.

There have been no changes in valuation techniques or transfers of assets between levels for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 or 2014.

Mineral properties - Costs of acquiring mineral properties are capitalized upon acquisition. Exploration costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are expensed as incurred while the project is in the exploration stage. Development costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are capitalized as incurred while the property is in the development stage. When a property reaches the production stage, the related capitalized costs are amortized using the units-of-production basis over the proven and probable reserves.

Mineral exploration and development costs - Exploration expenditures incurred prior to entering the development stage are expensed and included in mineral exploration and evaluation expenses.

Property and equipment - Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided principally on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which range from 3 to 20 years. The cost of repairs and maintenance is charged to expense as incurred. Expenditures for property betterments and renewals are capitalized. Upon sale or other disposition of a depreciable asset, cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in the consolidated statement of operations.

Impairment of long-lived assets - The Company reviews and evaluates its long-lived assets for impairment at each balance sheet date due to its planned exploration stage losses and documents such impairment testing. Mineral properties in the exploration stage are monitored for impairment based on factors such as the Company’s continued right to explore the property, exploration reports, drill results, technical reports and continued plans to fund exploration programs on the property.

The tests for long-lived assets in the exploration, development or producing stage that have a value beyond proven and probable reserves will be monitored for impairment based on factors such as current market value of the mineral property and results of exploration, future asset utilization, business climate, mineral prices and future undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the related assets. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying amount of an asset to the estimated future net undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by the asset, including evaluating its reserves beyond proven and probable amounts.

The Company's policy is to record an impairment loss in the period when it is determined that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable either by impairment or by abandonment of the property. The impairment loss is calculated as the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds its fair value. While the Company incurred losses from operations, these losses have not been in excess of planned expenditures on the specific mineral properties in order to ultimately realize their value.

Asset Retirement Obligation – Future obligations to retire an asset, including site closure, are recorded as a liability at fair value in the period incurred. The fair value determination is based on estimated future cash flows, the current credit-adjusted risk-free interest rate and an estimated inflation factor. The value of the liability is evaluated at least annually or as new information becomes available. As reclamation work is performed or liabilities are otherwise settled, the recorded amount of the liability will be reduced.

Future reclamation expenditures are difficult to estimate in many circumstances due to the early stage nature of the exploration project, the uncertainties associated with defining the nature and extent of environmental disturbance, the application of laws and regulations by regulatory authorities and changes in reclamation technology. Changes in estimates are reflected in the consolidated statement of operations in the period an estimate is revised.

Per share amounts - Basic earnings (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding. In computing diluted earnings per share, the weighted average number of shares outstanding is adjusted to reflect the effect of potentially dilutive securities, such as stock options and warrants. Potentially dilutive shares are excluded from the calculation when their inclusion would be anti-dilutive, such as periods when a net loss is reported or when the exercise price of the instrument exceeds its fair market value. 70,889,357 and 76,154,857 stock options and warrants were outstanding at September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, but were not considered in the computation of diluted earnings per share as their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

Stock-based compensation - Stock-based compensation awards are recognized in the financial statements based on the grant date fair value of the award which is estimated using the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The Company believes that this model provides the best estimate of fair value due to its ability to incorporate inputs that change over time, such as volatility and interest rates, and to allow for the actual exercise behavior of option holders. The compensation cost is recognized over the requisite service period which is generally equal to the vesting period. Upon exercise, shares issued will be newly issued shares from authorized common stock.

The fair value of performance-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The total value of the award is recognized over the requisite service period only if management has determined that achievement of the performance condition is probable. The requisite service period is based on management’s estimate of when the performance condition will be met. Changes in the requisite service period or the estimated probability of achievement can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

The fair value of market-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of an option pricing model which uses a combination of Monte Carlo simulation and a Trinomial Lattice function. The requisite service period for market-based awards is derived from the model. Achievement of the market condition earlier than estimated can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

Income taxes - The Company follows the liability method of accounting for income taxes. This method recognizes certain temporary differences between the financial reporting basis of liabilities and assets and the related income tax basis for such liabilities and assets. This method generates either a net deferred income tax liability or asset as measured by the statutory tax rates in effect. The effect of a change in tax rates is recognized in operations in the period that includes the enactment date. The Company records a valuation allowance against any portion of those deferred income tax assets when it believes, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred income tax asset will not be realized.

For acquired properties that do not constitute a business, a deferred income tax liability is recorded on GAAP basis over income tax basis using statutory federal and state rates. The resulting estimated future income tax liability associated with the temporary difference between the acquisition consideration and the tax basis is reflected as an increase in the total purchase price which is then applied to the underlying acquired assets in the absence of there being a goodwill component associated with the acquisition transactions.

Recent accounting standards - From time to time, new accounting pronouncements are issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) that are adopted by the Company as of the specified effective date. The Company has evaluated all of the recent accounting pronouncements and unless otherwise discussed, believes they will not have a material effect on the financial statements.

In November 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2014-16, Determining Whether the Host Contract in a Hybrid Financial Instrument Issued in the Form of a Share Is More Akin to Debt or to Equity. The ASU clarifies how current guidance should be interpreted in evaluating the economic characteristics and risks of a host contract in a hybrid financial instrument that is issued in the form of a share. The ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. The Company is currently assessing the impact, if any, of implementing this guidance on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-15, Presentation of Financial Statements – Going Concern. The new standard requires management of public and private companies to evaluate whether there is substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern and, if so, disclose that fact. Management will also be required to evaluate and disclose whether its plans alleviate that doubt. The new standard is effective for interim and annual periods ending after December 15, 2016. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-12, Compensation - Stock Compensation - Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved after the Requisite Service Period, which is effective for financial statements issued for interim and annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2015. The guidance requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period be treated as a performance condition and should not be reflected in the estimate of the grant-date fair value of the award. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

XML

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Common Stock, Par Value Per Share	$ 0.001	$ 0.001
Common Stock, Shares Authorized	400,000,000	400,000,000
Common Stock, Shares, Issued	158,397,875	150,772,875
Common Stock, Shares, Outstanding	158,397,875	150,772,875

XML

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Description of business [Policy Text Block]

Description of business - Ireland Inc. (the “Company”) is primarily focused on the acquisition and exploration of mining properties and has been in the exploration stage since its formation. The Company has not yet realized any revenues from its planned operations. Upon identification of commercially minable reserves, the Company expects to actively prepare the site for mineral extraction and enter the development stage.

History [Policy Text Block]

History - The Company was incorporated on February 20, 2001 under the laws of the State of Nevada under the name Merritt Ventures Corp. On December 19, 2005, the Company changed its name to Ireland Inc.

Basis of presentation [Policy Text Block]

Basis of presentation - The financial statements present the consolidated balance sheets, statements of operations and comprehensive loss, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows of the Company. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared without audit in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In the opinion of management, all adjustments and disclosures necessary for the fair presentation of these interim statements have been included. All such adjustments are, in the opinion of management, of a normal recurring nature. The results reported in these interim consolidated financial statements are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be reported for the entire year. These interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, filed with the SEC on March 30, 2015.

Going concern [Policy Text Block]

Going concern - The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming the Company will continue as a going concern.

Since its formation, the Company has incurred comprehensive cumulative net losses of $48,166,857 as of September 30, 2015. The Company has not commenced its commercial mining and mineral processing operations; rather, it is still in the exploration stage, raising substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The Company will seek additional sources of capital through the issuance of debt or equity financing, but there can be no assurance the Company will be successful in accomplishing its objectives.

The ability of the Company to continue as a going concern is dependent on additional sources of capital and the success of the Company’s plan. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if the Company is unable to continue as a going concern.

Principles of consolidation [Policy Text Block]

Principles of consolidation - The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Columbus Minerals Inc. (“CMI”) (including its wholly-owned single-member LLC subsidiary, Columbus Salt Marsh LLC (“CSM”)) and Rand Metals LLC (“Rand”). Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.

Use of estimates [Policy Text Block]

Use of estimates - The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. By their nature, these estimates are subject to measurement uncertainty and the effect on the financial statements of changes in such estimates in future periods could be significant. Significant areas requiring management’s estimates and assumptions include the valuation of stock-based compensation and the derivative liability, impairment analysis of long-lived assets, asset retirement obligations and the realizability of deferred tax assets. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Reclassification [Policy Text Block]

Reclassification – Certain prior year and prior period amounts have been reclassified for consistency with the current period presentation. These reclassifications had no effect on the reported results of operations. In the third quarter of 2015, the Company’s U.S. Treasury Notes and certificates of deposit were reclassified as reclamation bonds on the consolidated balance sheet. Previously, such investments had been classified as restricted investments held for reclamation bonds. The corresponding reclassifications have also been made to the consolidated statement of cash flows for the nine month period ended September 30, 2014. This change in classification does not materially affect previously reported cash flows from operations or from financing activities and had no effect on the previously reported consolidated statement of operations for any period.

Fair value of financial instruments [Policy Text Block]

Fair value of financial instruments - Fair value accounting establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs of valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

Level 1	Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for identical, unrestricted assets or liabilities;
Level 2	Quoted prices in markets that are not active, or inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability; and
Level 3	Prices or valuation techniques that require inputs that are both significant to the fair value measurement and unobservable (supported by little or no market activity).

The Company’s financial instruments consist of a derivative liability. The Company calculates the fair value of its derivative liability using the Binomial Lattice model, a level 3 input. The change in fair value of the derivative liability is classified in other income (expense) in the consolidated statement of operations. The Company generally does not use derivative financial instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market or foreign currency risks.

There have been no changes in valuation techniques or transfers of assets between levels for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 or 2014.

Mineral properties [Policy Text Block]

Mineral properties - Costs of acquiring mineral properties are capitalized upon acquisition. Exploration costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are expensed as incurred while the project is in the exploration stage. Development costs and costs to maintain mineral properties are capitalized as incurred while the property is in the development stage. When a property reaches the production stage, the related capitalized costs are amortized using the units-of-production basis over the proven and probable reserves.

Mineral exploration and development costs [Policy Text Block]

Mineral exploration and development costs - Exploration expenditures incurred prior to entering the development stage are expensed and included in mineral exploration and evaluation expenses.

Property and equipment [Policy Text Block]

Property and equipment - Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided principally on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, which range from 3 to 20 years. The cost of repairs and maintenance is charged to expense as incurred. Expenditures for property betterments and renewals are capitalized. Upon sale or other disposition of a depreciable asset, cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts and any gain or loss is reflected in the consolidated statement of operations.

Impairment of long-lived assets [Policy Text Block]

Impairment of long-lived assets - The Company reviews and evaluates its long-lived assets for impairment at each balance sheet date due to its planned exploration stage losses and documents such impairment testing. Mineral properties in the exploration stage are monitored for impairment based on factors such as the Company’s continued right to explore the property, exploration reports, drill results, technical reports and continued plans to fund exploration programs on the property.

The tests for long-lived assets in the exploration, development or producing stage that have a value beyond proven and probable reserves will be monitored for impairment based on factors such as current market value of the mineral property and results of exploration, future asset utilization, business climate, mineral prices and future undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the related assets. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying amount of an asset to the estimated future net undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by the asset, including evaluating its reserves beyond proven and probable amounts.

The Company's policy is to record an impairment loss in the period when it is determined that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable either by impairment or by abandonment of the property. The impairment loss is calculated as the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds its fair value. While the Company incurred losses from operations, these losses have not been in excess of planned expenditures on the specific mineral properties in order to ultimately realize their value.

Asset Retirement Obligation [Policy Text Block]

Asset Retirement Obligation – Future obligations to retire an asset, including site closure, are recorded as a liability at fair value in the period incurred. The fair value determination is based on estimated future cash flows, the current credit-adjusted risk-free interest rate and an estimated inflation factor. The value of the liability is evaluated at least annually or as new information becomes available. As reclamation work is performed or liabilities are otherwise settled, the recorded amount of the liability will be reduced.

Future reclamation expenditures are difficult to estimate in many circumstances due to the early stage nature of the exploration project, the uncertainties associated with defining the nature and extent of environmental disturbance, the application of laws and regulations by regulatory authorities and changes in reclamation technology. Changes in estimates are reflected in the consolidated statement of operations in the period an estimate is revised.

Per share amounts [Policy Text Block]

Per share amounts - Basic earnings (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding. In computing diluted earnings per share, the weighted average number of shares outstanding is adjusted to reflect the effect of potentially dilutive securities, such as stock options and warrants. Potentially dilutive shares are excluded from the calculation when their inclusion would be anti-dilutive, such as periods when a net loss is reported or when the exercise price of the instrument exceeds its fair market value. 70,889,357 and 76,154,857 stock options and warrants were outstanding at September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, but were not considered in the computation of diluted earnings per share as their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

Stock-based compensation [Policy Text Block]

Stock-based compensation - Stock-based compensation awards are recognized in the financial statements based on the grant date fair value of the award which is estimated using the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The Company believes that this model provides the best estimate of fair value due to its ability to incorporate inputs that change over time, such as volatility and interest rates, and to allow for the actual exercise behavior of option holders. The compensation cost is recognized over the requisite service period which is generally equal to the vesting period. Upon exercise, shares issued will be newly issued shares from authorized common stock.

The fair value of performance-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of the Binomial Lattice option pricing model. The total value of the award is recognized over the requisite service period only if management has determined that achievement of the performance condition is probable. The requisite service period is based on management’s estimate of when the performance condition will be met. Changes in the requisite service period or the estimated probability of achievement can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

The fair value of market-based stock option grants is determined on their grant date through use of an option pricing model which uses a combination of Monte Carlo simulation and a Trinomial Lattice function. The requisite service period for market-based awards is derived from the model. Achievement of the market condition earlier than estimated can materially affect the amount of stock-based compensation recognized in the financial statements.

Income taxes [Policy Text Block]

Income taxes - The Company follows the liability method of accounting for income taxes. This method recognizes certain temporary differences between the financial reporting basis of liabilities and assets and the related income tax basis for such liabilities and assets. This method generates either a net deferred income tax liability or asset as measured by the statutory tax rates in effect. The effect of a change in tax rates is recognized in operations in the period that includes the enactment date. The Company records a valuation allowance against any portion of those deferred income tax assets when it believes, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred income tax asset will not be realized.

For acquired properties that do not constitute a business, a deferred income tax liability is recorded on GAAP basis over income tax basis using statutory federal and state rates. The resulting estimated future income tax liability associated with the temporary difference between the acquisition consideration and the tax basis is reflected as an increase in the total purchase price which is then applied to the underlying acquired assets in the absence of there being a goodwill component associated with the acquisition transactions.

Recent accounting standards [Policy Text Block]

Recent accounting standards - From time to time, new accounting pronouncements are issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) that are adopted by the Company as of the specified effective date. The Company has evaluated all of the recent accounting pronouncements and unless otherwise discussed, believes they will not have a material effect on the financial statements.

In November 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2014-16, Determining Whether the Host Contract in a Hybrid Financial Instrument Issued in the Form of a Share Is More Akin to Debt or to Equity. The ASU clarifies how current guidance should be interpreted in evaluating the economic characteristics and risks of a host contract in a hybrid financial instrument that is issued in the form of a share. The ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2015. The Company is currently assessing the impact, if any, of implementing this guidance on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-15, Presentation of Financial Statements – Going Concern. The new standard requires management of public and private companies to evaluate whether there is substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern and, if so, disclose that fact. Management will also be required to evaluate and disclose whether its plans alleviate that doubt. The new standard is effective for interim and annual periods ending after December 15, 2016. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In June 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-12, Compensation - Stock Compensation - Accounting for Share-Based Payments When the Terms of an Award Provide That a Performance Target Could Be Achieved after the Requisite Service Period, which is effective for financial statements issued for interim and annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2015. The guidance requires that a performance target that affects vesting and that could be achieved after the requisite service period be treated as a performance condition and should not be reflected in the estimate of the grant-date fair value of the award. Adoption of the new guidance is not expected to have an impact on the consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

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Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Nov. 11, 2015
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2015
Trading Symbol	irld
Entity Registrant Name	IRELAND INC.
Entity Central Index Key	0001166338
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Smaller Reporting Company
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		158,697,875
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Well Known Seasoned Issuer	No
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3

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PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Property, Plant and Equipment [Table Text Block]

		September 30, 2015							December 31, 2014
				Accumulated			Net book				Accumulated			Net book
		Cost		depreciation			value		Cost		depreciation			value
Furniture and fixtures	$	61,405	$	(37,962	)	$	23,443	$	61,405	$	(28,896	)	$	32,509
Computers and equipment		57,785		(33,848	)		23,937		52,275		(26,162	)		26,113
Land		30,000		-			30,000		30,000		-			30,000
Site improvements		2,925,731		(2,748,414	)		177,317		2,925,731		(2,553,280	)		372,451
Site equipment		2,179,803		(1,505,255	)		674,548		1,886,846		(1,295,080	)		591,766
Vehicles		23,595		(23,595	)		-		23,595		(23,595	)		-
Building		500,000		(270,833	)		229,167		500,000		(233,333	)		266,667
	$	5,778,319	$	(4,619,907	)	$	1,158,412	$	5,479,852	$	(4,160,346	)	$	1,319,506

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
Revenue	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Operating expenses
General and administrative	471,651	391,447	1,369,345	1,349,035
Depreciation	88,485	236,069	459,560	706,326
Gain on asset disposal	0	0	0	(1,000)
Mineral and property holding costs	0	58,000	0	106,000
Abandonment of mineral rights	0	16,245,954	0	16,245,954
Total operating expenses	1,111,512	17,571,227	3,462,436	20,728,738
Loss from operations	(1,111,512)	(17,571,227)	(3,462,436)	(20,728,738)
Other income (expense)
Interest income	3,322	4,774	13,518	14,642
Rental income - related party	5,068	7,305	65,070	24,219
Change in derivative liability	5,939,750	66,045	3,866,450	1,314,283
Interest expense	0	(83)	(772)	(2,289)
Total other income (expense)	5,948,140	78,041	3,944,266	1,350,855
Income (loss) before income taxes	4,836,628	(17,493,186)	481,830	(19,377,883)
Income tax expense	(569)	(746)	(2,950)	(2,644)
Net income (loss)	$ 4,836,059	$ (17,493,932)	$ 478,880	$ (19,380,527)
Income (loss) per common share - basic	$ 0.03	$ (0.12)	$ 0.00	$ (0.13)
Income (loss) per common share - dilutive	$ 0.03	$ (0.12)	$ 0.00	$ (0.13)
Weighted average common shares outstanding -
Basic	156,709,016	148,577,078	154,408,131	147,604,829
Dilutive	185,822,875	148,577,078	179,546,318	147,604,829
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Net income (loss)	$ 4,836,059	$ (17,493,932)	$ 478,880	$ (19,380,527)
Other comprehensive income (loss) Unrealized loss on investments, net of deferred tax	(1,057)	(1,385)	(5,478)	(4,910)
Total comprehensive income (loss)	4,835,002	(17,495,317)	473,402	(19,385,437)
Related Party [Member]
Operating expenses
Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses - related party	105,880	105,000	333,917	344,279
General [Member]
Operating expenses
Mineral exploration and evaluation expenses - related party	$ 445,496	$ 534,757	$ 1,299,614	$ 1,978,144

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STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION [Text Block]

6. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

Stock-based compensation includes grants of stock options and purchase warrants to eligible directors, employees and consultants as determined by the Board of Directors.

Stock option plans - On March 27, 2007, the Board of Directors adopted the 2007 Stock Incentive Plan (the “Plan”). Under the terms of the Plan, options to purchase up to 6,000,000 shares of the common stock, subject to an increase each quarter equal to 15% of the increase in the total number of outstanding shares during the previous quarter, may be granted to officers, directors, employees and eligible consultants. As of September 30, 2015, the Company had granted 17,496,916 options under the Plan with a weighted average exercise price of $0.47 per option. 15,442,197 options were outstanding as of September 30, 2015.

Stock warrants - Upon approval of the Board of Directors, the Company grants stock warrants to consultants for services performed.

Valuation of awards - At September 30, 2015, the Company had options outstanding that vest on three different types of vesting schedules:

1.	Service-based;
2.	Performance-based; and
3.	Market-based.

For service-based and performance-based stock option grants, the Company utilizes the Binomial Lattice pricing model to estimate the fair values of options and warrants granted in exchange for services. For market-based stock option grants, the Company utilizes a combination of a Monte Carlo simulation and a Trinomial Lattice function to estimate the fair values of options in exchange for services. The Company used the following assumptions to estimate the fair values of the options granted for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

Dividend yield	-
Expected volatility	71.55 - 165.7%
Risk-free interest rate	0.02 – 1.32%
Expected life (years)	0.10 – 4.25

Inputs used in these models are determined as follows:

1.	The expected life represents the weighted-average period the awards are expected to remain outstanding and is a derived output of the option pricing models. The expected life is impacted by all of the underlying assumptions and calibration of the Company’s models.
2.	The requisite service period for market-based stock option awards is a derived output of the hybrid Monte Carlo-Trinomial Lattice model.
3.	Volatility is based on the average historical volatility levels of a representative peer group or the Company’s common stock depending on the life of the options.
4.	The risk-free interest rate is based on the implied yield available on U.S. Treasury zero- coupon issues over the equivalent contractual lives of the options.

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, the Company’s stock based compensation activity was as follows:

a)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 400,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
b)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 400,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest upon the Company’s stock price achieving defined targets. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
c)	On April 1, 2015, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to the Company’s independent directors and certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 2,700,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.40 per option. The options vest 25% each on April 1, 2015, June 30, 2015, September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2015. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest. The options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.
d)	On February 25, 2015, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined to amend 650,531 stock options by extending their expiration dates. The options were granted at various dates between March 8, 2010 and July 22, 2010 and have a weighted average exercise price of $0.64 per share. The expiration dates of all of the options were extended to December 31, 2015. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the extended options remain the same. The modification resulted in additional compensation expense of $25,387.

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2014, the Company’s stock based compensation activity was as follows:

a)

On September 11, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain employees under the Plan for an aggregate of 130,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.24 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

b)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 325,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest upon completion of defined events and milestones. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

c)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 325,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest upon the Company’s stock price achieving defined targets. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest, but in no event later than the tenth anniversary of the agreement. Each of the options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

d)

On January 17, 2014, the Company granted non-qualified stock options to the Company’s independent directors and certain executive officers under the Plan for an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $0.28 per option. The options vest 25% each on March 31, 2014, June 30, 2014, September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2014. The options expire on the fifth anniversary of the date that they vest. The options will automatically vest and become exercisable upon the occurrence of a change in control.

The total expense related to the granting, vesting and modification of all stock-based compensation awards was $172,553 and $56,514 for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $387,390 and $245,281 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Such expenses are included in general and administrative expense and mineral exploration and evaluation expense.

The following table summarizes the Company’s stock-based compensation activity for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

							Weighted
							Average
				Weighted			Remaining
				Average Grant		Weighted	Contractual		Aggregate
	Number of			Date Fair		Average	Life		Intrinsic
	Shares			Value		Exercise Price	(Years)		Value
Outstanding, December 31, 2014	17,054,697		$	0.32	$	0.58	3.17
Options/warrants granted	3,500,000			0.15		0.40	5.94
Options/warrants exercised	(200,000	)		0.38		0.05	-
Options/warrants expired	(112,500	)		0.36		0.80	-
Options/warrants cancelled	-			-		-	-
Outstanding, September 30, 2015	20,242,197		$	0.29	$	0.55	3.06	$	310,800
Exercisable, September 30, 2015	14,937,197		$	0.38	$	0.70	1.87	$	310,800

Aggregate intrinsic value represents the value of the Company’s closing stock price on the last trading day of the quarter ended in excess of the weighted-average exercise price multiplied by the number of options outstanding or exercisable.

The following table summarizes the changes of the Company’s stock-based compensation awards subject to vesting for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015:

				Weighted Average
	Number of			Grant Date
	Shares			Fair Value
Unvested, December 31, 2014	3,830,000		$	0.28
Granted	3,500,000			0.15
Vested	(2,025,000	)		0.15
Unvested, September 30, 2015	5,305,000		$	0.24

As of September 30, 2015, there was $231,559 of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested stock-based compensation awards. The weighted average period over which this cost will be recognized was 0.86 years as of September 30, 2015.

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STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY [Text Block]

5. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, stockholders’ equity activity consisted of the following:

2015 Special Warrant offering - The Company sold 19,000,000 2015 Special Warrants at a price of $0.20 for gross proceeds of $3,800,000.

The 2015 Special Warrants may be converted during their term, at no additional cost to the holder, on a 1:1 basis into units (each a “Unit”) consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring February 28, 2020. Alternatively, the 2015 Special Warrants provide the holder the right to exchange their 2015 Special Warrants for equal participation in a subsequent equity financing. All 2015 Special Warrants outstanding at February 28, 2016 automatically convert into Units.

The 2015 Special Warrants extend for a term ending on the earlier of February 28, 2016 or the date that is one month after the Company completes a Qualified Financing, defined as any financing or number of financings for total gross proceeds of $7,000,000 or more. Total fees related to issuance of the 2015 Special Warrants amounted to $4,353.

The remaining 8,075,000 outstanding 2014 Special Warrants were exchanged for 2015 Special Warrants.

Exercise of Special Warrants – 3,425,000 and 4,000,000 of 2014 and 2015 Special Warrants, respectively, were converted into Units consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring March 29, 2019 and February 28, 2020, respectively.

Exercise of stock options – The Company received $10,000 from the exercise of 200,000 stock options.

During the nine month period ended September 30, 2014, stockholders’ equity activity consisted of the following:

U.S. Special Warrant Offering - The Company sold 14,200,000 2014 Special Warrants at a price of $0.20 for gross proceeds of $2,840,000.

The 2014 Special Warrants were convertible during their term, at no additional cost to the holder, on a 1:1 basis into units (each a “Unit”) consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable for one additional share of common stock at $0.40, expiring March 29, 2019. Alternatively, the 2014 Special Warrants provide the holder the right to exchange their Special Warrants for equal participation in a subsequent equity financing. All Special Warrants outstanding on March 31, 2015 automatically converted into Units. Total fees related to the issuance of Special Warrants amounted to $20,610.

Issuance of Common Stock - The Company issued 1,250,000 shares of common stock from the exercise of 2014 Special Warrants and 180,000 shares of common stock from the exercise of stock options for aggregate gross proceeds of $9,000.

Private Placement - On August 15, 2014, the Company completed the sale of 1,333,333 units (each a “Unit”) to NMC. The sale of the Units was made pursuant to a subscription agreement entered into on March 25, 2014 whereby NMC agreed to purchase Units for an aggregate purchase price of $300,000 on or before August 15, 2014. The per Unit purchase price of $0.225 was determined as the greater of the average closing price for the Company’s common stock over the ten trading days prior to completion of the sale and $0.20 per Unit. Each Unit consists of one share of the Company’s common stock and one warrant to purchase an additional share of common stock at $0.45 per share, expiring March 29, 2019.

Warrant Amendments - On January 15, 2014, April 28, 2014, May 5, 2014 and on July 17, 2014, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined, without any negotiations with the warrant holders, to amend 22,572,827 private placement warrants granted in connection with the 2007, 2009 and 2010 private placement offerings, and 4,000,000 additional warrants issued to consultants in 2009 and 2010 (collectively, the “Expiring Warrants”). The expiration date of the Expiring Warrants was extended to April 30, 2014, June 30, 2014, July 31, 2014 and December 31, 2014. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the Expiring Warrants remain the same. The Company calculated the fair values of the warrant modifications using the Binomial Lattice model with the following assumptions and outputs:

	January	April 28,	May 5,	July 17,
	15, 2014	2014	2014	2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.04%	0.015%	0.01%	0.06%
Expected volatility	58.97%	85.93%	81.21%	112.00%
Expected life (years)	0.30	0.20	0.10	0.40
Fair value	$-	$-	$-	$-

Additionally, on May 5, 2014 and on July 17, 2014, the Company’s Board of Directors unilaterally determined, without any negotiations with the warrant holders, to amend 2,509,099 private placement warrants granted in connection with the 2011 private placement offerings, and 500,000 additional warrants issued to a consultant in 2011 (collectively, the “Expiring Warrants”). The expiration date of the Expiring Warrants was extended from June 30, 2014 to September 30, 2014 and to December 31, 2014. In all other respects, the terms and conditions of the Expiring Warrants remain the same. The Company calculated the fair value of the warrant modification using the Binomial Lattice model with the following assumptions and outputs:

	May 5, 2014	July 17, 2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.03%	0.02%
Expected volatility	97.58%	65.52%
Expected life (years)	0.20	0.20
Fair value	$-	$-

Subsequent to September 30, 2014, all of these warrants were further extended to December 31, 2015.

The following summarizes the exercise price per share and expiration date of the Company’s outstanding warrants issued to investors to purchase common stock at September 30, 2015:

Shares Underlying
Outstanding Warrants	Exercise Price	Expiration Date
22,572,827	$0.75	December 2015
12,069,099	0.80	December 2015
23,075,000 *	0.20	February 2016
8,896,901	0.95	November 2016
6,125,000	0.40	March 2019
1,333,333	0.45	March 2019
4,000,000	0.40	February 2020
78,072,160

* The exercise price of these warrants has been paid by the investors. Upon exercise, the holders will receive one share of common stock and one warrant exercisable at $0.40.

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INCOME TAXES (Tables)

3 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities [Table Text Block]

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Deferred income tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$	12,971,007		$	11,932,233
Option compensation		2,000,633			1,906,018
Property, plant & equipment		917,442			841,689
Exploration costs		417,558			478,937
Asset retirement obligation		235,318			235,318
Gross deferred income tax assets		16,541,958			15,394,195
Less: valuation allowance		(11,053,401	)		(9,902,688	)
Net deferred income tax assets		5,488,557			5,491,507
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Unrealized gain on investments		-			(2,950	)
Acquisition related liabilities		(5,488,557	)		(5,488,557	)
Net deferred income tax liabilities	$	-		$	-

Schedule of Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit) [Table Text Block]

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	1,693,655		$	(6,122,615	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(2,063,843	)		(1,575	)
Change in valuation allowance		370,757			6,124,936
Income tax expense	$	569		$	746

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	168,642		$	(6,782,259	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(1,316,405	)		(438,042	)
Change in valuation allowance		1,150,713			7,222,945
Income tax expense	$	2,950		$	2,644

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MINERAL PROPERTIES (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Mineral Properties [Table Text Block]

		September 30,		December 31,
		2015		2014
Columbus Project	$	15,811,948	$	15,811,948
DDB Claims		70,231		70,231
Ending balance	$	15,882,179	$	15,882,179

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CONCENTRATIONS

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

CONCENTRATIONS [Text Block]

9. CONCENTRATIONS

Concentration of credit risk - The Company maintains its cash accounts in financial institutions. Cash accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) for up to $250,000 per financial institution. The Company has never experienced a material loss or lack of access to its cash accounts; however, no assurance can be provided that access to the Company’s cash accounts will not be impacted by adverse conditions in the financial markets. At September 30, 2015, the Company had $519,468 in excess of FDIC insured limits.

Concentration of activity - The Company currently utilizes a metallurgical consulting firm to perform significant portions of its exploration work programs. A change in the lead metallurgical consulting firm could cause a delay in the progress of the Company’s exploration programs and would cause the Company to incur significant transition expense and may affect operating results adversely.

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INCOME TAXES

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

INCOME TAXES [Text Block]

7. INCOME TAXES

The Company is a Nevada corporation and is subject to federal income taxes. Nevada does not impose a corporate income tax.

Significant components of the Company’s net deferred income tax assets and liabilities at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014 were as follows:

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Deferred income tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$	12,971,007		$	11,932,233
Option compensation		2,000,633			1,906,018
Property, plant & equipment		917,442			841,689
Exploration costs		417,558			478,937
Asset retirement obligation		235,318			235,318
Gross deferred income tax assets		16,541,958			15,394,195
Less: valuation allowance		(11,053,401	)		(9,902,688	)
Net deferred income tax assets		5,488,557			5,491,507
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Unrealized gain on investments		-			(2,950	)
Acquisition related liabilities		(5,488,557	)		(5,488,557	)
Net deferred income tax liabilities	$	-		$	-

A valuation allowance was established for deferred tax assets related to asset retirement obligations and net operating loss carryforwards due to the uncertainty of realizing these deferred tax assets based on conditions existing at September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, respectively.

The realizability of deferred tax assets are reviewed at each balance sheet date. The majority of the Company’s deferred tax liabilities are depletable. Such depletion will begin with the processing of mineralized material once production has commenced. Therefore, the deferred tax liabilities will reverse in similar time periods as the deferred tax assets. The Company assesses both positive and negative evidence to determine whether it is more likely than not that such reversal will occur to realize the deferred tax assets prior to their expiration.

The acquisition related liabilities are a result of the estimated future federal income tax liability associated with the temporary difference between the acquisition consideration and the tax basis. The deferred tax liabilities were reflected as an increase to the total purchase price which has been applied to the underlying mineral and Columbus project assets in the absence of there being a goodwill component associated with the acquisition transactions.

A reconciliation of the tax provision for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 at U.S federal tax rates to the actual tax provision recorded in the financial statements consisted of the following components:

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	1,693,655		$	(6,122,615	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(2,063,843	)		(1,575	)
Change in valuation allowance		370,757			6,124,936
Income tax expense	$	569		$	746

A reconciliation of the tax provision for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014 at US federal tax rates to the actual tax provision recorded in the financial statements consisted of the following components:

		September 30,			September 30,
		2015			2014
Income tax expense (benefit) based on statutory tax rate	$	168,642		$	(6,782,259	)
Reconciling items:
Non-deductible items		(1,316,405	)		(438,042	)
Change in valuation allowance		1,150,713			7,222,945
Income tax expense	$	2,950		$	2,644

The Company had cumulative net operating losses of approximately $37,060,026 as of September 30, 2015 for federal income tax purposes. Cumulative net operating losses from December 31, 2006 and previous years are effectively nil due to the annual limitation imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as a result of the ownership percentage change limitations. The net operating loss carryforwards will expire between 2027 and 2035.

The Company and its subsidiary file income tax returns in the United States. These tax returns are subject to examination by taxation authorities provided the years remain open under the relevant statutes of limitations, which may result in the payment of income taxes and/or a decrease in the net operating losses available for carryforwards. The Company has losses from inception to date, and thus all years remain open for examination. While the Company believes that its tax filings do not include uncertain tax positions, the results of potential examinations or the effect of changes in tax law cannot be ascertained at this time. The Company currently has no tax years under examination.

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES [Text Block]

8. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Lease obligations – The Company rents office space under an operating lease agreement. The lease expires in August 2017 and provides an option to renew the lease for an additional four years. In the normal course of business, it is expected that this lease will be renewed or replaced by a lease of a similar property.

The lease requires for increases in future annual rental payments of 4% per year. Under the lease agreement, the Company is also required to pay monthly operating expenses of approximately $748.

The following table represents future base rent payments for each of the twelve month periods ending September 30,

		Minimum
		Lease
		Commitment
2016	$	52,250
2017		44,983
Thereafer		-
	$	97,233

Rental expense for office space was $14,629 and $16,700 for the quarters ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $43,886 and $45,420 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

Columbus Project – Pursuant to the option assignment agreement dated March 30, 2007, as amended August 8, 2007, the Company granted a 5% net smelter return royalty to NMC, one of the principal stockholders of the Company. The Columbus Project is further discussed in Note 3.

Stand-by letter of credit – A financial institution has issued a stand-by letter of credit to the BLM for up to $100,000 on behalf of the Company. The stand-by letter of credit was issued to guarantee the Company’s compliance with reclamation bonding requirements. The letter of credit expires on June 24, 2016 and will be automatically renewed for one year periods unless either party elects not to renew. The Company is required to maintain a $100,000 certificate of deposit with the financial institution. The Company is also required to pay an annual fee of 2% of the total value of the letter of credit. As of September 30, 2015, no draws have been made on the letter of credit.

Consultant bonus – In April 2012, the Company entered into an Agreement for Services (the “Agreement”) with a consulting firm. The Company agreed to pay the firm at their standard rates in exchange for services provided. In addition, the Company agreed to pay bonuses to the firm upon completion of milestones as defined in the Agreement. The bonuses consist of cash payments up to $400,000 and issuance of up to 3,000,000 warrants at a price of $0.90 per share and expiring March 31, 2017. The Agreement does not contain any performance commitments; therefore, the fair value of the warrants will be measured and recognized on the dates that the milestones are reached. As of September 30, 2015, no milestones have been reached for which a bonus was due or paid.

Registration Rights Agreement - In connection with the November 30, 2012 private placement, the Company entered into a Registration Rights Agreement (“RRA”) with the purchasers. Pursuant to the RRA, the Company agreed to certain demand registration rights. If the Company is not able to comply with the registration requirements, the Company will be required to pay cash penalties equal to 1.0% of the subscription proceeds on the date of such failure, and each month thereafter, up to a maximum of 6% of the subscription proceeds. The maximum penalty amounts to $346,979 ; however, the RRA also provides that no liquidated damages are payable so long as the securities could be resold using Rule 144. As of September 30, 2015, the Company had incurred and paid cumulative penalties of $5,757. Additionally, as of September 30, 2015, the Company was not in compliance with the registration requirements; however, any penalty is limited to use of the cashless exercise rights to the extent available.

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RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS [Text Block]

10. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

DOSA - DOSA is a consulting firm owned by the Company’s CEO. Services provided by NMC are coordinated for the Company by DOSA. No management fees are billed to the Company for these services. Details of these transactions are provided below. The CEO’s salary and reimbursable expenses are also paid to DOSA.

NMC - NMC is the Company’s largest shareholder. NMC and its affiliates own approximately 26.7% of the Company’s outstanding common stock and is the Company’s lead consultant on technical exploration matters.

The following table provides details of transactions between the Company and NMC for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014.

		Three Months		Three Months		Nine Months		Nine Months
		Ended		Ended		Ended		Ended
		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,		September 30,
		2015		2014		2015		2014
Reimbursement of expenses	$	880	$	-	$	18,917	$	29,279
Consulting services provided		105,000		105,000		315,000		315,000
Mineral and exploration expense – related party	$	105,880	$	105,000	$	333,917	$	344,279

At September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the Company owed DOSA $40,168 and $237,551, respectively, for NMC fees and reimbursements.

Searchlight Minerals Corp. (“SMC”) – The Company leases corporate office space on month-to-month terms to SMC. NMC is a shareholder in both the Company and SMC. Additionally, the Company’s CFO, Treasurer and director is also a director of SMC and one of the Company’s consultants is an officer and director of SMC. Total rent income earned was $5,068 and $7,305 for the three month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $15,070 and $24,219 for the nine month periods ended September 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. No amounts were due from SMC as of September 30, 2015 or December 31, 2014.

Cactus Mining – Cactus Mining is an affiliate of NMC. For the nine month period ended September 30, 2015, Cactus Mining paid the Company $50,000 for use of onsite laboratory facilities and personnel for the month of March 2015.

Former officers - Due to related parties includes amounts due to former officers of the Company. At September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the remaining amount of due to related parties was $23,290, respectively.

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CONCENTRATIONS (Narrative) (Details)	Sep. 30, 2015 USD ($)
Cash, FDIC Insured Amount	$ 250,000
Cash, Uninsured Amount	$ 519,468

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STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Schedule of Stockholders' Equity Note, Warrants or Rights [Table Text Block]

Shares Underlying
Outstanding Warrants	Exercise Price	Expiration Date
22,572,827	$0.75	December 2015
12,069,099	0.80	December 2015
23,075,000 *	0.20	February 2016
8,896,901	0.95	November 2016
6,125,000	0.40	March 2019
1,333,333	0.45	March 2019
4,000,000	0.40	February 2020
78,072,160

January 15, 2014, April 28, 2014, May 5, 2014 and July 17, 2014 [Member]

Schedule of Warrants, Valuation Assumptions [Table Text Block]

	January	April 28,	May 5,	July 17,
	15, 2014	2014	2014	2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.04%	0.015%	0.01%	0.06%
Expected volatility	58.97%	85.93%	81.21%	112.00%
Expected life (years)	0.30	0.20	0.10	0.40
Fair value	$-	$-	$-	$-

May 5, 2014 and July 17, 2014 [Member]

Schedule of Warrants, Valuation Assumptions [Table Text Block]

	May 5, 2014	July 17, 2014
Risk-free interest rate	0.03%	0.02%
Expected volatility	97.58%	65.52%
Expected life (years)	0.20	0.20
Fair value	$-	$-

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DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS, HISTORY AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT POLICIES (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		175 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax, Attributable to Parent	$ (4,835,002)	$ 17,495,317	$ (473,402)	$ 19,385,437	$ 48,166,857
Retained Earnings (Accumulated Deficit)	$ (48,166,857)		$ (48,166,857)		$ (48,166,857)	$ (48,645,737)
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount			70,889,357	76,154,857
Maximum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life			20 years
Minimum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life			3 years

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Tax Effects of Comprehensive Loss (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
Total unrealized gain (loss), net of tax	$ (1,057)	$ (1,385)	$ (5,478)	$ (4,910)

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Schedule of Stockholders' Equity Note, Warrants or Rights (Details)	Sep. 30, 2015 $ / shares shares
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	78,072,160
Expiration Date December 2015 1 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	22,572,827
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.75
Expiration Date December 2015 2 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	12,069,099
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.80
Expiration Date February 2016 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	23,075,000
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.20
Expiration Date November 2016 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	8,896,901
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.95
Expiration Date March 2019 1 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	6,125,000
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.40
Expiration Date March 2019 2 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	1,333,333
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.45
Expiration Date February 2020 [Member]
Class of Warrant or Right, Outstanding	4,000,000
Class of Warrant or Right, Exercise Price of Warrants or Rights | $ / shares	$ 0.40

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net income (loss)	$ 478,880	$ (19,380,527)
Adjustments to reconcile income (loss) from operations to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation	459,560	706,326
Gain on asset disposal	0	(1,000)
Abandonment of mineral rights	0	16,245,954
Stock-based compensation	387,390	245,281
Change in derivative liability	(3,866,450)	(1,314,283)
Deferred income taxes	2,950	2,644
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Other receivables	5,403	(7,115)
Prepaid expenses and deposits	19,533	161,770
Reclamation bonds and other deposits	(101)	1,987
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(479,444)	78,943
Net cash used in operating activities	(2,992,279)	(3,260,020)
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Purchase of property and equipment	(298,467)	(28,945)
Proceeds from asset disposal	0	1,000
Net cash used in investing activities	(298,467)	(27,945)
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Proceeds from equity issuances	3,810,000	3,149,000
Financing issuance costs	(4,353)	(20,610)
Net cash provided by financing activities	3,805,647	3,128,390
NET CHANGE IN CASH	514,901	(159,575)
CASH AT BEGINNING OF PERIOD	259,495	708,371
CASH AT END OF PERIOD	774,396	548,796
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Interest paid	772	2,289
Income taxes paid	0	0
Non-cash investing and financing activities:
Investor warrants issued with non-customary anti-dilution provisions	$ 3,518,000	$ 1,951,423

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DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY [Text Block]

4. DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY

As further discussed in Note 5, the Company issued 14,200,000 Special Warrants (“2014 Special Warrants”) in 2014 and 19,000,000 Special Warrants (“2015 Special Warrants”) in 2015 each at a price of $0.20 per warrant.

The Special Warrants have anti-dilution provisions, including the provision for the holders to participate in subsequent equity financings at no additional cost by converting the Special Warrants into shares or units offered in a subsequent equity financing for a total subscription price equal to the total subscription price paid for the Special Warrants.

The Company determined that the anti-dilution provision shields the Special Warrant holders from the dilutive effects of subsequent equity financings and therefore the economic characteristics and risks of the Special Warrants are not clearly and closely related to the Company’s common stock. Accordingly, the Special Warrants are treated as a derivative liability and are carried at fair value.

As of September 30, 2015, 8,075,000 of the 2014 Special Warrants were converted into 2015 Special Warrants.

The following table sets forth the changes in the derivative liability for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015 and the year ended December 31, 2014:

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Beginning balance	$	(348,450	)	$	-
Issuance of Special Warrants		(3,518,000	)		(1,951,423	)
Exercise of Special Warrants		505,000			165,628
Change in fair value		3,361,450			1,437,345
Ending balance	$	-		$	(348,450	)

The Company estimates the fair value of the derivative liability by using the Binomial Lattice pricing-model, with the following assumptions used for the nine month period ended September 30, 2015 and the year ended December 31, 2014:

	September 30,	December 31,
	2015	2014
Dividend yield	-	-
Expected volatility	94.96% - 104.00%	91.07% - 137.42%
Risk-free interest rate	0.08% - 0.28%	0.04% - 0.14%
Expected life (years)	-	0.10 - 1.0

The expected volatility is based on the historical volatility levels on the Company’s common stock. The risk-free interest rate is based on the implied yield available on US Treasury zero-coupon issues over equivalent lives of the warrants. The expected life is impacted by all of the underlying assumptions and calibration of the Company’s model. Significant increases or decreases in inputs would result in a significantly lower or higher fair value measurement.

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PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2015	Sep. 30, 2014
Depreciation	$ 88,485	$ 236,069	$ 459,560	$ 706,326

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Changes in the Fair Value of the Derivative Liability (Details) - USD ($)	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Beginning balance	$ (348,450)	$ 0
Issuance of Special Warrants	(3,518,000)	(1,951,423)
Exercise of Special Warrants	505,000	165,628
Change in fair value	3,361,450	1,437,345
Ending balance	$ 0	$ (348,450)

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DERIVATIVE WARRANT LIABILITY (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Changes in the Fair Value of the Derivative Liability [Table Text Block]

		September 30,			December 31,
		2015			2014
Beginning balance	$	(348,450	)	$	-
Issuance of Special Warrants		(3,518,000	)		(1,951,423	)
Exercise of Special Warrants		505,000			165,628
Change in fair value		3,361,450			1,437,345
Ending balance	$	-		$	(348,450	)

Fair Value Assumptions of Derivative Liability [Table Text Block]

	September 30,	December 31,
	2015	2014
Dividend yield	-	-
Expected volatility	94.96% - 104.00%	91.07% - 137.42%
Risk-free interest rate	0.08% - 0.28%	0.04% - 0.14%
Expected life (years)	-	0.10 - 1.0