Current through Register Vol. 41, No. 3, September 23, 2024
(a)
General. Each application shall include a general plan and a detailed design
plan for each proposed siltation structure, water impoundment, and coal
processing waste bank, dam, or embankment within the proposed permit area.
(1) Each general plan shall-
(i) Be prepared by, or under the direction
of, and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer, or by a
certified professional geologist with assistance from experts in related
fields, such as land surveying and landscape architecture;
(ii) Contain a description, map, and cross
section of the structure and its location;
(iii) Contain preliminary hydrologic and
geologic information required to assess the hydrologic impact of the
structure;
(iv) Contain a survey
describing the potential effect on the structure from subsidence of the
subsurface strata resulting from any past underground mining operations;
and
(v) Contain a certification
statement which includes a schedule of the dates that any detailed design plans
for structures that are not submitted with the general plan will be submitted
to the division. The division shall have approved, in writing, the detailed
design plan for the structure before construction of the structure
begins.
(2) Impoundments
meeting the Class B or C criteria for dams in the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service Technical Release No. 60 (210-VI-TR60,
Oct. 1985), "Earth Dams and Reservoirs," Technical Release No. 60 (TR-60) shall
comply with the requirements of this section for structures that meet or exceed
the size of other criteria of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. The
technical release is hereby incorporated by reference. Copies may be obtained
from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS), 5285 Port Royal Road,
Springfield, Virginia 22161, Order No. PB 87-157509/AS. Copies can be inspected
at the OSM Headquarters Office, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and
Enforcement, Administrative Record, Room 660, 800 North Capitol Street,
Washington, D.C. or at the Office of the Federal Register, 800 North Capitol
Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. Each detailed design plan for a
structure that meets or exceeds the size or other criteria of the Mine Safety
and Health Administration, 30 CFR 77.216(a),
shall-
(i) Be prepared by, or under the
direction of, and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer
with assistance from experts in related fields, such as geology, land
surveying, and landscape architecture;
(ii) Include any geotechnical investigation,
design, and construction requirements for the structure;
(iii) Describe the operation and maintenance
requirements for each structure; and
(iv) Describe the timetable and plans to
remove each structure, if appropriate.
(3) Each detailed design plan for structures
not included in paragraph (a)(2) of this section shall-
(i) Be prepared by, or under the direction
of, and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer or registered
land surveyor except that all coal processing waste dams and embankments
covered by 4VAC25-130-817.81 through 4VAC25-130-817.84 shall be certified by a
qualified registered professional engineer;
(ii) Include any design and construction
requirements for the structure, including any required geotechnical
information;
(iii) Describe the
operation and maintenance requirements for each structure; and
(iv) Describe the timetable and plans to
remove each structure, if appropriate.
(b) Siltation structures. Siltation
structures shall be designed in compliance with the requirements of
4VAC25-130-817.46.
(c) Permanent
and temporary impoundments.
(1) Permanent and
temporary impoundments shall be designed to comply with the requirements of
4VAC25-130-817.49.
(2) Each plan
for an impoundment meeting the size or other criteria of the Mine Safety and
Health Administration shall comply with the requirements of
30 CFR
77.216-1 and
77.216-2. The plan required to be
submitted to the District Manager of MSHA under
30 CFR
77.216 shall be submitted to the division as
part of the permit application in accordance with paragraph (a) of this
section.
(3) For impoundments not
included in paragraph (a)(2) of this section the division may establish
engineering design standards that ensure stability comparable to a 1.3 minimum
static safety factor in lieu of engineering tests to establish compliance with
the minimum static safety factor of 1.3 specified in
4VAC25-130-817.49(a)(4)(ii).
(d) Coal processing waste banks. Coal
processing waste banks shall be designed to comply with the requirements of
4VAC25-130-817.81 through 4VAC25-130-817.84.
(e) Coal processing waste dams and
embankments. Coal processing waste dams and embankments shall be designed to
comply with the requirements of 4VAC25-130-817.81 through 4VAC25-130-817.84.
Each plan shall comply with the requirements of the Mine Safety and Health
Administration, 30 CFR
77.216-1 and
77.216-2, and shall contain the
results of a geotechnical investigation of the proposed dam or embankment
foundation area, to determine the structural competence of the foundation which
will support the proposed dam or embankment structure and the impounded
material. The geotechnical investigation shall be planned and supervised by an
engineer or engineering geologist, according to the following:
(1) The number, location, and depth of
borings and test pits shall be determined using current prudent engineering
practice for the size of the dam or embankment, quantity of material to be
impounded, and subsurface conditions.
(2) The character of the overburden and
bedrock, the proposed abutment sites, and any adverse geotechnical conditions
which may affect the particular dam, embankment, or reservoir site shall be
considered.
(3) All springs,
seepage, and ground water flow observed or anticipated during wet periods, in
the area of the proposed dam or embankment shall be identified on each
plan.
(4) Consideration shall be
given to the possibility of mud flows, rock debris, falls, or other landslides
into the dam, embankment, or impounded material.
(f) If the structure meets the Class B or C
criteria for dams in TR-60 or meets the size or other criteria of
30 CFR
77.216(a), each plan under
paragraphs (b), (c), and (e) of this section shall include a stability analysis
of each structure. The stability analysis shall include, but not be limited to,
strength parameters, pore pressures, and long-term seepage conditions. The plan
shall also contain a description of each engineering design assumption and
calculation with a discussion of each alternative considered in selecting the
specific design parameters and construction methods.
§§ 45.1-161.3 and 45.1-230 of the Code of
Virginia.
