Administrative Rules of Montana
Department 17 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Chapter 17.24 - RECLAMATION
Subchapter 17.24.1 - Rules and Regulations Governing the Montana Hard Rock Mining Reclamation Act
Rule 17.24.158 - BLASTING OPERATIONS: PARTICIPATION AND COOPERATION OF PERSONS USING EXPLOSIVES
Universal Citation: MT Admin Rules 17.24.158
Current through Register Vol. 6, March 22, 2024
(1) Whenever the department notifies the operator that it has received a credible complaint pursuant to ARM 17.24.157 concerning a use of explosives, the operator shall make available to the department, within 15 days of receipt of a written request, such information as the department may request, including, but not limited to, the following:
(a) identification of persons conducting
blasting activities and their level of training and experience;
(b) preblasting survey information, if
available;
(c) blasting schedule
and records identifying as accurately as possible location of the blasting
sites and timing of blasts; and
(d)
seismograph measurements, if available.
(2) The operator shall make available for interviewing by the department and its consultants all persons involved in the blasting operations.
(3)
(a) After the department conducts its
preliminary investigation by reviewing the records supplied by the operator
using explosives and performs its own appropriate tests, if needed, the
department shall do one or more of the following:
(i) if the department's preliminary
investigation has determined that property damage or a safety hazard could not
have occurred from blasting activities, the department shall give written
notification of its findings to all concerned parties;
(ii) if, after its preliminary investigation,
the department cannot determine whether property damage or a safety hazard may
have occurred as the result of blasting, or if it appears damage or a safety
hazard has occurred as the result of blasting, the department shall perform one
or more of the following:
(A) continue to
conduct its own tests;
(B) conduct
additional investigations, including, but not limited to, geologic structure,
frequency, and delay sequencing; or
(C) hire a third party consultant to conduct
a survey of the blasting operation and, if necessary, structures.
(b) A survey prepared
under (a) (ii) (C) must be conducted by a recognized expert on the forces
created by blasting and must document the condition of the structure, any
blasting damage, any causes for the damage other than blasting, and whether
blasting by the operator exceeded the standards contained in ARM
17.24.159(2) (f) (i), (2) (k) (i) and (2) (o)
(iii). Assessments of structures such as
pipes, cables, transmission lines, and wells and other water systems must be
limited to surface condition and readily available data. Special attention must
be given to the condition of wells and other water systems used for human,
animal, or agricultural purposes and to the quantity and quality of the
water.
(c) The recognized expert
must submit the expert's qualifications to the department for review. At a
minimum, the expert must:
(i) have field
experience covering at least five previous blasting-related projects;
and
(ii) provide a brief summary of
the number and type of preblast and postblast investigations along with any
conclusions or recommendations resulting from those investigations.
(d) The department shall require
that a written report of the survey be prepared and signed by the person who
conducted the survey. If the report finds that the standards were exceeded or
that the blasting caused damage or safety hazard, the report must include
recommendations of any special conditions or proposed adjustments to the
blasting procedure that should be incorporated into the blasting plan to
prevent damage or hazard. The department shall provide a copy of the report to
the complainant and the operator.
(4)
(a) If
the third party investigation demonstrates that the operator exceeded the
standards contained in ARM
17.24.159(2) (f) (i), (2) (k) (i) or (2) (o)
(iii), or that the damages or a hazard
resulted from blasting by the operator, the operator shall reimburse the
department for all reasonable fees and expenses it has paid to the third-party
consultant.
(b) The operator may
file a response, including proposed mitigation measures, to the written report
submitted pursuant to (3) (d) within 15 days from receipt of the
report.
(c) The department shall
respond to the operator in a timely manner with directives and fees for all
reasonable expenses incurred in the third-party investigations.
82-4-321, MCA; IMP, 82-4-356, MCA;
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Montana may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google
Privacy Policy and
Terms of Service apply.