HOUSE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 1165, 1799, 1861 PRINTER'S NO. 2001
No. 990 Session of 1979
INTRODUCED BY MELLOW, HOLL, KURY, O'PAKE, LINCOLN, O'CONNELL,
MURRAY, STOUT, GURZENDA AND STAPLETON, OCTOBER 2, 1979
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON CONSERVATION, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, SEPTEMBER 15, 1980
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 31, 1945 (P.L.1198, No.418), entitled,
2 as amended, "An act providing for the conservation and
3 improvement of land affected in connection with surface
4 mining; regulating such mining; and providing penalties,"
5 adding definitions, providing for permits to conduct certain
6 mining operations, establishing procedures for making
7 application for permits, providing for the deposit of
8 collateral, further providing for the rule making powers of
9 the Department of Environmental Resources, designating areas
10 unsuitable for surface mining, further providing for mine
11 conservation inspectors superseding certain ordinances,
12 further providing for deposits into the Surface Mining
13 Conservation and Reclamation Fund, changing remedies,
14 imposing additional penalties, creating the Small Operators'
15 Assistance Fund, making an editorial change, exempting the
16 surface mining of anthracite.
17 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
18 hereby enacts as follows:
19 Section 1. Section 1, act of May 31, 1945 (P.L.1198,
20 No.418), known as the "Surface Mining Conservation and
21 Reclamation Act," amended November 30, 1971 (P.L.554, No.147),
22 is amended to read:
23 Section 1. Purpose of Act.--This act shall be deemed to be
1 an exercise of the police powers of the Commonwealth for the
2 general welfare of the people of the Commonwealth, by providing
3 for the conservation and improvement of areas of land affected
4 in the surface mining of bituminous and anthracite coal and
5 metallic and nonmetallic minerals, to aid thereby in the
6 protection of birds and wild life, to enhance the value of such
7 land for taxation, to decrease soil erosion, to aid in the
8 prevention of the pollution of rivers and streams, to protect
9 and maintain water supply, to protect land and to enhance land
10 use management and planning, to prevent and eliminate hazards to
11 health and safety, to prevent combustion of unmined coal, and
12 generally to improve the use and enjoyment of said lands, to
13 designate lands unsuitable for mining and to maintain primary
14 jurisdiction over surface coal mining in Pennsylvania. IT IS <--
15 ALSO THE POLICY OF THIS ACT TO ASSURE THAT THE COAL SUPPLY
16 ESSENTIAL TO THE NATION'S AND THE COMMONWEALTH'S ENERGY
17 REQUIREMENTS, AND TO THEIR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING, IS
18 PROVIDED AND TO STRIKE A BALANCE BETWEEN PROTECTION OF THE
19 ENVIRONMENT AND AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY AND THE NATION'S AND
20 THE COMMONWEALTH'S NEED FOR COAL AS AN ESSENTIAL SOURCE OF
21 ENERGY.
22 Section 2. Section 3 of the act, amended November 30, 1971
23 (P.L.554, No.147), December 28, 1972 (P.L.1662, No.355) and July
24 25, 1977 (P.L.99, No.36), is amended to read:
25 Section 3. Definitions.--The following words and phrases,
26 unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context,
27 shall have the following meanings:
28 ["Minerals" shall mean any aggregate or mass of mineral
29 matter, whether or not coherent, which is extracted by surface
30 mining, and shall include but not be limited to limestone and
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1 dolomite, sand and gravel, rock and stone, earth, fill, slag,
2 iron ore, zinc ore, vermiculite, clay, and anthracite and
3 bituminous coal.
4 "Surface mining" shall mean the extraction of minerals from
5 the earth or from waste or stock piles or from pits or banks by
6 removing the strata or material which overlies or is above or
7 between them or otherwise exposing and retrieving them from the
8 surface, including but not limited to strip, drift, and auger
9 mining, dredging, quarrying, and leaching, and activities
10 related thereto, but not including those mining operations
11 carried out beneath the surface by means of shafts, tunnels, or
12 other underground mine openings. "Surface mining" shall not
13 include (i) the extraction of minerals (other than anthracite
14 and bituminous coal) by a landowner for his own non-commercial
15 use from land owned or leased by him; nor (ii) the extraction of
16 sand, gravel, rock, stone, earth or fill from borrow pits for
17 highway construction purposes, so long as such work is performed
18 under a bond, contract and specifications which substantially
19 provide for and require reclamation of the area affected in the
20 manner provided by this act; nor (iii) to the handling,
21 processing or storage of slag on the premises of a manufacturer
22 as a part of the manufacturing process.
23 "Pit" shall mean the place where any coal or metallic and
24 nonmetallic minerals are being mined by the surface mining
25 method.
26 "Operation" shall mean the pit located upon a single tract of
27 land or a continuous pit embracing or extending upon two or more
28 contiguous tracts of land.
29 "Active operation" shall mean one in which the surface mine
30 operator has removed a minimum of five hundred (500) tons per
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1 acre of aggregate or mass of non-coal mineral matter for
2 commercial purposes in the preceding year.
3 "Land" shall mean the surface of the land upon which surface
4 mining is conducted.
5 "Tract" shall mean a single parcel of land or two or more
6 contiguous parcels of land with common ownership.
7 "Operator" shall mean a person, firm, corporation or
8 partnership engaged in surface mining, as a principal as
9 distinguished from an agent or independent contractor, and, who
10 is or becomes the owner of the minerals as a result of such
11 mining. Where more than one person, firm, corporation or
12 partnership is engaged in surface mining activities in a single
13 operation, they shall be deemed jointly and severally
14 responsible for compliance with the provisions of this act.
15 "Landowner" shall mean the person, firm, corporation or
16 partnership, or the persons, firms, corporations, or
17 partnerships in whom the legal title to the land is vested.
18 "Overburden" shall mean the strata or material overlying a
19 mineral deposit or in between mineral deposits in its natural
20 state and shall mean such material before or after its removal
21 by surface mining.
22 "Spoil pile" shall mean the overburden and reject minerals as
23 piled or deposited in surface mining.
24 "Land affected" shall mean the land from which the mineral is
25 removed by surface mining, and all other land area in which the
26 natural land surface has been disturbed as a result of or
27 incidental to the surface mining activities of the operator,
28 including but not limited to private ways and roads appurtenant
29 to any such area, land excavations, workings, refuse banks,
30 spoil banks, culm banks, tailings, repair areas, storage areas,
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1 processing areas, shipping areas, and areas in which structures,
2 facilities, equipment, machines, tools, or other materials or
3 property which result from, or are used in, surface mining
4 operations are situated.
5 "Abandoned" shall mean an operation where no mineral has been
6 produced or overburden removed for a period of six months,
7 verified by monthly reports submitted to the department by the
8 operator and by inspections made by the department, unless an
9 operator within thirty (30) days after receipt of notification
10 by the secretary terming an operation abandoned submits
11 sufficient evidence to the secretary that the operation is in
12 fact not abandoned and submits a timetable satisfactory to the
13 secretary regarding plans for the reactivation of the operation.
14 "Degree" shall mean the inclination from the horizontal and
15 in each case shall be subject to a tolerance of five (5)
16 degrees.
17 "Terracing" shall mean grading where the steepest contour of
18 the highwall shall not be greater than thirty-five degrees from
19 the horizontal, with the table portion of the restored area a
20 flat terrace without depressions to hold water and with adequate
21 provision for drainage, unless otherwise approved by the
22 department.
23 "Contouring" shall mean reclamation achieved by beginning at
24 or beyond the top of the highwall and slope to the toe of the
25 spoil bank at a maximum angle not to exceed the approximate
26 original contour of the land, with no depressions to accumulate
27 water and with adequate provision for drainage.
28 "Secretary" shall mean the Secretary of Environmental
29 Resources of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
30 "Department" shall mean the Department of Environmental
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1 Resources of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
2 "Cash" shall include, when used in regard to bond
3 requirements, certificates of deposit.]
4 "Abandoned" shall mean any operation where no mineral has
5 been produced or overburden removed for a period of six (6)
6 months, verified by monthly reports submitted to the department
7 by the operator and by inspections made by the department,
8 unless an operator within thirty (30) days after receipt of
9 notification by the secretary terming an operation abandoned
10 submits sufficient evidence to the secretary that the operation
11 is in fact not abandoned and submits a timetable satisfactory to
12 the secretary regarding plans for the reactivation of the
13 operation.
14 "Active operation" shall mean one in which the surface mine
15 operator has removed a minimum of five hundred (500) tons per
16 acre of aggregate or mass of noncoal mineral matter for
17 commercial purposes in the preceding year.
18 "Cash" shall include, when used in regard to bond
19 requirements, negotiable certificates of deposit.
20 "Contouring" shall mean reclamation of the land affected to
21 approximate original contour so that it closely resembles the
22 general surface configuration of the land prior to mining and
23 blends into and complements the drainage pattern of the
24 surrounding terrain with no highwall, spoil piles or depressions
25 to accumulate water and with adequate provision for drainage.
26 Provided, however, That, in the discretion of the department, <--
27 diversion structures and impoundments may be constructed on the
28 reclaimed area of the operation if they are part of an approved
29 drainage control plan, meet all applicable requirements of law,
30 and do not interfere with the attainment of approximate original
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1 contour.
2 "Degree" shall mean the inclination from the horizontal.
3 "Department" shall mean the Department of Environmental
4 Resources of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
5 "Land" shall mean the surface of the land upon which surface
6 mining is conducted.
7 "Landowner" shall mean the person or municipality in whom the
8 legal title to the land is vested.
9 "Minerals" shall mean any aggregate or mass of mineral
10 matter, whether or not coherent, which is extracted by surface
11 mining, and shall include but not be limited to limestone and
12 dolomite, sand and gravel, rock and stone, earth, fill, slag,
13 iron ore, zinc ore, vermiculite, clay, and anthracite and
14 bituminous coal.
15 "Municipality" shall be construed to include any county,
16 city, borough, town, township, school district, institution, or
17 any authority created by any one or more of the foregoing.
18 "Operation" shall mean the pit located upon a single tract of
19 land or a continuous pit embracing or extending upon two or more
20 contiguous tracts of land.
21 "Operator" shall mean a person or municipality engaged in
22 surface mining, as a principal as distinguished from an agent or
23 independent contractor. and, who is or becomes the owner of the <--
24 minerals as a result of such mining. Where more than one person
25 is engaged in surface mining activities in a single operation,
26 they shall be deemed jointly and severally responsible for
27 compliance with the provisions of this act.
28 "Overburden" shall mean the strata or material overlying a
29 mineral deposit or in between mineral deposits in its natural
30 state and shall mean such material before or after its removal
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1 by surface mining.
2 "Person" shall be construed to include any natural person,
3 partnership, association or corporation or any agency,
4 instrumentality or entity of Federal or State Government.
5 Whenever used in any clause prescribing and imposing a penalty,
6 or imposing a fine or imprisonment, or both, the term "person"
7 shall not exclude the members of an association and the
8 directors, officers or agents of a corporation.
9 "Pit" shall mean the place where any coal or metallic and
10 nonmetallic minerals are being mined by the surface mining
11 method.
12 "Secretary" shall mean the Secretary of the Department of
13 Environmental Resources of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
14 "Spoil pile" shall mean the overburden and reject minerals as
15 piled or deposited in surface mining.
16 "Surface mining" shall mean the extraction of minerals from
17 the earth or from waste or stock piles or from pits or banks by
18 removing the strata or material which overlies or is above or
19 between them or otherwise exposing and retrieving them from the
20 surface, including but not limited to strip, drift and auger
21 mining, dredging, quarrying and leaching, and all surface
22 activity connected with surface or underground mining including
23 but not limited to exploration, site preparation, entry, tunnel,
24 slope, shaft and borehole drilling and construction and
25 activities related thereto, but not including those portions of
26 mining operations carried out beneath the surface by means of
27 shafts, tunnels or other underground mine openings. "Surface
28 mining" shall not include (i) the extraction of minerals (other
29 than anthracite and bituminous coal) by a landowner for his own
30 noncommercial use from land owned or leased by him; or (ii) the
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1 extraction of sand, gravel, rock, stone, earth or fill from
2 borrow pits for highway construction purposes, so long as such
3 work is performed under a bond, contract and specifications
4 which substantially provide for and require reclamation of the
5 area affected in the manner provided by this act; nor (iii) the
6 handling, processing or storage of slag on the premises of a
7 manufacturer as a part of the manufacturing process.
8 "Terracing" shall mean grading where the steepest contour of
9 the highwall shall not be greater than thirty-five (35) degrees
10 from the horizontal, with the table portion of the restored area
11 a flat terrace without depressions to hold water and with
12 adequate provision for drainage, unless otherwise approved by
13 the department.
14 "Tract" shall mean a single parcel of land or two or more
15 contiguous parcels of land with common ownership.
16 Section 3. Section 3.1 of the act, amended December 28, 1972
17 (P.L.1662, No.355), is amended to read:
18 Section 3.1. Operator's License; Withholding or Denying
19 Permits or Licenses; Penalty.--(a) After January 1, 1972, it
20 shall be unlawful for any person to proceed to mine coal or to
21 conduct an active operation to mine other minerals, by the
22 surface mining method as an operator within this Commonwealth
23 without first obtaining a license as a surface mining operator
24 from the department: Provided, however, That surface mining
25 operations within the meaning of this subsection shall not be
26 construed to include surface activity connected with underground
27 mining, including but not limited to exploration, site
28 preparation, entry, tunnel, slope, shaft and borehole drilling
29 and construction and activities related thereto, including those
30 portions of mining operations carried out beneath the surface by
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1 means of shafts, tunnels or other underground mine openings.
2 Applications for licensure as surface mining operators shall be
3 made in writing to the department, upon forms prepared and
4 furnished by the department, and shall contain such information
5 as to the applicant, or when the application is made by a
6 corporation, partnership or association as to its officers,
7 directors and principal owners, as the department shall require.
8 The initial application for licensure shall be accompanied by a
9 fee of fifty dollars ($50) in the case of persons mining two
10 thousand tons or less of marketable minerals, other than coal,
11 per year and a fee of five hundred dollars ($500) in the case of
12 persons mining coal or more than two thousand tons of other
13 marketable minerals per year. It shall be the duty of all
14 persons licensed as surface mining operators to renew such
15 license annually, and pay for each such license renewal the sum
16 of fifty dollars ($50) in the case of persons mining two
17 thousand tons or less of marketable minerals other than coal and
18 the sum of three hundred dollars ($300) in the case of all other
19 operators. The application for renewal of a license as a surface
20 mining operator shall be made annually on or before January 1 of
21 the next succeeding year.
22 [Penalty.--] Any person who proceeds to mine minerals by the
23 surface mining method as an operator without having applied for
24 and received a license as herein provided or in violation of the
25 terms thereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon
26 conviction, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than
27 five thousand dollars ($5,000) or in an amount not less than the
28 total profits derived by him as a result of his unlawful
29 activities, as determined by the court, together with the
30 estimated cost to the Commonwealth of any reclamation work which
19790S0990B2001 - 10 -
1 may reasonably be required in order to restore the land to its
2 condition prior to the commencement of said unlawful activities,
3 or undergo imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both. The
4 fine shall be payable to the Surface Mining Conservation and
5 Reclamation Fund.
6 (b) The department shall not issue any [new] surface mining
7 operator's license or permit or renew or amend any [existing
8 surface mining operator's] license or permit [to any person or
9 operator] if it finds, after investigation, and an opportunity
10 for an informal hearing that (1) the applicant [for licensure or <--
11 renewal] has failed and continues to fail to comply with any of <--
12 the provisions of this act, or of any of the acts repealed or
13 amended hereby [. Where the applicant is a corporation,
14 partnership or association, the department shall not issue such
15 license or renewal if, after investigation, it finds that any
16 officer or director or principal owner of such corporation,
17 partnership or association has failed and continues to fail to
18 comply with any of the provisions of this act, or of the acts
19 repealed or amended hereby, or if any such officer or director
20 or principal owner is or has been an officer or director or
21 principal owner of any other corporation, partnership or
22 association, which has failed and continues to fail to comply
23 with any of the provisions of this act, or of any of the acts
24 repealed or amended hereby.] or (2) the applicant has shown a
25 lack of ability or intention to comply with any provision of
26 this act or of any of the acts repealed or amended hereby as
27 indicated by past or continuing violations. Any person,
28 partnership, association or corporation which has engaged in
29 unlawful conduct as defined in section 18.6 or which has a
30 partner, associate, officer, parent corporation, subsidiary
19790S0990B2001 - 11 -
1 corporation, contractor or subcontractor which has engaged in
2 such unlawful conduct shall be denied any license or permit
3 required by this act unless the license or permit application
4 demonstrates that the unlawful conduct is being corrected to the
5 satisfaction of the department. Persons other than the
6 applicant, including independent subcontractors, who are
7 proposed to operate under the permit shall be listed in the
8 application and those persons shall be subject to approval by
9 the department prior to their engaging in surface mining
10 operations, and such persons shall be jointly and severally
11 liable with the licensee for such violations of this subsection
12 as the licensee is charged and in which such persons
13 participate. Following the department's decision whether to
14 approve or deny a renewal, the burden shall be on the opponents
15 of the department's decision. IF THE DEPARTMENT INTENDS NOT TO <--
16 RENEW A LICENSE, IT SHALL NOTIFY THE LICENSEE OF THAT FACT AT
17 LEAST SIXTY (60) DAYS PRIOR TO THE EXPIRATION OF THE LICENSE;
18 PRIOR TO THE EXPIRATION, THE LICENSEE SHALL BE PROVIDED AN
19 OPPORTUNITY FOR AN INFORMAL HEARING. THIS NOTICE REQUIREMENT
20 SHALL NOT PRECLUDE THE DEPARTMENT FROM DENYING AN APPLICATION TO
21 RENEW A LICENSE FOR ANY VIOLATION OCCURRING OR CONTINUING WITHIN
22 THE SIXTY (60) DAY PERIOD SO LONG AS THE DEPARTMENT PROVIDES AN
23 OPPORTUNITY FOR AN INFORMAL HEARING PRIOR TO NOT RENEWING THE
24 LICENSE.
25 (c) The application for license, renewal or permit shall be
26 accompanied by a certificate of insurance certifying that the
27 applicant has in force a public liability insurance policy
28 issued by an insurance company authorized to do business in
29 Pennsylvania covering all surface mining operations of the
30 applicant in this State and affording personal injury and
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1 property damage protection, to be written for the term of the
2 license, renewal or permit. The total amount of insurance shall
3 be in an amount adequate to compensate any persons damaged as a
4 result of surface mining operations, including but not limited
5 to use of explosives, and entitled to compensation under the
6 applicable provisions of State law. The total amount shall be as
7 prescribed by rules and regulations.
8 Section 4. Section 3.2 of the act, added November 30, 1971
9 (P.L.554, No.147), is amended to read:
10 Section 3.2. Specifications for Construction Projects.--It
11 shall be the duty of architects, engineers, or other persons
12 preparing specifications for construction projects and which
13 specifications include the requirement that the construction
14 contractor supply fill for such project, to include within such
15 specifications a specific reference to this act and the
16 regulations pertaining thereto adopted by the department. If
17 such a reference is omitted from the specifications and
18 reclamation and planting of the land from which the fill was
19 removed by the construction contractor is required under this
20 act, any contract based on such specifications may be amended,
21 at the option of the construction contractor, to allow a
22 reasonable price for the reclamation and planting of the land
23 affected in accordance with a plan acceptable to the secretary.
24 Section 5. Section 4 of the act, amended November 30, 1971
25 (P.L.554, No.147) and subsection (j) added October 18, 1973
26 (P.L.306, No.94), is amended to read:
27 Section 4. Mining Permit; Reclamation Plan; Bond.--(a)
28 Before any person [licensed as a surface mining operator] shall
29 hereafter proceed to mine minerals by the surface mining method,
30 he shall apply to the department, on a form prepared and
19790S0990B2001 - 13 -
1 furnished by the department, for a permit for each separate
2 operation[, which permit when issued shall be valid until such
3 operation is completed or abandoned, unless sooner suspended by
4 the secretary]. The department is authorized to charge and
5 collect from persons a reasonable filing fee. Such fee shall not
6 exceed the cost of reviewing, administering and enforcing such
7 permit. As a part of each application for a permit, the operator
8 shall, unless modified or waived by the department for cause,
9 furnish the following:
10 (1) Map and Related Information. An accurately surveyed map
11 or plan, in duplicate, on a scale [of not less than two hundred
12 feet to the inch] satisfactory to the department, but in no
13 event less than 1:25,000, in a manner satisfactory to the
14 [secretary] department, showing the location of the tract or
15 tracts of land to be affected by the operation contemplated, and
16 such cross-sections at such intervals [of not more than one
17 hundred feet.] as the department may prescribe. Such surveyed
18 map or plan and cross-sections shall be prepared and certified
19 by a registered professional engineer or [registered surveyor]
20 professional geologist with assistance from experts in related
21 fields and shall show the boundaries of the proposed land
22 affected, together with the drainage area above and below such
23 area, the location and names of all streams, roads, railroads
24 and utility lines on or immediately adjacent to the area, the
25 location of all buildings within one thousand feet of the outer
26 perimeter of the area affected, the names and addresses of the
27 owners and present occupants thereof, the purpose for which each
28 such building is used, the name of the owner of the area and the
29 names of adjacent landowners, the municipality or township and
30 county, and if in a township, the nearest municipality. Such map
19790S0990B2001 - 14 -
1 or plan shall also show the results of test borings which the
2 operator has conducted or [shall] will conduct at the site of
3 the proposed operation and shall include the nature and depth of
4 the various strata, the thickness of any coal or mineral seam, a
5 complete analysis of any coal, the mineral seam, an analysis of
6 the overburden, the crop line of any coal, or mineral or
7 minerals to be mined and the location of test boring holes. [The
8 information resulting from test borings, shall be deemed
9 confidential information and shall not be deemed a matter of
10 public record.] All papers, records, and documents of the
11 department, and applications for permits pending before the
12 department, shall be public records open to inspection during
13 business hours: Provided, however, That information which
14 pertains only to the analysis of the chemical and physical
15 properties of the coal (excepting information regarding such
16 mineral or elemental content which is potentially toxic in the
17 environment) shall be kept confidential and not made a matter of
18 public record. Aerial photographs of the tract or tracts of land
19 to be affected by the operation shall also be provided if such
20 photographs are required by the [secretary] department.
21 (2) Reclamation Plan. A complete and detailed plan for the
22 reclamation of the land affected. Except as otherwise herein
23 provided, or unless a variance for cause is specially allowed by
24 the department as herein provided, each such plan shall include
25 the following:
26 A. A statement of the [highest and best use to which the
27 land was put prior to the commencement of surface mining] uses
28 and productivity of the land proposed to be affected;
29 B. [The use which is proposed to be made of the land
30 following reclamation;
19790S0990B2001 - 15 -
1 C. Where conditions permit, the manner in which topsoil and
2 subsoil will be conserved and restored. If conditions do not
3 permit the conservation and restoration of all or part of the
4 topsoil and subsoil, a full explanation of said conditions shall
5 be given, and alternate procedures proposed;
6 D.] Where the proposed land use so requires, the manner in
7 which compaction of the soil and fill will be accomplished;
8 [E. A complete planting program providing for the planting
9 of trees, grasses, legumes or shrubs, or a combination thereof
10 approved by the department as best calculated to permanently
11 restore vegetation to the land affected. If conditions do not
12 permit the planting of vegetation on all or part of the land
13 affected, and if such conditions pose an actual or potential
14 threat of soil erosion or unavoidable siltation, then alternate
15 procedures shall be proposed to prevent the threat of soil
16 erosion or unavoidable siltation. If such procedures do not
17 prevent these conditions, they shall not be approved by the
18 department;]
19 C. A description of the manner in which the operation will
20 segregate and conserve topsoil and if necessary suitable subsoil
21 to establish on the areas proposed to be affected a diverse,
22 effective, and permanent vegetative cover of the same seasonal
23 variety native to the area of land to be affected and capable of
24 self-regeneration and plant succession at least equal in extent
25 of cover to the natural vegetation of the area: Provided,
26 however, That introduced species may be used in the revegetation
27 process where desirable and necessary to achieve the approved
28 postmining land use plan: And provided further, That when the
29 department issues a written finding approving a long-term,
30 intensive, agricultural postmining land use as part of the
19790S0990B2001 - 16 -
1 permit application, the department may grant an exception to the
2 requirements of this clause.
3 [F.] D. A detailed timetable for the accomplishment of each
4 major step in the reclamation plan, and the operator's estimate
5 of the cost of each such step and the total cost to him of the
6 reclamation program;
7 [G.] E. Unless the reclamation plan provides for contouring,
8 as herein defined, it shall contain a full explanation of the
9 conditions which do not permit contouring and: [it shall, in the
10 case of anthracite or bituminous coal, provide for terracing as
11 herein defined. Other alternatives to contouring or terracing
12 may be proposed, in conjunction with such proposed land uses as
13 water impoundment, water-oriented real estate development,
14 recreational area development, industrial site development or
15 solid waste disposal area development, and unless such proposed
16 alternatives or uses pose an actual or potential threat of water
17 pollution, are deemed impractical or unreasonable, involve
18 unreasonable delay in their implementation, or are violative of
19 Federal, State or local law, such alternatives and uses shall be
20 approved by the department;]
21 (i) In the case of anthracite or bituminous coal mining, the
22 reclamation plan shall provide for contouring except that
23 terracing shall be permitted if the operator demonstrates and
24 the department finds in writing, that the area proposed to be
25 affected had previously been mined prior to current practices
26 and standards, the area proposed to be affected cannot be
27 reclaimed by contouring, and reaffecting the area is likely to
28 produce an environmental benefit. Other alternatives to
29 contouring or terracing may be proposed to attempt to obtain a
30 variance in cases where the land is proposed to be made suitable
19790S0990B2001 - 17 -
1 after mining and reclamation for currently planned or designated
2 industrial, commercial, agricultural, residential, recreational
3 or public use. IN THE DISCRETION OF THE DEPARTMENT, DIVERSION <--
4 STRUCTURES AND IMPOUNDMENTS MAY BE CONSTRUCTED ON THE RECLAIMED
5 AREA OF THE OPERATION IF THEY ARE PART OF AN APPROVED DRAINAGE
6 CONTROL PLAN AND MEET ALL APPLICABLE REQUIREMENTS OF LAW. Any
7 such variance shall be granted by the department in writing only
8 after such conditions as the department shall prescribe are met,
9 including but not limited to conditions relating to backfilling,
10 highwall elimination, watershed protection, surface owner's
11 consent, consultation with appropriate land use planning
12 agencies, equal or better economic or public use, and
13 certification of the project by a registered professional
14 engineer or professional geologist, with assistance from experts
15 in related fields. Such alternatives shall not be approved if
16 the proposed alternative or use is not likely to be achieved,
17 poses an actual or potential threat to public health or safety
18 or of water diminution, interruption, contamination or
19 pollution, is inconsistent with applicable land use policies,
20 plans and programs and Federal, State and local law or involves
21 unreasonable delay in implementation; or
22 (ii) In the case of surface mining for other than anthracite
23 or bituminous coal, other alternatives to contouring or
24 terracing may be proposed, in conjunction with such proposed
25 land uses as water impoundment, water-oriented real estate
26 development, recreational area development, industrial site
27 development or solid waste disposal area development, and unless
28 such proposed alternatives or uses are not likely to be
29 achieved, pose an actual or potential threat to public health or
30 safety or of water diminution, interruption, contamination or
19790S0990B2001 - 18 -
1 pollution, are inconsistent with applicable land use policies,
2 plans and programs and Federal, State or local law or involve
3 unreasonable delay in implementation: Provided, however, That
4 the variance procedure set out in clause (1) shall not be
5 applicable to the department's determination to grant or deny a
6 permit application under this clause.
7 [H. Such other or further information as the department may
8 require;
9 I.] F. Except where leases in existence on [the effective
10 date of this amending act] January 1, 1964 do not so provide or
11 permit, the application for a permit shall include, upon a form
12 prepared and furnished by the department, the written consent of
13 the landowner to entry upon any land to be affected by the
14 operation by the operator [or] and by the Commonwealth [or] and
15 any of its authorized agents [within] prior to the initiation of
16 surface mining operations, during surface mining operations and
17 for a period of five years after the operation is completed or
18 abandoned for the purpose of reclamation, planting, and
19 inspection or for the construction of any [such mine drainage
20 treatment] pollution abatement facilities as may be deemed
21 necessary by the [secretary] department for the [prevention of
22 stream pollution from mine drainage] purposes of this act. Such
23 forms shall be deemed to be recordable documents, and prior to
24 the initiation of surface mining operations under the permit,
25 such forms shall be recorded by the applicant at the office of
26 the recorder of deeds in the county or counties in which the
27 area to be affected under the permit is situate. In the case of
28 leases in existence in January 1, 1964, not so providing or
29 permitting, the application for permit shall include upon a form
30 prescribed and furnished by the department, a notice of the
19790S0990B2001 - 19 -
1 existence of such lease. Such forms shall be deemed to be
2 recordable documents, and prior to the initiation of surface
3 mining operations under the permit, such forms shall be recorded
4 by the applicant at the office of the recorder of deeds in the
5 county or counties in which the area to be affected under the
6 permit is situate.
7 [J. The application for license or renewal shall be
8 accompanied by a certificate of insurance certifying that the
9 applicant has in force a public liability insurance policy
10 issued by an insurance company authorized to do business in
11 Pennsylvania covering all surface mining operations of the
12 applicant in this State and affording personal injury and
13 property damage protection, to be written for the term of the
14 license or renewal. The total amount of insurance shall be not
15 less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000); the secretary
16 may waive the provisions of this clause upon a finding that the
17 application is possessed and will continue to be possessed of
18 ability to pay personal injury or property damage claims within
19 the requirements of this clause.
20 K] G. The application shall also set forth the manner in
21 which the operator plans to divert surface water from draining
22 into the pit and the manner in which he plans to prevent water
23 from accumulating in the pit. No approval shall be granted
24 unless the plan provides for a practicable method of avoiding
25 acid mine drainage and preventing avoidable siltation or other
26 stream pollution. Failure to prevent water from draining into or
27 accumulating in the pit, or to prevent stream pollution, during
28 surface mining or thereafter, shall render the operator liable
29 to the sanctions and penalties provided in this act and in "The
30 Clean Streams Law," and shall be cause for revocation of any
19790S0990B2001 - 20 -
1 approval license or permit issued by the department to the
2 operator.
3 H. The application shall also set forth the manner in which
4 the operator plans to comply with the requirements of the act of
5 January 8, 1960 (1959 P.L.2119, No.787), known as the "Air
6 Pollution Control Act," the act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987,
7 No.394), known as "The Clean Streams Law," the act of September
8 24, 1968 (P.L.1040, No.318), known as the "Coal Refuse Disposal
9 Control Act," and where applicable, the act of July 31, 1968
10 (P.L.788, No.241), known as the "Pennsylvania Solid Waste
11 Management Act," OR THE ACT OF JULY 7, 1980 (NO.97), KNOWN AS <--
12 THE "SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT," the act of November 26, 1978
13 (P.L.1375, No.325), known as the "Dam Safety and Encroachments
14 Act." No approval shall be granted unless the plan provides for
15 compliance with the statutes hereinabove enumerated, and failure
16 to comply with the statutes hereinabove enumerated during mining
17 or thereafter shall render the operator liable to the sanctions
18 and penalties provided in this act for violations of this act
19 and to the sanctions and penalties provided in the statutes
20 hereinabove enumerated for violations of such statutes. Such
21 failure to comply shall be cause for revocation of any approval
22 or permit issued by the department to the operator: Provided,
23 however, That a violation of the statutes hereinabove enumerated
24 shall not be deemed a violation of this act unless this
25 statute's provisions are violated but shall only be cause for
26 revocation of the operator's permit: And provided further, That
27 nothing in this clause shall be read to limit the department's
28 authority to regulate activities in a coordinated manner.
29 Compliance with the provisions of this clause and with the
30 provisions of this act and the provisions of the statutes
19790S0990B2001 - 21 -
1 hereinabove enumerated shall not relieve the operator of the
2 responsibility for complying with the provisions of all other
3 applicable statutes, including but not limited to the act of
4 July 17, 1961 (P.L.659, No.339), known as the "Pennsylvania
5 Bituminous Coal Mine Act,", the act of November 10, 1965
6 (P.L.721, No.346), known as the "Pennsylvania Anthracite Coal
7 Mine Act," and the act of July 9, 1976 (P.L.931, No.178),
8 entitled "An act providing for emergency medical personnel;
9 employment of emergency medical personnel and emergency
10 communications in coal mines."
11 I. In the case of surface coal mining, the application shall
12 also include a statement of the land use proposed for the
13 affected area after mining and reclamation are completed. The
14 department shall not approve any post-mining land use unless the
15 application demonstrates that the operation will restore the
16 land affected to a condition capable of supporting the uses it
17 was capable of supporting prior to any mining, or to any higher
18 or better uses. No post-mining land use or uses shall be
19 approved unless the application demonstrates that the use or
20 uses are reasonably likely to be achieved, do not present any
21 actual or potential threat to public health or safety or to fish
22 and wildlife or of water diminution, interruption, contamination
23 or pollution, are consistent with applicable land use policies,
24 plans and programs and Federal, State or local law, and involve
25 no unreasonable delay in implementation. In the case of noncoal
26 surface mining, the application shall include such information
27 concerning post-mining land use as may be prescribed by
28 regulations promulgated hereunder.
29 J. In the case of surface coal mining, for those lands
30 identified in the permit application which a reconnaissance
19790S0990B2001 - 22 -
1 inspection suggests may be prime farmlands, a soil survey shall
2 be made or obtained by the permit applicant according to
3 standards established by the United States Secretary of
4 Agriculture in order to confirm the exact location of any such
5 farmlands. In no case shall the department grant a permit to
6 affect prime farmland unless after consultation with the United
7 States Department of Agriculture the department finds in writing
8 that the operator has the technological capability to restore
9 such affected area, within a reasonable time, to equivalent or
10 higher levels of yield as nonaffected prime farmland in the
11 surrounding area under equivalent levels of management, meets
12 all relevant regulations of the United States Department of the
13 Interior, and can meet such soil reconstruction standards as the
14 department may prescribe by rule and regulation promulgated
15 hereunder. In the case of noncoal surface mining, the
16 application shall include such information concerning prime
17 farmlands as may be prescribed by regulations promulgated
18 hereunder.
19 K. The application shall also demonstrate that the proposed
20 operation will be conducted so as to maximize the utilization
21 and conservation of the solid fuel resource being recovered so
22 that reaffecting the land in the future can be minimized:
23 Provided, however, That such resource utilization and
24 conservation shall not excuse in any manner the operator from
25 complying in full with all environmental protection and health
26 and safety standards.
27 L. Such other or further information as the department may
28 require.
29 (b) The applicant shall give public notice of every
30 application for a permit or a bond release under this act in a
19790S0990B2001 - 23 -
1 newspaper of general circulation, published in the locality
2 where the permit is applied for, once a week for four
3 consecutive weeks. The department shall prescribe such
4 requirements regarding public notice and public hearings on
5 permit applications and bond releases as it deems appropriate:
6 Provided, however, That increments within the original permit
7 area upon which operations are initiated shall not be treated as
8 original permit applications with regard to the requirements of
9 this subsection so long as the original permit is in full force
10 and effect at the time the operations are initiated. For the
11 purpose of these public hearings, the department shall have the
12 authority and is hereby empowered to administer oaths, subpoena
13 witnesses, or written or printed materials, compel the
14 attendance of witnesses, or production of witnesses, or
15 production of materials, and take evidence including but not
16 limited to inspections of the land proposed to be affected and
17 other operations carried on by the applicant in the general
18 vicinity. Any person having an interest which is or may be
19 adversely affected by any action of the department under this
20 section may proceed to lodge an appeal with the Environmental
21 Hearing Board in the manner provided by law and from the
22 adjudication of said board such person may further appeal as
23 provided by Title 2 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
24 (relating to administrative law and procedure). The
25 Environmental Hearing Board, upon the request of any party, may
26 in its discretion order the payment of costs and attorney's fees
27 it determines to have been reasonably incurred by such party in
28 proceedings pursuant to this section. In all cases involving
29 surface coal mining operations, any person having an interest
30 which is or may be adversely affected shall have the right to
19790S0990B2001 - 24 -
1 file written objections to the proposed permit application or
2 bond release within thirty (30) days after the last publication
3 of the above notice. Such objections shall immediately be
4 transmitted to the applicant by the department. If written
5 objections are filed and an informal conference requested, the
6 department shall then hold an informal conference in the
7 locality of the surface mining operation. If an informal
8 conference has been held, the department shall issue and furnish
9 the applicant for a permit or bond release and persons who are
10 parties to the administrative proceedings with the written
11 finding of the department granting or denying the permit or bond
12 release in whole or in part and stating the reasons therefor,
13 within sixty (60) days of said hearings. If there has been no
14 informal conference, the department shall notify the applicant
15 for a permit or bond release of its decision within sixty (60)
16 days of the date of filing the application. The applicant,
17 operator, or any person having an interest which is or may be
18 adversely affected by an action of the department to grant or
19 deny a permit or to release or deny release of a bond and who
20 participated in the informal hearing held pursuant to this
21 subsection or filed written objections, may proceed to lodge an
22 appeal with the Environmental Hearing Board in the manner
23 provided by law and from the adjudication of said board such
24 person may further appeal as provided by Title 2 of the
25 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes. Subject to the
26 confidentiality provisions of subsection (a)(1), each applicant
27 for a permit under this act shall file a copy of his application
28 for public inspection, with the recorder of deeds at the
29 courthouse of the county or an appropriate public office
30 approved by the department where the mining is proposed to
19790S0990B2001 - 25 -
1 occur.
2 [(b)] (c) Upon receipt of an application, the department
3 shall review the same and shall make such further inquiries,
4 inspections or examinations as may be necessary or desirable for
5 a proper evaluation thereof. Should the [secretary] department
6 object to any part of the proposal, [he] it shall promptly
7 notify the [operator by registered mail] applicant in writing of
8 [his] its objections, setting forth [his] its reasons therefor,
9 and shall afford the [operator] applicant a reasonable
10 opportunity to make such amendments or take such other actions
11 as may be required to remove the objections. [No application
12 shall be approved with respect to any operator who has failed,
13 and continues to fail to comply with the provisions of this act
14 or of any act repealed or amended hereby, as applicable, or with
15 the terms or conditions of any permit issued under "The Clean
16 Streams Law" of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), as amended, or
17 where any claim is outstanding against any operator, or in the
18 case for a corporate operator against any officer or director,
19 under this act or any act repealed or amended hereby.] Should
20 any [operator be aggrieved] person having an interest which is
21 or may be adversely affected by any action of the [secretary]
22 department under this subsection, or by the failure of the
23 [secretary] department to act upon [his] an application for a
24 permit, he may proceed to lodge an appeal with the Environmental
25 Hearing Board in the manner provided by law, and from the
26 adjudication of said board he may further appeal as provided by
27 [the Administrative Agency Law] Title 2 of the Pennsylvania
28 Consolidated Statutes (relating to administrative law and
29 procedure).
30 [(c)] (d) Prior to commencing surface mining, the [operator]
19790S0990B2001 - 26 -
1 permittee shall file with the department a bond for the land
2 affected by each operation on a form to be prescribed and
3 furnished by the department, payable to the Commonwealth and
4 conditioned that the [operator] permittee shall faithfully
5 perform all of the requirements of this act and of the act of
6 June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as "The Clean Streams
7 Law," the act of January 8, 1960 (1959 P.L.2119, No.787), known
8 as the "Air Pollution Control Act," the act of September 24,
9 1968 (P.L.1040, No.318), known as the "Coal Refuse Disposal
10 Control Act," and, where applicable, of the act of July 31, 1968
11 (P.L.788, No.241), known as the "Pennsylvania Solid Waste
12 Management Act," OR THE ACT OF JULY 7, 1980 (NO.97), KNOWN AS <--
13 THE "SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT," the act of November 26, 1978
14 (P.L.1375, No.325), known as the "Dam Safety and Encroachments
15 Act": Provided, however, That an operator posting a bond
16 sufficient to comply with this section of the act shall not be
17 required to post a separate bond for the permitted area under
18 each of the acts hereinabove enumerated: And provided further,
19 That the foregoing proviso shall not prohibit the department
20 from requiring additional bond amounts for the permitted area
21 should such an increase be determined by the department to be
22 necessary to meet the requirements of this act. The amount of
23 the bond required shall be in an amount determined by the
24 [secretary] department based upon the total estimated cost to
25 the Commonwealth of completing the approved reclamation plan, OR <--
26 IN SUCH OTHER AMOUNT AND FORM AS MAY BE ESTABLISHED BY THE
27 DEPARTMENT PURSUANT TO REGULATIONS FOR AN ALTERNATE COAL BONDING
28 PROGRAM WHICH SHALL ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSES OF THE
29 BONDING PROGRAM. Said estimate shall be based upon the
30 [operator's] permittee's statement of his estimated cost of
19790S0990B2001 - 27 -
1 fulfilling the plan during the course of his operation,
2 inspection of the application and other documents submitted,
3 inspection of the land area, and such other criteria as may be
4 relevant, including but not limited to the probable difficulty
5 of reclamation giving consideration to such factors as
6 topography, geology of the site, hydrology, the proposed land
7 use and the additional cost to the Commonwealth which may be
8 entailed by being required to bring personnel and equipment to
9 the site after abandonment by the [operator] permittee, in
10 excess of the cost to the [operator] permittee of performing the
11 necessary work during the course of his surface mining
12 operations. When the plan involves the reconstruction or
13 relocation of any public road or highway, the amount of the bond
14 shall include an amount sufficient to fully build or restore the
15 road or highway to a condition approved by the Department of
16 Transportation. No bond shall be filed for less than [five
17 thousand dollars ($5000.00).] ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00)
18 for the entire permit area. Liability under such bond shall be
19 for the duration of the surface mining at each operation, and
20 for a period of five full years [thereafter,] after the last
21 year of augmented seeding and fertilizing and any other work to
22 complete reclamation to meet the requirements of law and protect
23 the environment, unless released [in whole or] in part prior
24 thereto as hereinafter provided. Such bond shall be executed by
25 the operator and a corporate surety licensed to do business in
26 the Commonwealth and approved by the secretary: Provided,
27 however, That the [operator] permittee may elect to deposit
28 cash, automatically renewable irrevocable bank letters of credit
29 which may be terminated by the bank at the end of a term only
30 upon the bank giving ninety (90) days prior written notice to
19790S0990B2001 - 28 -
1 the permittee and the department, or negotiable bonds of the
2 United State Government or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the
3 Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, the General State Authority,
4 the State Public School Building Authority, or any municipality
5 within the Commonwealth, with the department in lieu of a
6 corporate surety. The cash deposit amount of such irrevocable
7 letter of credit or market value of such securities shall be
8 equal at least to the sum of the bond. The secretary shall, upon
9 receipt of any such deposit of cash, letters of credit or
10 [securities] negotiable bonds immediately place the same with
11 the State Treasurer, whose duty it shall be to receive and hold
12 the same in the name of the Commonwealth, in trust, for the
13 purposes for which such deposit is made. The State Treasurer
14 shall at all times be responsible for the custody and
15 safekeeping of such deposits. The [operator] permittee making
16 the deposit shall be entitled from time to time to demand and
17 receive from the State Treasurer, on the written order of the
18 secretary, the whole or any portion of any [securities]
19 collateral so deposited, upon depositing with him, in lieu
20 thereof, other [negotiable securities] collateral of the classes
21 herein specified having a market value at least equal to the sum
22 of the bond, and also to demand, receive and recover the
23 interest and income from said [securities] negotiable bonds as
24 the same becomes due and payable: Provided, however, That where
25 [securities] negotiable bonds, deposited as aforesaid, mature or
26 are called, the State Treasurer, at the request of the
27 [operator] permittee, shall convert such [securities] negotiable
28 bonds into such other negotiable [securities] bonds of the
29 classes herein specified as may be designated by the [operator]
30 permittee: And, provided further, That where notice of intent to
19790S0990B2001 - 29 -
1 terminate a latter of credit is given, the department shall give
2 the permittee thirty (30) days written notice to replace the
3 letter of credit with other acceptable bond guarantees as
4 provided herein, and if the permittee fails to replace the
5 letter of credit within the thirty (30) day notification period,
6 the department shall draw upon and convert such letter of credit
7 into cash and hold it as a collateral bond guarantee; OR THE <--
8 DEPARTMENT, IN ITS DISCRETION, MAY ACCEPT A SELF-BOND FROM THE
9 PERMITTEE, WITHOUT SEPARATE SURETY, IF THE PERMITTEE
10 DEMONSTRATES TO THE SATISFACTION OF THE DEPARTMENT A HISTORY OF
11 FINANCIAL SOLVENCY, CONTINUOUS BUSINESS OPERATION AND CONTINUOUS
12 EFFORTS TO ACHIEVE COMPLIANCE WITH ALL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
13 AND PENNSYLVANIA ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS, AND, MEETS ALL OF THE
14 FOLLOWING REQUIREMENTS:
15 (1) THE PERMITTEE SHALL BE INCORPORATED OR AUTHORIZED TO DO
16 BUSINESS IN PENNSYLVANIA AND SHALL DESIGNATE AN AGENT IN
17 PENNSYLVANIA TO RECEIVE SERVICE OF SUITS, CLAIMS, DEMANDS OR
18 OTHER LEGAL PROCESS.
19 (2) THE PERMITTEE OR IF THE PERMITTEE DOES NOT ISSUE
20 SEPARATE AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, ITS PARENT, SHALL PROVIDE
21 AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR AT LEAST ITS MOST RECENT THREE
22 (3) FISCAL YEARS PREPARED BY A CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT IN
23 ACCORDANCE WITH GENERALLY ACCEPTED ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES. UPON
24 REQUEST OF THE PERMITTEE, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL MAINTAIN THE
25 CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IF THE SAME ARE NOT
26 OTHERWISE DISCLOSED TO OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES OR THE PUBLIC.
27 (3) DURING THE LAST THIRTY-SIX (36) CALENDAR MONTHS, THE
28 APPLICANT HAS NOT DEFAULTED IN THE PAYMENT OF ANY DIVIDEND OR
29 SINKING FUND INSTALLMENT OR PREFERRED STOCK OR INSTALLMENT ON
30 ANY INDEBTEDNESS FOR BORROWED MONEY OR PAYMENT OF RENTALS UNDER
19790S0990B2001 - 30 -
1 LONG-TERM LEASES OR ANY RECLAMATION FEE PAYMENT CURRENTLY DUE
2 UNDER THE FEDERAL SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF
3 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 1232, FOR EACH TON OF COAL PRODUCED IN THE
4 COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA.
5 (4) THE PERMITTEE SHALL HAVE BEEN IN BUSINESS AND OPERATING
6 NO LESS THAN TEN (10) YEARS PRIOR TO FILING OF APPLICATION
7 UNLESS THE PERMITTEE'S EXISTENCE RESULTS FROM A REORGANIZATION,
8 CONSOLIDATION OR MERGER INVOLVING A COMPANY WITH SUCH LONGEVITY.
9 HOWEVER, THE PERMITTEE SHALL BE DEEMED TO HAVE MET THIS
10 REQUIREMENT IF IT IS A MAJORITY-OWNED SUBSIDIARY OF A
11 CORPORATION WHICH HAS SUCH A TEN (10) YEAR BUSINESS HISTORY.
12 (5) THE PERMITTEE SHALL HAVE A NET WORTH OF AT LEAST SIX
13 TIMES THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF ALL BONDS APPLIED FOR BY THE
14 OPERATOR UNDER THIS SECTION.
15 (6) THE PERMITTEE SHALL GIVE IMMEDIATE NOTICE TO THE
16 DEPARTMENT OF ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN MANAGING CONTROL OF THE
17 COMPANY.
18 (7) A CORPORATE OFFICER OF THE PERMITTEE SHALL CERTIFY TO
19 THE DEPARTMENT THAT FORFEITURE OF THE AGGREGATE AMOUNTS OF SELF-
20 BONDS FURNISHED FOR ALL OPERATIONS HEREUNDER WOULD NOT
21 MATERIALLY AFFECT THE PERMITTEE'S ABILITY TO REMAIN IN BUSINESS
22 OR ENDANGER ITS CASH FLOW TO THE EXTENT IT COULD NOT MEET ITS
23 CURRENT OBLIGATIONS.
24 (8) THE PERMITTEE MAY BE REQUIRED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO
25 PLEDGE REAL AND PERSONAL PROPERTY TO GUARANTEE THE PERMITTEE'S
26 SELF-BOND. THE DEPARTMENT IS AUTHORIZED TO ACQUIRE AND DISPOSE
27 OF SUCH PROPERTY IN THE EVENT OF A DEFAULT TO THE BOND
28 OBLIGATION AND MAY USE THE MONEYS IN THE SURFACE MINING
29 CONSERVATION AND RECLAMATION FUND TO ADMINISTER THIS PROVISION.
30 (9) THE PERMITTEE MAY BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE THIRD PARTY
19790S0990B2001 - 31 -
1 GUARANTEES OR INDEMNIFICATIONS OF ITS SELF-BOND OBLIGATIONS.
2 (10) THE PERMITTEE SHALL PROVIDE SUCH OTHER INFORMATION
3 REGARDING ITS FINANCIAL SOLVENCY, CONTINUOUS BUSINESS OPERATION
4 AND COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS AS THE DEPARTMENT SHALL
5 REQUIRE.
6 (11) AN APPLICANT SHALL CERTIFY TO THE DEPARTMENT ITS
7 PRESENT INTENTION TO MAINTAIN ITS PRESENT CORPORATE STATUS FOR A
8 PERIOD IN EXCESS OF FIVE (5) YEARS.
9 (12) A PERMITTEE SHALL ANNUALLY UPDATE THE CERTIFICATIONS
10 REQUIRED HEREUNDER AND PROVIDE AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR
11 EACH FISCAL YEAR DURING WHICH IT FURNISHES SELF-BONDS.
12 (13) THE PERMITTEE SHALL PAY AN ANNUAL FEE IN THE AMOUNT
13 DETERMINED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF THE COST TO REVIEW AND VERIFY
14 THE PERMITTEE'S APPLICATION FOR SELF-BONDING AND ANNUAL
15 SUBMISSIONS THEREAFTER.
16 [(d) The operator shall, prior to commencing operations on
17 any additional land exceeding the estimate made in the
18 application for a permit, file an additional application and
19 bond. Upon receipt of such additional application and related
20 documents and information as would have been required for the
21 additional land had it been included in the original application
22 for a permit and should all the requirements of this act be met
23 as were necessary to secure the permit, the secretary shall
24 promptly issue an amended permit covering the additional acreage
25 covered by such application, and shall determine the additional
26 bond requirement therefor.]
27 (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of [subsections (c) and
28 (d)] subsection (c) of this section, in the case of applications
29 for the [surface] mining of minerals [other than anthracite and
30 bituminous coal] where the department determines that the
19790S0990B2001 - 32 -
1 mineral to be extracted exceeds the amount of overburden by a
2 ratio of at least four to one or the minerals are to be removed
3 by underground mining methods, and the [surface] mining
4 operations are reasonably anticipated to continue for a period
5 of at least ten years from the date of application, the term of
6 the bond shall be for the duration of the [license issued under
7 this act] mining and reclamation operations and for five years
8 thereafter. [In lieu of the bond required by subsections (c) and
9 (d) of this section, the] The operator, in the case of
10 [applications] mining and reclamation operations hereinbefore
11 mentioned by this subsection (e), may elect to [annually pay to
12 the department, for deposit in the Surface Mining Conservation
13 and Reclamation Fund established by this act, an amount equal to
14 ninety-five per cent of the average bond premium, as established
15 by the Insurance Commissioner, which the operator would
16 otherwise be required to pay in order to obtain the bond
17 required by subsections (c) and (d) of this section. Said amount
18 shall be retained by the Commonwealth and shall not be
19 refundable to the operator. Payment thereof shall excuse the
20 operator from compliance with the bond requirements of
21 subsections (c) and (d) of this section with respect to such
22 operation.] deposit collateral and file a collateral bond as
23 provided in subsection (d) according to the following phased
24 deposit schedule. The operator shall, prior to commencing mining
25 operations, deposit ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or twenty-
26 five per cent of the amount of the bond determined under
27 subsection (d), whichever is greater. The operator shall,
28 thereafter, annually deposit ten per cent of the remaining bond
29 amount for a period of ten (10) years. Interest accumulated by
30 such collateral shall become a part of the bond. The department
19790S0990B2001 - 33 -
1 may require additional bonding at any time to meet the intent of
2 subsection (d). The collateral shall be deposited, in trust,
3 with the State Treasurer as provided in subsection (d) or with a
4 bank, selected by the department, which shall act as trustee for
5 the benefit of the Commonwealth, according to rules and
6 regulations promulgated hereunder, to guarantee the operator's
7 compliance with this act, and the statutes enumerated in
8 subsection (d). The operator shall be required to pay all costs
9 of the trust. The collateral deposit, or part thereof, shall be
10 released of liability and returned to the operator, together
11 with a proportional share of accumulated interest, upon the
12 conditions of and pursuant to the schedule and criteria for
13 release provided in subsection (g).
14 (e.1) The department may, in lieu of a bond required by
15 subsection (d) or (e), require the operator of an underground
16 mining operation to purchase subsidence insurance, as provided
17 by the act of August 23, 1961 (P.L.1068, No.484), entitled, as
18 amended, "An act to provide for the creation and administration
19 of a Coal and Clay Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund within the
20 Department of Environmental Resources for the insurance of
21 compensation for damages to subscribers thereto; declaring false
22 oaths by the subscribers to be misdemeanors; providing penalties
23 for the violation thereof; and making an appropriation," for the
24 benefit of all affected surface property owners on account of
25 damage caused by subsidence. The insurance coverage shall be in
26 an amount determined by the department to be sufficient to
27 remedy any and all damage. The term of this obligation shall be
28 for the duration of the mining and reclamation operation and for
29 ten years thereafter. For all other surface effects of
30 underground mining, other than subsidence, the operator shall
19790S0990B2001 - 34 -
1 post a bond as required by subsection (d) or (e).
2 (f) Within ninety days after commencement of surface mining
3 operations and in the case of surface coal mining each [ninety]
4 thirty and, in the case of noncoal surface mining each three
5 hundred and sixty-five days thereafter unless modified or waived
6 by the department for cause, the operator shall file in
7 triplicate an operations and progress report with the department
8 on a form prescribed and furnished by the department, setting
9 forth (i) the name or number of the operation; (ii) the location
10 of the operation as to county and township and with reference to
11 the nearest public road; (iii) a description of the tract or
12 tracts; (iv) the name and address of the landowner or his duly
13 authorized representative; (v) a monthly report of the mineral
14 produced, number of employes and days worked; (vi) a report of
15 all fatal and nonfatal accidents for the previous three months;
16 (vii) the current status of the reclamation work performed in
17 pursuance of the approved reclamation plan; and (viii) such
18 other or further information as the department may reasonably
19 require. [In addition to the foregoing, the operator shall
20 annually furnish to the department a new map, based upon a
21 survey, showing the status of the operation at the conclusion of
22 each year of operation, indicating the area affected and
23 restored during the preceding year, particularly with relation
24 to the property lines and boundaries shown upon the map and
25 survey furnished with the original application.]
26 (g) [As the operator completes each separate step of the
27 approved reclamation plan, he may report said completion to the
28 department and request the release of that portion of the bond
29 and collateral which relates to the completed portion of the
30 reclamation plan. Upon the receipt of such notification and
19790S0990B2001 - 35 -
1 request, the secretary shall cause the premises to be inspected,
2 and if he finds that the work has been performed in a proper and
3 workmanlike manner and is in compliance with the approved
4 reclamation plan and with the law applicable, he shall release
5 that portion of the bond and collateral which relates to the
6 completed portion of the reclamation plan: Provided, however,
7 That the secretary may withhold an amount equivalent to five per
8 cent of said amount for a period of five years from the
9 completion date of said work, as a contingency allowance for the
10 reimbursement of the Commonwealth of any cost encountered due to
11 after-discovered faulty or negligent work on the part of the
12 operator.] Subject to the public notice requirements of
13 subsection (b), if the department is satisfied the reclamation
14 covered by the bond or portion thereof has been accomplished as
15 required by this act, it may, in the case of surface coal mining
16 operations, upon request by the permittee release in whole or in
17 part the bond or deposit according to the following schedule:
18 (1) when the operator has completed the backfilling, regrading
19 and drainage control of a bonded area in accordance with his
20 approved reclamation plan, the release of sixty per cent of the
21 bond for the applicable permit area; (2) when revegetation has
22 been successfully established on the affected area in accordance
23 with the approved reclamation plan, the department shall retain
24 that amount of bond for the revegetated area which would be
25 sufficient for the cost to the Commonwealth of reestablishing
26 revegetation. Such retention of bond shall be for the duration
27 of liability under the bond as prescribed in subsection (d). No
28 part of the bond shall be released under this subsection so long
29 as the lands to which the release would be applicable are
30 contributing suspended solids to streamflow or runoff outside
19790S0990B2001 - 36 -
1 the permit area in excess of the requirements of law or until
2 soil productivity for prime farmlands has returned to equivalent
3 levels of yield as nonmined land of the same soil type in the
4 surrounding area under equivalent management practices as
5 determined from the soil survey performed pursuant to subsection
6 (a)(2)I. Where a permanent impoundment is to be retained, that
7 portion of bond under this subsection may be released under this
8 subsection so long as provisions for sound future maintenance by
9 the operator or the landowner have been made with the
10 department; (3) when the operator has completed successfully all
11 mining and reclamation activities, the release of the remaining
12 portion of the bond, but not before the expiration of the period
13 specified for operator responsibility in subsection (d). In the
14 case of noncoal surface mining operations, in lieu of the
15 schedule and criteria for release of bonds provided for in this
16 subsection, the schedule and criteria for release of bonds shall
17 be as set forth in regulations promulgated hereunder. No bond
18 shall be fully released until all requirements of this act are
19 fully met. Upon release of all or part of the bond and
20 collateral as herein provided, the State Treasurer shall
21 immediately return to the operator the amount of cash or
22 securities specified therein.
23 (h) If the operator fails or refuses to comply with the
24 requirements of the act in any respect for which liability has
25 been charged on the bond, the [secretary] department shall
26 declare such portion of the bond forfeited, and shall certify
27 the same to the Department of Justice, which shall proceed to
28 enforce and collect the amount of liability forfeited thereon,
29 and where the operator has deposited cash or securities as
30 collateral in lieu of a corporate surety, the [secretary]
19790S0990B2001 - 37 -
1 department shall declare such portion of said collateral
2 forfeited, and shall direct the State Treasurer to pay said
3 funds into the Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation Fund,
4 or to proceed to sell said securities to the extent forfeited
5 and pay the proceeds thereof into the Surface Mining
6 Conservation and Reclamation Fund should any corporate surety
7 fail to promptly pay, in full, a forfeited bond, it shall be
8 disqualified from writing any further surety bonds under this
9 act. Any operator aggrieved by reason of forfeiting the bond or
10 converting collateral, as herein provided, shall have a right to
11 contest such action and appeal therefrom as herein provided.
12 (i) Should any operator be aggrieved by any decision or
13 action of the secretary with respect to the amount of any bond,
14 the terms, conditions or release thereof, or any other matter
15 related thereto, he may proceed to lodge an appeal with the
16 Environmental Hearing Board in the manner provided by law, and
17 from the adjudication of said board he may further appeal as
18 provided by [the Administrative Agency Law] Title 2, of the
19 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes (relating to administrative
20 law and procedure).
21 (j) Notwithstanding the provisions of [subclause J. of
22 clause (2) of subsection (a) and subsections (c) and (d)]
23 subsections (d) and (e) of this section and of section 3.1(c),
24 in the case of applications for the surface mining of minerals
25 other than anthracite and bituminous coal where the department
26 determines that the amount of marketable minerals to be
27 extracted does not exceed two thousand (2,000) tons, no
28 certificate of insurance nor bond shall be required.
29 Section 6. Section 4.2 of the act, amended November 30, 1971
30 (P.L.554, No.147), December 28, 1972 (P.L.1662, No.335), July
19790S0990B2001 - 38 -
1 25, 1977 (P.L.99, No.36) and March 3, 1978 (P.L.10, No.5), is
2 amended to read:
3 Section 4.2. General Rule Making; Health and Safety.--(a)
4 Except as otherwise provided hereunder, and subject to the
5 provisions of section 4(a)(2)L all surface mining operations
6 coming within the provisions of this act shall be under the
7 exclusive jurisdiction of the department and shall be conducted
8 in compliance with such reasonable rules and regulations as may
9 be deemed necessary by the [secretary] department for the
10 fulfillment of the purposes, and provisions of this act, and
11 other acts where applicable, including, but not limited to the
12 act of July 17, 1961 (P.L.659, No.339), known as the
13 "Pennsylvania Bituminous Coal Mine Act," and the act of November
14 10, 1965 (P.L.721, No.346), known as the "Pennsylvania
15 Anthracite Coal Mine Act," for the health and safety of those
16 persons engaged in the work and for the protection of the
17 general public. [Separate rules and regulations shall be
18 promulgated for each mineral.] The [secretary] department
19 through the mine conservation inspectors shall have the
20 authority and power to enforce the provisions of this act and
21 the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder by him. In
22 addition, should the secretary determine that a condition caused
23 by or related to surface mining constitutes a hazard to public
24 health or safety, he shall take such measures to abate and
25 remove the same as are provided by section 1917-A of the act of
26 April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), known as "The Administrative
27 Code of 1929," and as otherwise provided by law for the
28 abatement of nuisances. For the purposes of this section, any
29 condition which creates a risk of fire, landslide, subsidence,
30 cave-in or other unsafe, dangerous or hazardous condition,
19790S0990B2001 - 39 -
1 including but not limited to any unguarded and unfenced open pit
2 area, highwall, water pool, spoil bank and culm bank, abandoned
3 structure, equipment, machinery, tools or other property used in
4 or resulting from surface mining operations, or other serious
5 hazards to public health or safety, is hereby declared to be a
6 nuisance within the meaning of section 1917-A of "The
7 Administrative Code of 1929."
8 (b) The use of explosives for the purpose of blasting in
9 connection with surface mining shall be done in accordance with
10 regulations promulgated by and under the supervision of the
11 secretary. These regulations shall include but not be limited to
12 provisions relating to public notice, blasting schedules,
13 monitoring and record-keeping, prevention of injury, prevention
14 of damage to property outside the permit area, prevention of
15 adverse impacts upon any underground mine, prevention of any
16 change in the course, channel, or availability of ground or
17 surface water outside the permit area, pre-blast surveys and
18 certification of blasting personnel. Precautions shall be taken
19 when blasting in close proximity to any underground mine.
20 Blasting shall be conducted in such a manner as to protect the
21 health and safety of persons working underground or to prevent
22 any adverse impact upon an active, inactive or abandoned
23 underground mine. It shall be unlawful for any blaster to leave
24 a working place after a task completion without first filing a
25 report with the mine operator known as a blaster's report. Such
26 report shall indicate the nature of the blasting operation,
27 including, but not limited to, the type and amount of explosives
28 used.
29 (c) From the effective date of this act, as amended hereby,
30 no operator shall [open any pit for surface mining operations]
19790S0990B2001 - 40 -
1 conduct surface mining operations (other than borrow pits for
2 highway construction purposes) within one hundred feet of the
3 outside line of the right-of-way of any public highway or within
4 three hundred feet of any occupied dwelling [house], unless
5 released by the owner thereof, [or] nor within three hundred
6 feet of any public building, public park, school, [park or]
7 church, community or institutional building or within one
8 hundred feet of any cemetery. [or of the bank of any stream] No
9 operator shall conduct surface mining operations within one
10 hundred feet of the bank of any stream. The secretary may grant
11 operators variances to the distance requirements herein
12 established where he is satisfied that special circumstances
13 warrant such exceptions and that the interest of the public and
14 landowners affected thereby will be adequately protected. Prior
15 to granting any such variances, the operator shall be required
16 to give public notice of his application therefor in two
17 newspapers of general circulation in the area once a week for
18 two successive weeks. Should any person file an exception to the
19 proposed variance within twenty days of the last publication
20 thereof, the department shall conduct a public hearing with
21 respect thereto.
22 (d) Upon the completion of any surface mining operation, and
23 prior to the release by the secretary of all or any portion of
24 the bond or collateral pertinent thereto, the operator shall
25 remove and clean up all temporary or unused structures,
26 facilities, equipment, machines, tools, parts or other
27 materials, property, debris or junk which were used in or
28 resulted from his surface mining operations.
29 (e) Nothing contained in this act shall be construed to
30 prohibit the relocation of any public road in the manner
19790S0990B2001 - 41 -
1 provided by law.
2 [(f) Any surface mining operator who affects a public or
3 private water supply by contamination or diminution shall
4 restore or replace the affected supply with an alternate source
5 of water adequate in quantity and quality for the purposes
6 served by the supply. If any operator shall fail to comply with
7 this provision, the secretary may issue such orders to the
8 operator as are necessary to assure compliance.]
9 (f) In implementing and enforcing this act and in
10 promulgating rules and regulations issued pursuant to this act,
11 the department shall consider the differences among mining of
12 bituminous coal, anthracite coal and noncoal minerals and issue
13 separate regulations for each.
14 [(g) Any operator aggrieved by the secretary's order issued
15 pursuant to subsection (f) shall have the right within thirty
16 (30) days of receipt of such order to appeal to the
17 Environmental Hearing Board. Hearings under this subsection and
18 any subsequent appeal shall be in accordance with section
19 1921(a), act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), known as "The
20 Administrative Code of 1929," and the act of June 4, 1945
21 (P.L.1388, No.442), known as the "Administrative Agency Law."
22 (h) If the secretary finds (i) that immediate replacement of
23 an affected water supply used for potable or domestic needs is
24 required to protect health and safety, and (ii) that the
25 operator has appealed or failed to comply with an order issued
26 pursuant to subsection (f), the secretary may, in his
27 discretion, restore or replace the affected water supply with an
28 alternate source of water utilizing moneys from the surface
29 mining conservation and reclamation fund. The secretary shall
30 recover the costs of restoration or replacement, including costs
19790S0990B2001 - 42 -
1 incurred for design and construction of facilities, from the
2 responsible operator or operators. Any such costs recovered
3 shall be deposited in the fund.]
4 Section 7. Section 4.3 of the act, amended November 30, 1971
5 (P.L.554, No.147), is amended to read:
6 Section 4.3. [Any mine conservation inspector] Violation
7 Notices; Suspension of License; Cease and Desist Order.--The
8 department shall have the right to enter upon and inspect all
9 surface mining operations for the purpose of determining
10 conditions of health or safety and for compliance with the
11 provisions of this act, and all rules and regulations
12 promulgated pursuant thereto. [Should an operator fail to comply
13 with the requirements of this act, or any rules or regulations
14 promulgated pursuant thereto, the mine conservation inspector
15 shall report the matter to the secretary who shall immediately
16 notify the operator by registered mail of such failure. Unless
17 the operator complies with the act, and such rules and
18 regulations, within thirty (30) days from the receipt of such
19 notice, the secretary may, after hearing and final
20 determination, suspend the surface mining operator's license of
21 the operator and issue a cease and desist order requiring the
22 operator to immediately cease surface mining within this
23 Commonwealth until such time as it is determined by the
24 secretary that the operator is in full compliance. A mine
25 conservation inspector shall have the authority to order the
26 immediate stopping of any operation that is started by an
27 unlicensed operator, or without the operator thereof having
28 first obtained a permit as required by this act, or in any case
29 where safety regulations are being violated or where the public
30 welfare or safety calls for the immediate halt of the operation
19790S0990B2001 - 43 -
1 until corrective steps have been started by the operator to the
2 satisfaction of the mine conservation inspector. Any operator
3 who believes he is aggrieved by the action of the mine
4 conservation inspector may immediately appeal to the secretary,
5 setting forth reasons why his operation should not be halted.
6 The secretary shall determine when the operation shall
7 continue.] The department may issue such orders as are necessary
8 to aid in the enforcement of the provisions of this act. Such
9 orders shall include, but shall not be limited to, orders
10 modifying, suspending or revoking permits, licenses and orders
11 requiring persons to cease operations immediately. The right of
12 the department to issue an order under this act is in addition
13 to any penalty or requirement which may be imposed pursuant to
14 this act. IF THE DEPARTMENT INTENDS TO REVOKE OR SUSPEND A <--
15 LICENSE, IT SHALL PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR AN INFORMAL HEARING
16 BEFORE SUSPENDING OR REVOKING THE LICENSE. FIFTEEN (15) DAYS
17 NOTICE OF THE INFORMAL HEARING SHALL BE GIVEN UNLESS THE
18 DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT A SHORTER PERIOD IS IN THE PUBLIC
19 INTEREST.
20 Section 8. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
21 Section 4.5. Designating Areas Unsuitable for Surface
22 Mining.--(a) Pursuant to the procedures set forth in subsection
23 (b), the department shall designate an area as unsuitable for
24 all or certain types of surface mining operations as such
25 operations are defined in section 3, if the department
26 determines that reclamation pursuant to the requirements of this
27 act is not technologically and economically feasible.
28 (b) Pursuant to the procedures set forth in this subsection,
29 the department may designate an area as unsuitable for all or
30 certain types of surface mining operations if such operations
19790S0990B2001 - 44 -
1 will:
2 (1) be incompatible with existing State or local land use
3 plans or programs;
4 (2) affect fragile or historic lands in which such
5 operations could result in significant damage to important
6 historic, cultural, scientific and esthetic values and natural
7 systems;
8 (3) affect renewable resources lands in which such
9 operations could result in a substantial loss or reduction of
10 long-range productivity of water supply or of food or fiber
11 products and such lands to include aquifers and aquifer recharge
12 areas; or
13 (4) affect natural hazard lands in which such operations
14 could substantially endanger life and property, such lands to
15 include areas subject to frequent flooding and areas of unstable
16 geology.
17 (c) The department shall forthwith develop a process to meet
18 the requirements of this act. This process shall include:
19 (1) a department review of surface mining lands;
20 (2) a data base and an inventory system which will permit
21 proper evaluation of the capacity of different land areas of the
22 State to support and permit reclamation of surface mining
23 operations;
24 (3) a method or methods for implementing land use planning
25 decisions concerning surface mining operations; and
26 (4) proper notice, opportunities for public participation,
27 including a public hearing prior to making any designation or
28 redesignation, pursuant to this section.
29 (d) Determinations of the unsuitability of land for surface
30 mining, as provided for in this section, shall be integrated as
19790S0990B2001 - 45 -
1 closely as possible with present and future land use planning
2 and regulation at the Federal, State and local levels.
3 (e) The requirements of this section shall not apply to
4 lands on which surface mining operations were being conducted on
5 August 3, 1977 or are being conducted under a permit issued
6 pursuant to this act, or where substantial legal and financial
7 commitments as they are defined under § 522 of the Surface
8 Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 1201 et
9 seq. if such operations were in existence prior to January 4,
10 1977.
11 (f) Any person having an interest which is or may be
12 adversely affected shall have the right to petition the
13 department to have an area designated as unsuitable for surface
14 mining operations, or to have such a designation terminated.
15 Pursuant to the procedure set forth in this subsection, the
16 department may initiate proceedings seeking to have an area
17 designated as unsuitable for surface mining operations, or to
18 have such a designation terminated. Such a petition shall
19 contain allegations of facts with supporting evidence which
20 would tend to establish the allegations. Within ten (10) months
21 after receipt of the petition the department shall hold a public
22 hearing in the locality of the affected area, after appropriate
23 notice and publication of the date, time and location of such
24 hearing. After a person having an interest which is or may be
25 adversely affected has filed a petition and before the hearing,
26 as required by this subsection, any person may intervene by
27 filing allegations of facts with supporting evidence which would
28 tend to establish the allegations. Within sixty (60) days after
29 such hearing, the department shall issue and furnish to the
30 petitioner and any other party to the hearing, a written
19790S0990B2001 - 46 -
1 decision regarding the petition and the reasons therefore. In
2 the event that all the petitioners stipulate agreement prior to
3 the requested hearing and withdraw their request, such hearing
4 need not be held.
5 (g) Prior to designating any land areas as unsuitable for
6 surface mining operations, the department shall prepare a
7 detailed statement on (i) the potential mineral resources of the
8 area, (ii) the demand for mineral resources, and (iii) the
9 impact of such designation on the environment, the economy and
10 the supply of the mineral.
11 (h) Subject to valid existing rights as they are defined
12 under § 522 of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of
13 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 1201 et seq., no surface mining operations
14 except those which existed on August 3, 1977 shall be permitted:
15 (1) on any lands within the boundaries of units of the
16 National Park System, the National Wildlife Refuge System, the
17 National System of Trails, the National Wilderness Preservation
18 System, the Wild and Scenic Rivers System, including study
19 rivers designated under section 5(a) of the Wild and Scenic
20 Rivers Act and National Recreation Areas designated by Act of
21 Congress;
22 (2) on any Federal lands within the boundaries of any
23 national forest: Provided, however, That surface mining
24 operations may be permitted on such lands if the Department of
25 Interior and the department finds that there are no significant
26 recreational, timber, economic, or other values which may be
27 incompatible with such surface mining operations and such
28 surface mining operations and impacts are incident to an
29 underground coal mine;
30 (3) which will adversely affect any public owned park or
19790S0990B2001 - 47 -
1 places included in the National Register of Historic Sites
2 unless approved jointly by the department and the Federal,
3 State, or local agency with jurisdiction over the park or the
4 historic site;
5 (4) within one hundred feet of the outside right-of-way line
6 of any public road, except where mine access roads or haulage
7 roads joint such right-of-way line and except that the
8 department may permit such roads to be relocated or the area
9 affected to lie within one hundred feet of such road, if after
10 public notice and opportunity for public hearing in the locality
11 a written finding is made that the interests of the public and
12 the landowners affected thereby will be protected; or
13 (5) within three hundred feet from any occupied dwelling,
14 unless waived by the owner thereof, nor within three hundred
15 feet of any public building, school, church, community, nor
16 institutional building, public park or within one hundred feet
17 of a cemetery, or within one hundred feet of the bank of a
18 stream.
19 Section 9. Section 15.3 of the act, added January 19, 1968
20 (1967 P.L.1012, No.446), subsections (a), (m), (n), (o) and (p)
21 amended or added November 30. 1971 (P.L.554, No.147) and
22 subsection (b) amended July 30, 1975 (P.L.148, No.74), is
23 amended to read:
24 Section 15.3. Conservation Districts and Inspectors.-- [(a)]
25 The Commonwealth shall be arranged by the secretary into mine
26 land and water conservation districts, which the secretary may
27 at any time redistrict. Each district shall have [a] mine
28 conservation [inspector] inspectors.
29 [The Governor shall commission and appoint mine land and
30 water conservation inspectors from among persons holding valid
19790S0990B2001 - 48 -
1 unexpired certificates of qualification issued by the department
2 under this act and each mine conservation inspector shall hold
3 office during good behavior or until removed from office as
4 herein provided.] Mine conservation inspectors shall be
5 appointed in accordance with the rules and regulations of the
6 Civil Service Commission. It shall be the duty of the secretary
7 to assign the inspectors to their respective districts.
8 [(b) The qualifications for certification of a candidate for
9 the office of mine conservation inspector shall be as follows:
10 The candidate shall be of temperate habits of good repute as a
11 person of integrity, in good physical condition, shall be
12 twenty-five years of age, or over, shall have successfully
13 passed the examination for mine conservation inspector provided
14 herein, shall have had sufficient practical experience in
15 surface mining and conservation or in lieu thereof specialized
16 education or a combination of education and experience as
17 specified by the secretary, and shall have served in a
18 probational status for a period of at least six months in this
19 Commonwealth, which shall be evaluated by the secretary.
20 (c) The board shall enter into a contract with the State
21 Civil Service Commission as provided in section 212 of the
22 "Civil Service Act" of 1941 for the purpose of authorizing the
23 Civil Service Commission to conduct examinations as needed for
24 the position of mine conservation inspector. The Civil Service
25 Commission shall, with the cooperation and approval of the
26 board, prepare examinations for mine conservation inspector from
27 time to time and shall administer such examinations in
28 accordance with the commission's regular procedure.
29 After the examination is completed and graded and a list
30 prepared, the Civil Service Commission shall certify the entire
19790S0990B2001 - 49 -
1 list of successful candidates to the Governor and to the
2 department. Appointments to the position of mine conservation
3 inspector shall be made by the appointing authority from among
4 the names on the certified list.
5 (d) Candidates for the office of mine conservation inspector
6 who have submitted such proof as the board shall require that
7 they are otherwise qualified as set forth herein shall be
8 examined on and must give evidence of having such theoretical as
9 well as practical knowledge and general intelligence respecting
10 mining and conservation as will satisfy the examining board of
11 their capability and fitness to perform the duties imposed upon
12 mine conservation inspectors under this act. The principal
13 portion of such examination shall be in writing but each
14 applicant shall also undergo an oral examination. The questions
15 and answers thereto in the oral examination shall be reported
16 verbatim by an expert stenographer, or shall be mechanically
17 recorded, and typewritten fully, or reproduced by some other
18 method, to assist the examining board in the work of rating the
19 qualifications of the candidates.
20 (e) The manuscripts and other papers of applicants for the
21 office of mine conservation inspector and together with tally
22 sheets and the correct solution of each question as prepared by
23 the board, and the stenographer's report or other record of the
24 oral examination for inspectors, shall be filed with the
25 department for a period of time of not less than eight years.
26 (f) The names of all successful candidates who are properly
27 qualified under the provisions of this section to fill the
28 office of mine conservation inspector shall be certified by the
29 examining board to the Governor and to the department. A
30 certificate of qualification shall be issued to each successful
19790S0990B2001 - 50 -
1 candidate by the secretary. A certificate so granted shall be
2 valid for a period of four years from the date of the
3 examination unless the holder has received an appointment in the
4 interim period in which case the certificate shall become
5 permanent unless the appointee has voluntarily relinquished the
6 position within a period of one year after appointment. A
7 certificate of qualification of a person honorably discharged
8 from the armed forces of the United States shall not expire
9 until the first examination occurring more than six months
10 following his release from military service.
11 (g) The board shall, after the examination, furnish to any
12 candidate, on request, a copy of all oral and written questions
13 given at the examination marked as answered by the candidate
14 "solved right," "imperfect" or "wrong," as the case may be.
15 Mining inspectors presently serving shall continue to serve
16 without re-examination.
17 (h) Each mine conservation inspector shall, before entering
18 upon the discharge of his duties, give a surety bond in the sum
19 of five thousand dollars ($5,000), conditioned for the faithful
20 discharge of his duties. No person who is acting as manager or
21 agent of any surface mining practice, or as mining engineer, or
22 who is directly or indirectly interested in operating any
23 surface mine shall at the same time act as mine conservation
24 inspector.
25 (i) In case a mine conservation inspector becomes
26 incapacitated to perform the duties of his office, or is granted
27 a leave of absence by the secretary, the secretary may appoint
28 temporarily to the office a person he deems qualified to fulfill
29 the duties of the inspector. The temporary inspector shall act
30 until the regular inspector is able to resume the duties of his
19790S0990B2001 - 51 -
1 office.
2 (j) Each mine conservation inspector shall devote the whole
3 of his time to the duties of his office. It shall be his duty to
4 thoroughly examine each operating mine in his district as often
5 as necessary for compliance with this act. He shall keep is his
6 office a record of all examinations of mines, showing the
7 condition in which he finds them, on a form supplied by the
8 secretary. He shall also perform such other duties as the
9 secretary may require.
10 (k) Within thirty days after a mine conservation inspector
11 attains the age of sixty-five, he shall undergo a physical
12 examination and a copy of the physician's findings shall be
13 furnished to the secretary. The same procedure shall be followed
14 each succeeding year after the age of sixty-five is reached. If,
15 as a result of the physical examination, it is found that the
16 inspector is physically unable to perform the duties of a mine
17 conservation inspector, he shall submit his resignation to the
18 Governor. Failure to submit resignation will constitute cause
19 for removal from office by the secretary.
20 (l) A mine conservation inspector may be dismissed for cause
21 as defined in the "Civil Service Act" of 1941 as amended. If
22 such mine inspector feels that his dismissal was improper or
23 unjustified, he may appeal to the State Civil Service Commission
24 for a hearing in accordance with the provisions of the "Civil
25 Service Act" and the contract to be entered into between the
26 board and the Civil Service Commission. The decision of the
27 Civil Service Commission shall be final and may not be appealed.
28 (m) The mine conservation inspectors shall be allowed all
29 necessary expenses incurred by them in enforcing the several
30 provisions of this act in the respective courts of this
19790S0990B2001 - 52 -
1 Commonwealth, if they have obtained the consent of the
2 department before such expense is incurred, the same to be paid
3 by the State Treasurer, on warrant of the Auditor General,
4 issued upon presentation of itemized vouchers approved by the
5 court before which the proceedings were instituted, and also by
6 the secretary.
7 (n) Each mine conservation inspector may also incur
8 traveling expenses, and such other expenses as may be necessary
9 for the proper discharge of his duties under the provisions of
10 this act. Each mine conservation inspector shall have an office
11 in his district, which may be at his place of residence if a
12 suitable room, approved by the secretary, is set apart for that
13 purpose. The secretary shall have authority to procure for the
14 mine conservation inspectors, on their request, furniture,
15 instruments, chemicals, typewriters, stationery and all other
16 necessary supplies, which shall be paid for by the State
17 Treasurer, on warrant of the Auditor General issued upon
18 presentation of vouchers approved by the secretary. All
19 furniture, instruments, plans, books, memoranda, notes and other
20 materials pertaining to the office of the mine conservation
21 inspector, shall be the property of the Commonwealth, and shall
22 be delivered by the mine conservation inspector to his successor
23 in office.
24 (o) At the conclusion of the examination of a mine, the mine
25 conservation inspector shall discuss with representatives of
26 management his findings and recommendations.
27 (p) To enable the mine conservation inspector to perform the
28 duties imposed upon him by this act, he shall have the right at
29 all times to enter upon the land affected by any former or
30 present surface mining operation in his district or any surface
19790S0990B2001 - 53 -
1 mining operation in any other district when directed to do so by
2 the secretary, to make examinations or obtain information; and
3 upon the discovery of any violation of this act, or upon being
4 informed of any violation of the act, or upon the discovery of
5 any nuisance, he shall institute proceedings against the person
6 or persons at fault, under the provisions of this act.]
7 Section 10. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
8 Section 17.1. Local Ordinances.--Except with respect to
9 ordinances adopted pursuant to the act of July 31, 1968
10 (P.L.805, No.247), known as the "Pennsylvania Municipalities
11 Planning Code," all local ordinances and enactments purporting
12 to regulate surface mining are hereby superseded. The
13 Commonwealth by this enactment hereby preempts the regulation of
14 surface mining as herein defined.
15 Section 11. Sections 18, 18.1 and 18.2 of the act, amended
16 November 30, 1971 (P.L.554, No.147), are amended to read:
17 Section 18. Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation
18 Fund; Payments to Clean Water Fund.--(a) All funds received by
19 the secretary from license fees, [and] from permit fees, from
20 forfeiture of bonds, from all fines collected under section 18.5
21 and all civil penalties collected under section 18.4, and of
22 cash deposits and securities, and from costs recovered under the
23 act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as "The Clean
24 Streams Law," shall be held by the State Treasurer in a special
25 fund, separate and apart from all other moneys in the State
26 Treasury, to be known as the "Surface Mining Conservation and
27 Reclamation Fund," and shall be used by the secretary for the
28 purpose of the [foresting] revegetation or reclaiming of land
29 affected by surface mining of any coal or metallic [and] or
30 nonmetallic minerals for restoration or replacement of water
19790S0990B2001 - 54 -
1 supplies affected by surface mining operations, or for any other
2 conservation purposes provided by this act, and for such
3 purposes are hereby specifically appropriated to the department.
4 Costs recovered under section 315(e) of "The Clean Streams Law"
5 from a deep mine operator or operators shall be paid into the
6 Clean Water Fund. [Funds received from the forfeiture of bonds
7 and collateral shall, if physically possible, be expended by the
8 secretary for reclaiming and planting the area of land affected
9 by the operation upon which liability was charged on the bond.
10 Any funds received from such forfeiture in excess of the amount
11 which is required for reclaiming and planting the area of land
12 affected by the operation upon which liability was charged and
13 funds received from forfeitures relating to land where
14 reclaiming and planting is determined by the secretary to be
15 physically impossible, may be used by him for the foresting or
16 reclaiming of other lands affected by surface mining of any coal
17 or metallic and nonmetallic minerals or for any other
18 conservation purposes provided by this act.]
19 (b) Funds received from the forfeiture of bonds, both surety
20 and collateral, shall be expended by the secretary for
21 reclaiming and planting the area of land affected by the
22 operation upon which liability was charged on the bond, if the
23 secretary determines such expenditure to be reasonable,
24 necessary and physically possible. Any funds received from such
25 forfeited bonds in excess of the amount which is required to
26 reclaim and plant the area of land affected by the operation
27 upon which liability was charged and funds received from bond
28 forfeitures where reclamation and planting is determined to be
29 unreasonable, unnecessary or physically impossible, may be used
30 by the secretary for any of the purposes provided in subsection
19790S0990B2001 - 55 -
1 (a).
2 Section 18.1. Release of Operator on Transfer of
3 Operation.--Where one operator succeeds another at any
4 uncompleted operation, either by sale, assignment, lease, or
5 otherwise, the secretary may release the first operator from all
6 liability under this act as to that particular operation:
7 Provided, however, That both operators have registered and have
8 otherwise complied with the requirements of this act and the
9 successor operator assumes as part of his obligation under this
10 act all liability for grading, planting and reclamation on the
11 land affected by the former operator.
12 Section 18.2. Injunctive Relief.--In addition to any other
13 remedy at law or in equity or under this act, the Attorney
14 General may apply for relief by injunction, or to enforce
15 compliance with, or restrain violations of, any provisions of
16 this act, or any rule, regulation, permit condition or order
17 made pursuant thereto.
18 The remedy prescribed in this section shall be deemed
19 concurrent or contemporaneous with any other remedy, and the
20 existence or exercise of any one remedy shall not prevent the
21 exercise of any other remedy.
22 Section 12. Section 18.3 of the act, reenacted and amended
23 August 8, 1963 (P.L.623, No.331), is amended to read:
24 [Section 18.3. Any citizen of this Commonwealth having
25 knowledge that any of the provisions of this act are wilfully
26 and deliberately not being enforced by any public officer or
27 employe whose duty it is to enforce any of the provisions of
28 this act, shall bring such failure to enforce the law to the
29 attention of such public officer or employe. To provide against
30 unreasonable and irresponsible demands being made, all such
19790S0990B2001 - 56 -
1 demands to enforce the law must be in writing, under oath, with
2 facts set forth specifically stating the nature of the failure
3 to enforce the law. The stating of false facts and charges in
4 such affidavit shall constitute perjury and shall subject the
5 affiant to penalties prescribed under the law for perjury. If
6 such public officer or employe neglects or refuses for an
7 unreasonable time after demand to enforce such provision, any
8 such citizen shall have the right to bring an action of
9 mandamus. The court, if satisfied that any provision of this act
10 is not being enforced, may make an appropriate order compelling
11 the public officer or employe, whose duty it is to enforce such
12 provision, to perform his duties, and upon failure to do so such
13 public officer or employe shall be held in contempt of court and
14 shall be subject to the penalties provided by the laws of the
15 Commonwealth in such cases.]
16 Section 18.3. Remedies of Citizens.--(a) Except as provided
17 in subsection (c), any person having an interest which is or may
18 be adversely affected may commence a civil action on his own
19 behalf to compel compliance with this act or any rule,
20 regulation, order or permit issued pursuant to this act against
21 the department where there is alleged a failure of the
22 department to perform any act which is not discretionary with
23 the department or against any other person who is alleged to be
24 in violation of any provision of this act or any rule,
25 regulation, order or permit issued pursuant to this act. Any
26 other provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, the
27 courts of common pleas shall have jurisdiction of such actions,
28 and venue in such actions shall be as set forth in the Rules of
29 Civil Procedure concerning actions in assumpsit.
30 (b) Whenever any person presents information to the
19790S0990B2001 - 57 -
1 department which gives the department reason to believe that any
2 person is in violation of any requirement of this act or any
3 condition of any permit issued hereunder or of the acts
4 enumerated in section 4(a)(2)H or any condition or any permit
5 issued thereunder, the department shall immediately order
6 inspection of the operation at which the alleged violation is
7 occurring, and the department shall notify the person presenting
8 such information and such person shall be allowed to accompany
9 the inspector during the inspection.
10 (c) No action pursuant to this section may be commenced
11 prior to sixty (60) days after the plaintiff has given notice in
12 writing of the violation to the department and to any alleged
13 violator, nor may such action be commenced if the department has
14 commenced and is diligently prosecuting a civil action in a
15 court of the United States or a state to require compliance with
16 this act or any rule, regulation, order or permit issued
17 pursuant to this act, but in any such action in a court of the
18 United States or of the Commonwealth any person may intervene as
19 a matter of right.
20 (d) The provisions of subsection (c) to the contrary
21 notwithstanding, any action pursuant to this section may be
22 initiated immediately upon written notification to the
23 department in the case where the violation or order complained
24 of constitutes an imminent threat to the health or safety of the
25 plaintiff or would immediately affect a legal interest of the
26 plaintiff.
27 (e) The court, in issuing any final order in any action
28 brought pursuant to this section, may award costs of litigation
29 (including attorney and expert witness fees) to any party,
30 whenever the court determines such award is appropriate. The
19790S0990B2001 - 58 -
1 court may, if a temporary restraining order or preliminary
2 injunction is sought, require the filing of a bond or equivalent
3 security in accord with the Rules of Civil Procedure.
4 Section 13. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
5 Section 18.4. Civil Penalties.--In addition to proceeding
6 under any other remedy available at law or in equity for a
7 violation of a provision of this act, rule, regulation, order of
8 the department, or a condition of any permit issued pursuant to
9 this act, the department may assess a civil penalty upon a
10 person or municipality for such violation. Such a penalty may be
11 assessed whether or not the violation was wilfull. The civil
12 penalty so assessed shall not exceed five thousand dollars
13 ($5,000) per day for each violation. In determining the amount
14 of the civil penalty the department shall consider the
15 wilfullness of the violation, damage or injury to the lands or
16 to the waters of the Commonwealth or their uses, cost of
17 restoration and other relevant factors. If the violation leads
18 to the issuance of a cessation order, a civil penalty shall be
19 assessed. If the violation involves the failure to correct,
20 within the period prescribed for its correction, a violation for
21 which a cessation order, other abatement order or notice of
22 violation has been issued, a civil penalty of not less than
23 seven hundred fifty dollars ($750) shall be assessed for each
24 day the violation continues beyond the period prescribed for its
25 correction: Provided, however, That correction of a violation
26 within the period prescribed for its correction shall not
27 preclude assessment of a penalty for the violation. When the
28 department proposes to assess a civil penalty, the secretary
29 shall inform the person or municipality within a period of time
30 to be prescribed by rule and regulation of the proposed amount
19790S0990B2001 - 59 -
1 of said penalty. The person or municipality charged with the
2 penalty shall then have thirty (30) days to pay the proposed
3 penalty in full or, if the person or municipality wishes to
4 contest either the amount of the penalty or the fact of the
5 violation, forward the proposed amount to the secretary for
6 placement in an escrow account with the State Treasurer or any
7 Pennsylvania bank, OR POST AN APPEAL BOND IN THE AMOUNT OF THE <--
8 PROPOSED PENALTY, SUCH BOND SHALL BE EXECUTED BY A SURETY
9 LICENSED TO DO BUSINESS IN THE COMMONWEALTH AND BE SATISFACTORY
10 TO THE DEPARTMENT. If through administrative or judicial review
11 of the proposed penalty, it is determined that no violation
12 occurred, or that the amount of the penalty shall be reduced,
13 the secretary shall within thirty (30) days remit the
14 appropriate amount to the person or municipality, with any
15 interest accumulated by the escrow deposit. Failure to forward
16 the money OR THE APPEAL BOND to the secretary within thirty (30) <--
17 days shall result in a waiver of all legal rights to contest the
18 violation or the amount of the penalty. The amount assessed
19 after administrative hearing or after waiver of administrative
20 hearing shall be payable to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and
21 shall be collectible in any manner provided at law for the
22 collection of debts. If any person liable to pay any such
23 penalty neglects or refuses to pay the same after demand, the
24 amount, together with interest and any costs that may accrue,
25 shall constitute a judgment in favor of the Commonwealth upon
26 the property, of such person from the date it has been entered
27 and docketed of record by the prothonotary of the county where
28 such is situated. The department may, at any time, transmit to
29 the prothonotaries of the respective counties certified copies
30 of all such judgments, and it shall be the duty of each
19790S0990B2001 - 60 -
1 prothonotary to enter and docket the same of record in his
2 office, and to index it as judgments are indexed, without
3 requiring the payment of costs as a condition precedent to the
4 entry thereof. Any other provision of law to the contrary
5 notwithstanding, there shall be a statute of limitations of five
6 (5) years upon actions brought by the Commonwealth pursuant to
7 this section.
8 Section 18.5. Penalties.--(a) Any person or municipality
9 who violates any provision of this act, any rule or regulation
10 of the department, any order of the department, or any condition
11 of any permit issued pursuant to this act is guilty of a summary
12 offense and, upon conviction, such person or municipality shall
13 be subject to a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100)
14 nor more than ten thousand collars ($10,000) for each separate
15 offense, and, in the default of the payment of such fine, a
16 person shall be imprisoned for a period of ninety (90) days.
17 (b) Any person or municipality who wilfully or negligently
18 violates any provision of this act, any rule or regulation of
19 the department, any order of the department, or any condition of
20 any permit issued pursuant to the act is guilty of a misdemeanor
21 of the third degree and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a
22 fine of not less than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500)
23 nor more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each
24 separate offense or to imprisonment in the county jail for a
25 period of not more than one (1) year, or both.
26 (c) Any person or municipality who, after a conviction of a
27 misdemeanor for any violation within two (2) years as above
28 provided, wilfully or negligently violates any provision of this
29 act, any rule or regulation of the department, any order of the
30 department, or any condition of any permit issued pursuant to
19790S0990B2001 - 61 -
1 this act is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree and,
2 upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not less than two
3 thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) nor more than fifty
4 thousand dollars ($50,000) for each separate offense or to
5 imprisonment for a period of not more than two (2) years, or
6 both.
7 (d) Each day of continued violation of any provision of this
8 act, any rule or regulation of the department, any permit
9 condition or order of the department issued pursuant to this act
10 shall constitute a separate offense.
11 (e) All summary proceedings under the provisions of this act
12 may be brought before any district justice of the county where
13 the offense occurred or any unlawful discharge of industrial
14 waste or pollution was maintained, or in the county where the
15 public is affected, and to that end jurisdiction is hereby
16 conferred upon said district justices, subject to appeal by
17 either party in the manner provided by law. In the case of any
18 appeal from any such conviction in the manner provided by law
19 for appeals from summary convictions, it shall be the duty of
20 the district attorney of the county to represent the interests
21 of the Commonwealth.
22 Section 18.6. Unlawful Conduct.--It shall be unlawful to
23 fail to comply with any rule or regulation of the department or
24 to fail to comply with any order or permit or license of the
25 department, to violate any of the provisions of this act or
26 rules and regulations adopted hereunder, or any order or permit
27 or license of the department, to cause air or water pollution in
28 connection with mining and not otherwise proscribed by this act,
29 or to hinder, obstruct, prevent or interfere with the department
30 or its personnel in the performance of any duty hereunder or to
19790S0990B2001 - 62 -
1 violate the provisions of 18 Pa.C.S. sections 4903 (relating to
2 false swearing), 4904 (relating to unsworn falsification to
3 authorities). Any person or municipality engaging in such
4 conduct shall be subject to the provisions of sections 18.2,
5 18.4, 18.5 and this section.
6 Section 18.7. Creation of Small Operators' Assistance
7 Fund.--All moneys received by the department under sections
8 507(c) and 401(b)(1) of the Surface Mining Control and
9 Reclamation Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. §§ 1257(c) and 1232(b)(1),
10 shall be held by the State Treasurer in a special fund, separate
11 and apart from all other moneys in the State Treasury, to be
12 known as the "Small Operators' Assistance Fund," and shall be
13 used by the department for the purposes set forth and subject to
14 the limitations in section 507(c) of the Surface Mining Control
15 and Reclamation Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 1257(c).
16 Section 14. Section 19 of the act is amended to read:
17 Section 19. Repealer.--All acts or provisions thereof
18 inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed: Provided, however,
19 That the act of Assembly, approved the eighteenth day of June,
20 Anno Domini one thousand nine hundred forty-one (Pamphlet Laws,
21 one hundred thirty-three), entitled "An act relating to coal
22 stripping operations; providing for the health and safety of
23 persons employed therein and for the inspection and regulation
24 of such operations by the Department of Mines; requiring certain
25 information and reports, and prescribing penalties," and the act
26 of Assembly, approved on the twenty-fifth day of June, Anno
27 Domini one thousand nine hundred thirty-seven (Pamphlet Laws,
28 two thousand two hundred seventy-five), entitled "An act to
29 promote safety for the traveling public on State highways; to
30 extend the responsibility for subsidence of such highways by the
19790S0990B2001 - 63 -
1 failure of vertical and lateral support, and declaring said
2 subsidence a public nuisance; to provide for inspection of mine
3 maps by the Department of Highways, and the furnishing to said
4 department of copies of such mine maps in certain cases; to
5 authorize entry by the Department of Highways into mines in
6 certain cases; and to provide for notices to the Department of
7 Highways of certain mining operations under or adjacent to
8 highways; and providing penalties," and all other acts and
9 provisions thereof, which regulate the mining of bituminous coal
10 shall not be repealed or nullified by this act, but shall remain
11 in full force and effect. Nothing is this act shall be construed
12 to abrogate or modify the power and jurisdiction of the
13 Department of [Mines] Environmental Resources to make rules and
14 regulations, and to administer the laws of the Commonwealth
15 applicable to open pit mining.
16 Section 15. At least 30 days prior to consideration by the <--
17 Environmental Quality Board of draft regulations for proposed
18 rule making, the department shall submit such draft regulations
19 to the Senate Environmental Resources and House Mines and Energy
20 Management Committees of the General Assembly for their review
21 and comment.
22 SECTION 15. IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN PRIMARY JURISDICTION OVER <--
23 SURFACE COAL MINING IN PENNSYLVANIA PURSUANT TO THE SURFACE
24 MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977, PUBLIC LAW 95-87,
25 THE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY BOARD SHALL HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO
26 ADOPT INITIAL REGULATIONS ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS IN ACCORDANCE
27 WITH SECTION 204(3) (RELATING TO OMISSION OF NOTICE OF PROPOSED
28 RULE MAKING) OF THE ACT OF JULY 31, 1968 (P.L.769, NO.240),
29 REFERRED TO AS THE COMMONWEALTH DOCUMENTS LAW. PROVIDED,
30 HOWEVER, WITHIN 30 DAYS AFTER THE SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES
19790S0990B2001 - 64 -
1 DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR GRANTS SUCH PRIMARY JURISDICTION TO
2 PENNSYLVANIA, THE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY BOARD SHALL REPROPOSE
3 THE REGULATIONS ADOPTED ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS, SHALL SUBMIT THE
4 REGULATIONS TO THE SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND HOUSE
5 MINES AND ENERGY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
6 FOR THEIR REVIEW AND COMMENTS, AND SHALL SCHEDULE PUBLIC
7 HEARINGS WITHIN 90 DAYS AFTER SUCH GRANT OF PRIMARY JURISDICTION
8 FOR THE PURPOSE OF HEARING PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANY APPROPRIATE
9 REVISIONS.
10 AT LEAST 30 DAYS PRIOR TO CONSIDERATION BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL
11 QUALITY BOARD OF ANY REVISED REGULATIONS OR ANY NEW REGULATIONS
12 UNDER THIS ACT OTHER THAN THOSE INITIAL REGULATIONS PROMULGATED
13 ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL SUBMIT SUCH
14 REGULATION TO THE SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND HOUSE MINES
15 AND ENERGY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY FOR
16 THEIR REVIEW AND COMMENT.
17 Section 16. The provisions of this amendatory act shall not
18 affect the present law governing the surface mining of
19 anthracite. The surface mining of anthracite shall continue to <--
20 be governed by the Pennsylvania law in effect on August 3, 1977
21 and as provided by § 529 of the Surface Mining Control and
22 Reclamation Act of 1977, Public Law 95-87. TO THE FULL EXTENT <--
23 PROVIDED BY SECTION 529 OF THE SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND
24 RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977 (PUBLIC LAW 95-87), THE SURFACE MINING
25 OF ANTHRACITE SHALL CONTINUE TO BE GOVERNED BY THE PENNSYLVANIA
26 LAW IN EFFECT ON AUGUST 3, 1977.
27 SECTION 17. IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN PRIMARY JURISDICTION OVER
28 COAL MINING IN PENNSYLVANIA, IT IS HEREBY DECLARED THAT FOR A
29 PERIOD OF TWO YEARS FROM THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS ACT THE
30 DEPARTMENT SHALL NOT ENFORCE ANY PROVISION OF THIS ACT WHICH WAS
19790S0990B2001 - 65 -
1 ENACTED BY THESE AMENDMENTS SOLELY TO SECURE FOR PENNSYLVANIA
2 PRIMARY JURISDICTION TO ENFORCE PUBLIC LAW 95-87, THE FEDERAL
3 SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977, IF THE
4 CORRESPONDING PROVISION OF THAT ACT IS DECLARED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
5 OR OTHERWISE INVALID DUE TO A FINAL JUDGMENT BY A FEDERAL COURT
6 OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION AND NOT UNDER APPEAL OR IS OTHERWISE
7 REPEALED OR INVALIDATED BY FINAL ACTION OF THE CONGRESS OF THE
8 UNITED STATES. IF ANY SUCH PROVISION OF PUBLIC LAW 95-87 IS
9 DECLARED UNCONSTITUTIONAL OR INVALID, THE CORRESPONDING
10 PROVISION OF THIS ACT ENACTED BY THESE AMENDMENTS SOLELY TO
11 SECURE FOR PENNSYLVANIA PRIMARY JURISDICTION TO ENFORCE THE
12 FEDERAL SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977,
13 PUBLIC LAW 95-87 SHALL BE INVALID AND THE SECRETARY SHALL
14 ENFORCE THIS ACT AS THOUGH THE LAW IN EFFECT PRIOR TO THESE
15 AMENDMENTS REMAINED IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT.
16 IT IS HEREBY DETERMINED THAT IT IS IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST FOR
17 PENNSYLVANIA TO SECURE PRIMARY JURISDICTION OVER THE ENFORCEMENT
18 AND ADMINISTRATION OF PUBLIC LAW 95-87, THE FEDERAL SURFACE
19 MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977, AND THAT THE GENERAL
20 ASSEMBLY SHOULD AMEND THIS ACT IN ORDER TO OBTAIN APPROVAL OF
21 THE PENNSYLVANIA PROGRAM BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE
22 INTERIOR. IT IS THE INTENT OF THIS ACT TO PRESERVE EXISTING
23 PENNSYLVANIA LAW TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT POSSIBLE.
24 Section 17 18. This act shall take effect immediately: <--
25 Provided, however, That as to the surface mining of noncoal
26 minerals, the provisions of this amendatory act shall not become
27 effective until one year from the date of approval by the
28 Secretary of the Department of the Interior of the program of
29 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania pursuant to section 503 of the
30 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. §
19790S0990B2001 - 66 -
1 1253.
H29L42WMB/19790S0990B2001 - 67 -