(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, any person having an interest which is or may be adversely affected may commence a civil action in the circuit court of the county to which the surface mining operation is located on the person's own behalf to compel compliance with this article: (1) Against […]
The provisions of this article do not apply to any of the following activities: (a) The extraction of coal by a landowner for the landowner's own noncommercial use from land owned or leased by the landowner. (b) The extraction of coal as an incidental part of federal, state, county, municipal or other local government-financed highway […]
No land or interest in land owned by the state may be leased, and no present lease may be renewed by the state, nor any agency of the state, for the purpose of conducting surface mining operations thereon unless said lease or renewal has been first authorized by an act of the Legislature: Provided, That […]
(a) Except where exempted by section twenty-six of this article, it is unlawful for any person to engage in surface-mining as defined in this article as an incident to the development of land for commercial, residential, industrial or civic use without having first obtained from the director a permit therefor as provided in section eight […]
In order to encourage advances in surface mining and reclamation practices or to allow post-mining land use for industrial, commercial, residential, agricultural or public use, including recreational facilities, the director may authorize departures, in individual cases and on an experimental basis, from the environmental protection performance standards promulgated under this article. Such departures may be […]
As used in this article, unless used in a context that clearly requires a different meaning, the term: (a) "Adequate treatment" means treatment of water by physical, chemical or other approved methods in a manner so that the treated water does not violate the effluent limitations or cause a violation of the water quality standards […]
The director is responsible for the training, examination and certification of persons engaging in or directly responsible for blasting or use of explosives in surface mining operations.
(a) Blasting shall be conducted in accordance with the rules and laws established to regulate blasting. (b) If the Department of Environmental Protection establishes after an inspection that a blast at a surface coal mine operation as defined by the provisions of subdivision (2), subsection (a), section thirteen-a of this article was not in compliance […]
(a) No employee of the division engaged in the enforcement or administration of this article or employee of the surface mine board performing any function or duty under this article shall have a direct or indirect financial interest in any surface-mining operation. Whoever knowingly violates the provisions of this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor, […]
(a) Imposition of tax. — Upon every person in this state engaging in the privilege of severing, extracting, reducing to possession or producing coal for sale, profit or commercial use, there is hereby imposed an annual tax equal to 2¢ per ton of coal produced by such person for sale, profit or commercial use during […]
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to clarify that from the date of its enactment, the special tax on coal imposed pursuant to the provisions of section thirty-two of this article is intended to be in addition to any other taxes imposed on every person in this state engaging in the privilege of […]
(a) As a result of any administrative proceeding under this article, at the request of any person, a sum equal to the aggregate amount of all costs and expenses, including attorney fees, as determined by the court or the Surface Mine Board to have been reasonably incurred by the requesting person for or in connection […]
The office of explosives and blasting within the Department of Environmental Protection is hereby terminated, and its authority and functions are transferred to the Division of Mining and Reclamation. With this transfer, all records, assets, and contracts, along with the rights and obligations thereunder, obtained or signed on behalf of the office of explosives and […]
(a) All authority to promulgate rules pursuant to article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code is hereby transferred from the office of explosives and blasting to the Division of Mining and Reclamation as of the effective date of enactment of this section and article during the 2016 session of the Legislature: Provided, That any rule […]
(a) The Division of Mining and Reclamation shall establish and manage a process for the filing, administration and resolution of claims related to blasting. (b) Claims which may be filed and determined under the provisions of this section shall be those arising from both of the following: (1) Damage to property arising from blasting activities […]
(a) All orders, determinations, rules, permits, grants, contracts, certificates, licenses, waivers, bonds, authorizations and privileges which have been issued, made, granted or allowed to become effective prior to the enactment of this article shall remain in effect according to their terms until modified, terminated, superseded, set aside or revoked pursuant to this article, by a […]
The secretary shall transfer to the Division of Mining and Reclamation any personnel and assets presently used to perform or used in the performance of the duties and functions required by sections thirty-four through thirty-nine of this article.
(a) The secretary shall administer the provisions of this article relating to surface-mining operations. The secretary has within his or her jurisdiction and supervision all lands and areas of the State, mined or susceptible of being mined, for the removal of coal and all other lands and areas of the State deforested, burned over, barren […]
The director shall determine the number of surface mining reclamation supervisors and inspectors needed to carry out the purposes of this article and appoint them as such. All such appointees shall be qualified civil service employees, but no person is eligible for such appointment until he or she has served in a probationary status for […]
Except as otherwise provided in this article, surface mining reclamation inspectors and inspectors in training shall make all necessary surveys and inspections of surface mining operations required by the provisions of this article, shall administer and enforce all surface mining laws and rules and shall perform such other duties and services as may be prescribed […]
