30 U.S.C. § 1258 — Reclamation plan requirements

Page 280 TITLE 30—MINERAL LANDS AND MINING § 1258 tained in full force and effect during the terms of the permit or any renewal, including the length of all reclamation operations. (g) Blasting plan Each applicant for a surface coal mining and reclamation permit shall submit to the regu- latory authority as part of the permit applica- tion a blasting plan which shall outline the pro- cedures and standards by which the operator will meet the provisions of section 1265(b)(15) of this title. (h) Reimbursement of costs A coal operator that has received assistance pursuant to subsection (c)(1) or (2) shall reim- burse the regulatory authority for the cost of the services rendered if the program adminis- trator finds that the operator’s actual and at- tributed annual production of coal for all loca- tions exceeds 300,000 tons during the 12 months immediately following the date on which the op- erator is issued the surface coal mining and rec- lamation permit. (Pub. L. 95–87, title V, § 507, Aug. 3, 1977, 91 Stat. 474; Pub. L. 101–508, title VI, § 6011, Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1388–297; Pub. L. 102–486, title XXV, § 2513, Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 3112.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1992—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 102–486, § 2513(a), amended subsec. (c) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (c) read as follows: ‘‘If the regulatory authority finds that the probable total annual production at all locations of any coal surface mining operator will not exceed 300,000 tons, the determination of probable hydrologic con- sequences required by subsection (b)(11) of this section and the statement of the result of test borings or core samplings required by subsection (b)(15) of this section shall, upon the written request of the operator be per- formed by a qualified public or private laboratory des- ignated by the regulatory authority and the cost of the preparation of such determination and statement shall be assumed by the regulatory authority.’’ Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 102–486, § 2513(b), added subsec. (h). 1990—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 101–508 substituted ‘‘300,000’’ for ‘‘100,000’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1990 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 101–508, effective Oct. 1, 1991, see section 6014 of Pub. L. 101–508 set out as a note under section 1231 of this title. DISCRETIONARY OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS Pub. L. 113–76, div. G, title I, Jan. 17, 2014, 128 Stat. 299, provided in part: ‘‘That, in subsequent fiscal years [after fiscal year 2014], all amounts collected by the Of- fice of Surface Mining from permit fees pursuant to section 507 of Public Law 95–87 (30 U.S.C. 1257) shall be credited to this account [OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT—REGULATION AND TECHNOLOGY] as discretionary offsetting collections, to remain available until expended.’’ Similar provisions were contained in the following appropriations acts: Pub. L. 118–42, div. E, title I, Mar. 9, 2024, 138 Stat. 229. Pub. L. 117–328, div. G, title I, Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 4770. Pub. L. 117–103, div. G, title I, Mar. 15, 2022, 136 Stat. 359. Pub. L. 116–260, div. G, title I, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 1489. Pub. L. 116–94, div. D, title I, Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 2697. Pub. L. 116–6, div. E, title I, Feb. 15, 2019, 133 Stat. 216. Pub. L. 115–141, div. G, title I, Mar. 23, 2018, 132 Stat. 645. Pub. L. 115–31, div. G, title I, May 5, 2017, 131 Stat. 446. Pub. L. 114–113, div. G, title I, Dec. 18, 2015, 129 Stat. 2536. Pub. L. 113–235, div. F, title I, Dec. 16, 2014, 128 Stat. 2406. Pub. L. 112–74, div. E, title I, Dec. 23, 2011, 125 Stat. 996. PREPARATION OF CROSS-SECTIONS, MAPS, AND PLANS OF LAND BY OR UNDER DIRECTION OF QUALIFIED REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS, GEOLOGISTS, OR LAND SURVEYORS Pub. L. 98–146, title I, § 115, Nov. 4, 1983, 97 Stat. 938, provided that: ‘‘Notwithstanding section 507(b)(14) of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (Public Law 95–87) [subsec. (b)(14) of this section], cross-sections, maps or plans of land to be affected by an application for a surface mining and reclamation permit shall be prepared by or under the direction of a qualified registered professional engineer or geologist, or qualified registered professional land surveyor in any State which authorizes land surveyors to prepare and certify such maps or plans.’’ § 1258. Reclamation plan requirements (a) Each reclamation plan submitted as part of a permit application pursuant to any approved State program or a Federal program under the provisions of this chapter shall include, in the degree of detail necessary to demonstrate that reclamation required by the State or Federal program can be accomplished, a statement of: (1) the identification of the lands subject to surface coal mining operations over the esti- mated life of those operations and the size, se- quence, and timing of the subareas for which it is anticipated that individual permits for mining will be sought; (2) the condition of the land to be covered by the permit prior to any mining including: (A) the uses existing at the time of the ap- plication, and if the land has a history of previous mining, the uses which preceded any mining; and (B) the capability of the land prior to any mining to support a variety of uses giving consideration to soil and foundation charac- teristics, topography, and vegetative cover, and, if applicable, a soil survey prepared pur- suant to section 1257(b)(16) of this title; and (C) the productivity of the land prior to mining, including appropriate classification as prime farm lands, as well as the average yield of food, fiber, forage, or wood products from such lands obtained under high levels of management; (3) the use which is proposed to be made of the land following reclamation, including a discussion of the utility and capacity of the reclaimed land to support a variety of alter- native uses and the relationship of such use to existing land use policies and plans, and the comments of any owner of the surface, State and local governments or agencies thereof which would have to initiate, implement, ap- prove or authorize the proposed use of the land following reclamation; Page 281 TITLE 30—MINERAL LANDS AND MINING § 1259 (4) a detailed description of how the pro- posed postmining land use is to be achieved and the necessary support activities which may be needed to achieve the proposed land use; (5) the engineering techniques proposed to be used in mining and reclamation and a descrip- tion of the major equipment; a plan for the control of surface water drainage and of water accumulation; a plan, where appropriate, for backfilling, soil stabilization, and compacting, grading, and appropriate revegetation; a plan for soil reconstruction, replacement, and sta- bilization, pursuant to the performance stand- ards in section 1265(b)(7)(A), (B), (C), and (D) of this title, for those food, forage, and forest lands identified in section 1265(b)(7) of this title; an estimate of the cost per acre of the reclamation, including a statement as to how the permittee plans to comply with each of the requirements set out in section 1265 of this title; (6) the consideration which has been given to maximize the utilization and conservation of the solid fuel resource being recovered so that reaffecting the land in the future can be mini- mized; (7) a detailed estimated timetable for the ac- complishment of each major step in the rec- lamation plan; (8) the consideration which has been given to making the surface mining and reclamation operations consistent with surface owner plans, and applicable State and local land use plans and programs; (9) the steps to be taken to comply with ap- plicable air and water quality laws and regula- tions and any applicable health and safety standards; (10) the consideration which has been given to developing the reclamation plan in a man- ner consistent with local physical environ- mental, and climatological conditions; (11) all lands, interests in lands, or options on such interests held by the applicant or pending bids on interests in lands by the appli- cant, which lands are contiguous to the area to be covered by the permit; (12) the results of test boring which the ap- plicant has made at the area to be covered by the permit, or other equivalent information and data in a form satisfactory to the regu- latory authority, including the location of subsurface water, and an analysis of the chem- ical properties including acid forming prop- erties of the mineral and overburden: Provided, That information which pertains only to the analysis of the chemical and physical prop- erties of the coal (excepting information re- garding such mineral or elemental contents which is potentially toxic in the environment) shall be kept confidential and not made a mat- ter of public record; (13) a detailed description of the measures to be taken during the mining and reclamation process to assure the protection of: (A) the quality of surface and ground water systems, both on- and off-site, from adverse effects of the mining and reclama- tion process; (B) the rights of present users to such water; and (C) the quantity of surface and ground water systems, both on- and off-site, from adverse effects of the mining and reclama- tion process or to provide alternative sources of water where such protection of quantity cannot be assured; (14) such other requirements as the regu- latory authority shall prescribe by regula- tions. (b) Any information required by this section which is not on public file pursuant to State law shall be held in confidence by the regulatory au- thority. (Pub. L. 95–87, title V, § 508, Aug. 3, 1977, 91 Stat. 478.) § 1259. Performance bonds (a) Filing with regulatory authority; scope; num- ber and amount After a surface coal mining and reclamation permit application has been approved but before such a permit is issued, the applicant shall file with the regulatory authority, on a form pre- scribed and furnished by the regulatory author- ity, a bond for performance payable, as appro- priate, to the United States or to the State, and conditional upon faithful performance of all the requirements of this chapter and the permit. The bond shall cover that area of land within the permit area upon which the operator will initiate and conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations within the initial term of the permit. As succeeding increments of sur- face coal mining and reclamation operations are to be initiated and conducted within the permit area, the permittee shall file with the regu- latory authority an additional bond or bonds to cover such increments in accordance with this section. The amount of the bond required for each bonded area shall depend upon the reclama- tion requirements of the approved permit; shall reflect the probable difficulty of reclamation giving consideration to such factors as topog- raphy, geology of the site, hydrology, and re- vegetation potential, and shall be determined by the regulatory authority. The amount of the bond shall be sufficient to assure the completion of the reclamation plan if the work had to be performed by the regulatory authority in the event of forfeiture and in no case shall the bond for the entire area under one permit be less than $10,000. (b) Liability period; execution Liability under the bond shall be for the dura- tion of the surface coal mining and reclamation operation and for a period coincident with oper- ator’s responsibility for revegetation require- ments in section 1265 of this title. The bond shall be executed by the operator and a cor- porate surety licensed to do business in the State where such operation is located, except that the operator may elect to deposit cash, ne- gotiable bonds of the United States Government or such State, or negotiable certificates of de- posit of any bank organized or transacting busi- ness in the United States. The cash deposit or market value of such securities shall be equal to or greater than the amount of the bond required for the bonded area.