Administrative Rules of Montana
Department 17 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Chapter 17.86 - ENERGY
Subchapter 17.86.1 - Wind Generation Facility Decommissioning and Bonding
Rule 17.86.105 - DECOMMISSIONING PLAN
Universal Citation: MT Admin Rules 17.86.105
Current through Register Vol. 6, March 22, 2024
(1) A decommissioning plan must include:
(a) a
commitment to remove all aboveground wind turbines and towers;
(b) as-built plans, including general
structural and electrical information, relative to the calculation of the bond
for all facilities and all disturbances associated with the facility. The
as-built plans must include an affidavit signed by an owner or any person
authorized to act on the owner's behalf attesting to the completeness and
accuracy of the as-built plans or be certified by a professional engineer that
the as-built plans are complete and accurate. The department may allow
redaction, the filing of a less detailed plan, or treatment of all or a portion
of the plan as confidential information if the owner demonstrates to the
department's satisfaction that the information or plan may be protected
pursuant to
2-6-1003,
MCA;
(c) a detailed estimate of the
cost of decommissioning the facility with supporting calculations;
(d) any agreement(s) signed by all landowners
and facility owners providing for alternative reclamation or the non-removal of
buildings, cabling, electrical components, roads or any associated facilities.
The agreement may be specific to decommissioning or it may be a more general
agreement with specific provision relating to decommissioning. A general
agreement may contain redactions to protect information that is not necessary
for the department's review;
(e) a
description of the manner in which the facility will be decommissioned and a
proposed decommissioning schedule, which, except as provided in (1)(d), must
include:
(i) dismantling and removal of all
overhead electrical transmission lines and structures, transformers, buildings,
and all other ancillary equipment and debris from operation of the facility
that is not associated with interconnecting the facility into the electric
grid;
(ii) removal of all
underground cables and pipelines to a depth of 24 inches or deeper if necessary
for the post operation land use;
(iii) removal of wind turbine and solar
foundations and other concrete foundations and slabs to a minimum depth of 36
inches below natural grade or an alternative depth as approved by the
department if appropriate for the post operation land use;
(iv) reclamation of the facility site to the
approximate original surface topography that existed prior to the start of the
construction of the facility with grading, topsoil application over the
disturbed areas at a depth similar to that in existence prior to the
disturbance, reseeding, and revegetation to achieve the same utility as the
surrounding area at the time of decommissioning to prevent adverse hydrological
effects;
(v) repair and
reconstruction from damage to public roads, culverts and natural drainage ways
resulting directly from operation of or decommissioning of the facility; and
(vi) removal and grading of all
access roads to pre-construction or natural grade as appropriate;
(e) a detailed estimate of the
current salvageable value of the facility by an evaluator who is not an
employee of the owner; and
(f) an
estimate of all other expenses related to decommissioning that are the
responsibility of the owner.
AUTH: 75-26-310, MCA; IMP: 75-26-304, MCA
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