One French farmer saw the highs and lows of a big discovery at the same time. His excitement at discovering more than $4,000,000,000 worth of gold on his property immediately gave way to sadness when he learnt that a startling regulation may prevent him from keeping it.

Recently, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos have been at odds over what many consider to be the world’s largest lithium reservoir. We’ve been hearing more and more stories about apparently dull tracts of land being abruptly changed when someone discovers a valuable substance concealed underneath.

This is mostly because of the sharp rise in the price of some metals and rare earth elements that are needed to make expensive electronics like smartphones and electric vehicles.

But when 52-year-old French farmer Michel Dupont discovered pieces of gold worth over $4,000,000,000 beneath the soil of his own land, he realised that nothing compares to the sensation of a gold rush.

A farmer discovers gold worth $4,000,000,000 beneath the ground.

According to Cornwall Live, Dupont made his find after he noticed a glimmer beneath a stream on his property. Upon additional examination, he discovered that the light was a piece of gold embedded in the ground.

The gold continued to pour in once he made the decision to delve a little more in pursuit of more.

Based on analysis, his farm in the Auvergne region of France is thought to contain about 150 tonnes of the precious metal, which might have instantly turned Dupont into a multibillionaire.

“I was just doing a routine check of my land. Then I saw this strange shine in the mud,” Dupont explained. “When I dug a little deeper, I couldn’t believe what I was holding in my hands.”

Why might he not be allowed to keep the gold?

It’s not all sunshine and roses for Dupont and his golden windfall, though, as it’s likely that he won’t be able to get even a penny out of the finding.

The Auvergne region’s officials have now banned the farmer from mining on his own property, stating that they will need to authorise the project following the completion of a technical and environmental impact study.

This is to safeguard rural regions or locations that may be valuable, and regrettably, Michel’s property now plainly fits into both of these categories.

He has also encountered resistance from environmental activists who have expressed their disapproval of the substantial disruption that any mining operations would bring about in the neighbourhood, stating that they cherish the “tranquilly” that would be lost if Dupont was permitted to proceed.

The farmer has stated that he understands officials’ need to exercise “caution” before beginning any potentially damaging endeavours in the area, even if he is still “disappointed” that his plans aren’t permitted to proceed, at least for the time being.