New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 19 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE
Chapter 8 - COAL MINING
Part 36 - NEW MEXICO COAL SURFACE MINING REGULATIONS [CSMC 1979-1]
Section 19.8.36.10 - SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL OF MINING PLAINS

A. At least 50 days prior to submitting a permit application accompanied by a mining plan, the operator shall file with the director a notice of its intent to do so. The notice shall include all of the information required by Section 2 [now 19.8.36.9 NMAC] above along with such other information as the operator may consider necessary or useful to the director.

B. Within 15 days after receipt of a notice of intent to submit a mining plan, the director shall establish the date and place of a hearing on the environmental impact of the proposed mining plan. The hearing shall be held in the county in which the mining is to be carried out.

C. Notice of the hearing on the environmental impact of the mining plan shall be given at least 20 days prior to the hearing, printed in a paper of general circulation in the county or counties in which the mining is to be carried out. The notice shall state the name of the operator, the area to be covered by the mining plan, the time and place of the hearing, and where the proposed mining plan and accompanying information shall be available for inspection and copying by the public at reasonable times.

D. Reasonable effort shall be made by the director to give notice to all persons who have made a written request for advance notice of environmental impact hearings.

E. Any person desiring to present evidence or give testimony at the environmental impact hearing on a proposed mining plan shall file a request to do so with the director at least ten days prior to the hearing. The director will transmit a copy of the request to the operator at least five days prior to the hearing. The request shall contain the name and address of the person desiring to participate and a plain and concise statement of the nature of the person's interests.

F. Any person who has filed a timely request to participate in a hearing on the environmental impact of a proposed mining plan shall be given reasonable time at the hearing to submit relevant evidence, data and views and shall be allowed to call and examine witnesses, introduce exhibits, cross-examine witnesses and submit rebuttal evidence.

G. The director may designate a hearing officer to take evidence at the hearing on the environmental impact of a proposed mining plan. The hearing officer so designated will preside and will have authority to direct the hearing, to examine witnesses and to make such rulings on evidence as may be necessary. The director shall maintain a verbatim record of said hearing and such record shall be a part of the record of the permit application hearing.

H. Within ten days after receipt of a permit application accompanied by a mining plan, the director shall establish a date for the permit application hearing to be held in Santa Fe.

I. Notice of the permit application hearing shall be given to the operator at least 15 days prior to the hearing.

J. Permit application hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures set out in Section 8 [now 19.8.36.15 NMAC].