Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
The Department is authorized to inspect all mines subject to
this rule to determine compliance with rule requirements and to determine if
reclamation has been properly completed thereby allowing the release of the
operator from further obligations. The following standards shall apply to all
areas disturbed by mining operations in new mines and all new surface areas
disturbed after January 1, 1989, at existing mines.
(1) Completion Dates for Reclamation
Activities. All reclamation activities shall, to the extent possible, be
coordinated with resource extraction and in any event shall be initiated at the
earliest practicable time.
(a) Contouring
shall be initiated and completed no later than one year after the calendar year
in which mining operations cease for any given area. The Department shall waive
this requirement for any reasonable length of time when a waiver is necessary
to prevent the unacceptable contamination of the resource being
extracted.
(b) Revegetation
activities shall be initiated as soon as practical and completed no later than
one year after the calendar year in which the final contours are established in
an area unless revegetation activities will interfere with mining
operations.
(c) Reclamation
activities through revegetation shall be completed within three years of the
cessation of mining operations at the mine.
(d) If mining operations temporarily cease at
a mine for more than 12 months, the operator shall comply with one of the
following options:
1. The requirements of
subsections (4) through (7), below, shall begin immediately and be completed at
a rate of at least 1, 000 feet of shoreline or dry pit wall per three-month
period, or
2. The operator shall
post a bond or other surety in an amount reasonably related to the cost of
completing reclamation and for the period of time the initiation of reclamation
will be delayed, both of which shall be acceptable to the Department,
or
3. The operator shall begin
reclaiming an equivalent amount of nonmandatory land at the rate specified in
subparagraph 1., above. Compliance with the above requirements shall be tolled
by the length of time that a temporary cessation results from attempts to
obtain necessary permits for operations. The Department shall waive the
commencement of the above requirements for any length of time not to exceed a
maximum of one year upon a showing of good cause by the
operator.
(e) If mining
operations cease, for whatever reason, for more than two years at a mine, then
all of the requirements of this section shall be met. This period shall be
extended for a maximum of five years when the cessation of mining is caused by
governmental action during the review of environmental permit applications.
However, the Department shall direct the operator to complete those reclamation
activities necessary to protect the public health and safety.
(f) The requirements of paragraphs (d) and
(e), above, shall be suspended upon the resumption of
mining.
(2) Consistency
with Local Ordinances. Reclamation activities shall be consistent with all
applicable local government ordinances at least as stringent as the criteria
and standards contained in this section.
(3) Surface Drainage and Groundwater
Requirements. Reclamation shall achieve the stormwater drainage, wetlands, and
other surface and groundwater management requirements of the Department of
Environmental Protection and the appropriate water management
district.
(4) Safety. Provisions
for safety to persons, wildlife, and adjoining property must be provided.
(a) Site cleanup.
1. All lands shall be reclaimed to a neat,
clean condition by removing or adequately burying, where allowed by law, all
visible debris, litter, junk, worn-out or unuseable equipment or materials, as
well as all poles, pilings, and cables.
2. Large rocks and boulders shall be placed
at the base of pit walls to the extent practical to provide fill for
establishing acceptable slopes; otherwise, they shall be placed in common
locations at the surface or buried to a minimum depth of four
feet.
(b) Structures. All
temporary buildings, pipelines, and other man-made structures shall be removed
with the exception of those that are of sound construction with potential uses
that are compatible with the reclamation goals.
(5) Final Slopes. The final slopes shall be
such an angle as to minimize the possibility of slides and shall not exceed the
natural angle of repose of the material being mined.
(a) The reclaimed slope shall be no steeper
than two horizontal feet to one vertical foot, unless the operator chooses to
calculate the slope by one of the following acceptable methods:
1. If the material being mined is sand, the
maximum reclaimed slope shall be calculated using the angle of repose of the
product stockpile. The angle of repose is defined as the slope angle of the
product stockpile measured along an undisturbed portion of the pile. Given a
vertical component of one unit, the corresponding minimum horizontal component
of the reclaimed slope shall be calculated by dividing 1.5, the minimum
acceptable factor of safety, by the tangent of the angle of repose of the sand
stockpile.
2. For all other
resources, the steepest reclaimed slope shall be calculated by determining the
angle of repose of the actual material being mined and applying a minimum
factor of safety of 1.5. The angle of repose and the factor of safety shall be
determined using standard geotechnical engineering
practices.
(b) In mines
resulting in lakes the reclaimed slope shall extend from the top of the mine
wall to a depth of five feet below the water surface and shall not exceed the
steepest slope allowed by paragraph (a), above.
(6) Contouring and Erosion Prevention. Any
overburden and spoil shall be left in a configuration which is in accordance
with accepted soil conservation practices and which is suitable for the
proposed future use of the land.
(a) All
upland areas disturbed by mining operations must be revegetated in quantities
and densities necessary to prevent and control erosion and to provide stability
to the slope. Erosional areas shall be repaired until a vegetative cover is
fully established and the land is released.
(b) The zone of fluctuation of reclaimed
lakes should be vegetated with native wetland species. Acceptable methods
recommended to establish vegetation include spreading muck obtained from areas
containing desirable, native, littoral zone plant communities, planting of
native wetland vegetation, or natural regeneration of wetland plant species. At
least 50 percent of the zone should have established vegetation for a period of
not less than one year after the initial appearance or planting of the
vegetation.
(7) Water
Quality. Reclamation shall be designed to avoid the collection of water in
pools which are, or are likely to become, noxious, odious, or foul. Where water
bodies result from reclamation, the Department encourages designs that will
allow both a variety of emergent habitats and naturally fluctuating water
levels.
Rulemaking Authority
378.404 FS. Law Implemented
378.404,
378.802,
378.803
FS.
New 1-19-89, Formerly
16C-39.008.
