30 U.S.C. § 1262 — Coal exploration permits

Page 284 TITLE 30—MINERAL LANDS AND MINING § 1262 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘or’’. authority shall establish guidelines for a deter- mination of the scale or extent of a revision re- quest for which all permit application informa- tion requirements and procedures, including no- tice and hearings, shall apply: Provided, That any revisions which propose significant alter- ations in the reclamation plan shall, at a min- imum, be subject to notice and hearing require- ments. (3) Any extensions to the area covered by the permit except incidental boundary revisions must be made by application for another permit. (b) Transfer, assignment, or sale of rights under permit No transfer, assignment, or sale of the rights granted under any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall be made without the written approval of the regulatory authority. (c) Review of outstanding permits The regulatory authority shall within a time limit prescribed in regulations promulgated by the regulatory authority, review outstanding permits and may require reasonable revision or modification of the permit provisions during the term of such permit: Provided, That such revi- sion or modification shall be based upon a writ- ten finding and subject to notice and hearing re- quirements established by the State or Federal program. (Pub. L. 95–87, title V, § 511, Aug. 3, 1977, 91 Stat. 483.) § 1262. Coal exploration permits (a) Regulations; contents Each State or Federal program shall include a requirement that coal exploration operations which substantially disturb the natural land surface be conducted in accordance with explo- ration regulations issued by the regulatory au- thority. Such regulations shall include, at a minimum (1) the requirement that prior to con- ducting any exploration under this section, any person must file with the regulatory authority notice of intention to explore and such notice shall include a description of the exploration area and the period of supposed exploration and (2) provisions for reclamation in accordance with the performance standards in section 1265 of this title of all lands disturbed in exploration, including excavations, roads, drill holes, and the removal of necessary facilities and equipment. (b) Confidential information Information submitted to the regulatory au- thority pursuant to this subsection as confiden- tial concerning trade secrets or privileged com- mercial or financial information which relates to the competitive rights of the person or entity intended to explore the described area shall not be available for public examination. (c) Penalties Any person who conducts any coal exploration activities which substantially disturb the nat- ural land surface in violation of this section or regulations issued pursuant thereto shall be sub- ject to the provisions of section 1268 of this title. (d) Limitation on removal of coal No operator shall remove more than two hun- dred and fifty tons of coal pursuant to an explo- ration permit without the specific written ap- proval of the regulatory authority. (e) Law governing exploration of Federal lands Coal exploration on Federal lands shall be gov- erned by section 4 of the Federal Coal Leasing Amendments Act of 1975 (90 Stat. 1085). (Pub. L. 95–87, title V, § 512, Aug. 3, 1977, 91 Stat. 483.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Section 4 of the Federal Coal Leasing Amendments Act of 1975 (90 Stat. 1085), referred to in subsec. (e), is section 4 of Pub. L. 94–377, Aug. 4, 1976, 90 Stat. 1085, re- designated the Federal Coal Leasing Amendments Act of 1976, which amended section 201(b) of this title. § 1263. Public notice and public hearings (a) Submittal of advertisement to regulatory au- thority; notification of local governmental bodies At the time of submission of an application for a surface coal mining and reclamation permit, or revision of an existing permit, pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or an approved State program, the applicant shall submit to the regulatory authority a copy of his advertise- ment of the ownership, precise location, and boundaries of the land to be affected. At the time of submission such advertisement shall be placed by the applicant in a local newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the pro- posed surface mine at least once a week for four consecutive weeks. The regulatory authority shall notify various local governmental bodies, planning agencies, and sewage and water treat- ment authorities, of 1 water companies in the lo- cality in which the proposed surface mining will take place, notifying them of the operator’s in- tention to surface mine a particularly described tract of land and indicating the application’s permit number and where a copy of the proposed mining and reclamation plan may be inspected. These local bodies, agencies, authorities, or companies may submit written comments with- in a reasonable period established by the regu- latory authority on the mining applications with respect to the effect of the proposed oper- ation on the environment which are within their area of responsibility. Such comments shall im- mediately be transmitted to the applicant by the regulatory authority and shall be made available to the public at the same locations as are the mining applications. (b) Objections to permit applications; informal conference; record Any person having an interest which is or may be adversely affected or the officer or head of any Federal, State, or local governmental agen- cy or authority shall have the right to file writ- ten objections to the proposed initial or revised application for a permit for surface coal mining and reclamation operation with the regulatory authority within thirty days after the last pub- lication of the above notice. Such objections shall immediately be transmitted to the appli-