New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 19 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE
Chapter 10 - NON-COAL MINING
Part 6 - NEW MINING OPERATIONS
Section 19.10.6.605 - PERMIT APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

A. As soon as practicable after receipt of a permit application, the Director shall notify the applicant in writing whether the application is complete. If the application is not complete, the notice shall specify the items missing from the application.

B. Within 30 days of receipt of a notice from the Director that the application is complete, the applicant shall, in the form approved by the Director, give public notice of the application pursuant to 19.10.9 NMAC.

C. The Director shall deliver copies of the complete application or appropriate sections (except those parts of the application designated confidential under Subsection B of 19.10.6.602 NMAC, provided, however, that the Director shall include with the application a list of the parts withheld and will provide such parts at an agency's specific request) to the following agencies which shall have 60 days in which to provide comments to the Director: the Environment Department; the Department of Game and Fish; the State Forestry Division; the State Historic Preservation Office; and the State Engineer; if the operation is on state or federal land, the appropriate state or federal land management agency; and any other agency the director deems appropriate.

D. The Director shall prepare a draft environmental evaluation which shall include an analyses of the reasonably foreseeable impacts of proposed activities on the pre-mining and post-mining environment and the local community, including other past, present and reasonably foreseeable future actions, regardless of the agency or persons that undertake the other action or whether the actions are on private, state or federal land. The Director may contract with, and the applicant should pay for, a third party to prepare the analysis and assessment.

E. The Director shall, within 30 days after completion of the technical review of the application and the draft environmental evaluation, notify the applicant in writing whether the application is approvable, or, if not approvable, shall specify in detail what additional submittal or changes are required. The Director shall, upon submittal of additional information or changes, notify the applicant whether the resubmitted application is approvable or if the additional submittal or changes are not sufficient.

F. After receipt of written notice from the Director that the application is approvable, the applicant shall submit a proposal for financial assurance as determined under 19.10.12 NMAC.