reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
WV Code § 22-18-19 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-19. Citizen Suits; Petitions for Rulemaking; Intervention

(a) Any person may commence a civil action on his or her own behalf against any person who is alleged to be in violation of any provision of this article or any condition of a permit issued or rules promulgated hereunder, except that no action may be commenced under this section prior to sixty days after the plaintiff has given notice to the appropriate enforcement, permit issuing or rule-making authority and to the person against whom the action will be commenced, or if the state has commenced and is diligently prosecuting a civil or criminal action pursuant to this article: Provided, That such person may commence a civil action immediately upon notification in the case of an action under subsection (b) of this section. Such actions may be brought in the circuit court in the county in which the alleged violation occurs or in the circuit court of Kanawha County.(b) Any person may commence a civil action against the appropriate enforcement, permit issuing or rule-making authority where there is alleged a failure of such authority to perform any nondiscretionary duty or act under this article. Such actions may be brought only in the circuit court of Kanawha County.(c) Any person may petition the appropriate rule-making authority for rule-making on an issue arising under this article. The appropriate rule-making authority, if it believes such issue to merit rule making, may commence any studies and investigations necessary to issue rules. A decision by the appropriate rule-making authority not to pursue rule making must be set forth in writing with substantial reasons for refusing to do so.(d) Nothing in this article restricts any rights of any person or class of persons under statute or common law.(e) In issuing any final order in any action brought pursuant to this section any court with jurisdiction may award costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney's fees and expert witnesses fees, to any party whenever the court determines such award to be appropriate.(f) Any enforcement, permit issuing or rule-making authority may intervene as a matter of right in any suit brought under this section.(g) Any person may intervene as a matter of right in any civil action or administrative action instituted under this article.(h) Notwithstanding any provision of this article to the contrary, any person may maintain an action to enjoin a nuisance against any permit holder or other person subject to the provisions of this article and may seek damages in said action, all to the same extent and for all intents and purposes as if this article were not enacted, if such person maintaining such action and seeking such damages would otherwise have standing to maintain such action and be entitled to damages by any other rule of law.
WV Code § 22-18-20 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-20. Appeal to Environmental Quality Board

Any person aggrieved or adversely affected by an order of the director made and entered in accordance with the provisions of this article, or by the failure or refusal of the director to act within a reasonable time on an application for a permit or by the issuance or denial of or by the terms and conditions of a permit granted by the director under the provisions of this article, may appeal to the environmental quality board, in accordance with the provisions of article one, chapter twenty-two-b of this code.
WV Code § 22-18-21 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-21. Disclosures Required in Deeds and Leases

(a) The grantor in any deed or other instrument of conveyance or any lessor in any lease or other instrument whereby any real property is let for a period of time shall disclose in such deed, lease or other instrument the fact that such property or the subsurface of such property, (whether or not the grantor or lessor is at the time of such conveyance or lease the owner of such subsurface) was used for the storage, treatment or disposal of hazardous waste. The provisions of this subsection only apply to those grantors or lessors who owned or had an interest in the real property when the same or the subsurface thereof was used for the purpose of storage, treatment or disposal of hazardous waste or who have actual knowledge that such real property or the subsurface thereof was used for such purpose or purposes at any time prior thereto.(b) Any grantee of real estate or of any substrata underlying said real estate or any lessee for a term who intends to use the real estate conveyed or let or any substrata underlying the same for the purpose of storing, treating or disposing of hazardous waste shall disclose in writing at the time of such conveyance or lease or within thirty days prior thereto such fact to the grantor or lessor of such real estate or substrata. Such disclosure shall describe the proposed location upon said property of the site to be used for the storage, treatment or disposal of hazardous waste, the identity of such waste, the proposed method of storage, treatment or disposal to be used with respect to such waste and any and all other information required by rules of the director.
WV Code § 22-18-23 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-23. State Program to Be Consistent With and Equivalent to Federal Program

The program for the management of hazardous waste pursuant to this article shall be equivalent to and consistent with the federal program established pursuant to Subtitle C of the federal Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended.
WV Code § 22-18-24 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-24. Duplication of Enforcement Prohibited

No enforcement proceeding brought pursuant to this article may be duplicated by an enforcement proceeding subsequently commenced under some other article of this code with respect to the same transaction or event unless such subsequent proceeding involves the violation of a permit or permitting requirement of such other article.
WV Code § 22-18-25 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 18. Hazardous Waste Management Act|§22-18-25. Financial Responsibility Provisions

(1) Financial responsibility required by subdivision (4), subsection (a), section six of this article may be established in accordance with rules promulgated by the director by any one, or any combination, of the following: Insurance, guarantee, surety bond, letter of credit or qualification as a self-insurer. In promulgating requirements under this section, the director is authorized to specify policy or other contractual terms, conditions or defenses which are necessary or are unacceptable in establishing such evidence of financial responsibility in order to effectuate the purposes of this article.(2) In any case where the owner or operator is in bankruptcy reorganization, or arrangement pursuant to the federal bankruptcy code or where (with reasonable diligence) jurisdiction in any state court or any federal court cannot be obtained over an owner or operator likely to be solvent at the time of judgment, any claim arising from conduct for which evidence of financial responsibility must be provided under this section may be asserted directly against the guarantor providing such evidence of financial responsibility. In the case of any action pursuant to this subsection, such guarantor is entitled to invoke all rights and defenses which would have been available to the owner or operator if any action had been brought against the owner or operator by the claimant and which would have been available to the guarantor if an action had been brought against the guarantor by the owner or operator.(3) The total liability of any guarantor is limited to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator under this article. Nothing in this subsection limits any other state or federal statutory contractual or common law liability of a guarantor to its owner or operator including, but not limited to, the liability of such guarantor for bad faith either in negotiating or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any claim. Nothing in this subsection diminishes the liability of any person under section 107 or 111 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 or other applicable law.(4) For the purposes of this section, the term "guarantor" means any person other than the owner or operator who provides evidence of financial responsibility for an owner or operator under this section.
WV Code § 22-19-1 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 19. Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund|§22-19-1. Findings; Purpose

The Legislature recognizes that large quantities of hazardous waste are generated within the state, and that emergency situations involving hazardous waste can and will arise which may present a hazard to human health, safety, or the environment. The Legislature also recognizes that some hazardous waste has been stored, treated or disposed of at sites in the state in a manner insufficient to protect human health, safety or the environment. The Legislature further recognizes that the federal government has enacted the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, which provides for federal assistance to respond to hazardous substance emergencies and to remove and remedy the threat of damage to the public health or welfare or to the environment, and declares that West Virginia desires to produce revenue for matching the federal assistance provided under the federal acts. Therefore, the Legislature hereby creates a hazardous waste emergency fund to provide state funds for responding to hazardous waste emergencies, responding to releases of hazardous substances into the environment, matching federal financial assistance for restoring hazardous waste sites and other costs or expenses incurred in the administration of this article.
WV Code § 22-19-2 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 19. Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund|§22-19-2. Definitions

As used in this article, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning:(1) "Cleanup" means such actions as may be necessary to monitor, assess and evaluate the threat of release of hazardous waste or hazardous substances, the containment, collection, control, identification, treatment, dispersal, removal or disposal of hazardous waste or other such actions as may be necessary to respond to hazardous waste or hazardous substance emergencies or to prevent, minimize or mitigate damage to the public health, safety, welfare or to the environment, and includes, where necessary, replacement of existing, or provision of alternative, drinking water supplies that have been contaminated with hazardous waste as a result of an emergency;(2) "Cleanup costs" means all costs incurred by the director, or with the approval of the director, by any state agency or person participating in the cleanup of a hazardous waste or hazardous substance emergency or remedial action and also includes responding to emergencies that may contain petroleum products: Provided, That cleanup costs do not include expenditures for remediation of or responding to releases from underground storage tanks;(3) "Generator" means any person, corporation, partnership, association or other legal entity, by site location, whose act or process produces hazardous waste as identified or listed by the director in rules promulgated pursuant to section six, article eighteen of this chapter, in an amount greater than five thousand kilograms per year.All other terms have the meaning as prescribed in the rules promulgated by the director pursuant to the provisions of section six, article eighteen of this chapter.
WV Code § 22-19-3 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 19. Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund|§22-19-3. Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund; Components of Fund

(a) The special fund designated the Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund, hereinafter referred to as "the fund", shall be continued in the state Treasury.(b) All generator fee assessments, any interest or surcharge assessed and collected by the director, interest accruing on investments and deposits of the fund, and any other moneys designated shall be paid into the fund. Expenditures from the fund shall be for the purposes set forth in this article and are not authorized from collections but are to be made only in accordance with appropriation by the Legislature and in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twelve of this code and upon the fulfillment of the provisions set forth in article two, chapter five-a of this code: Provided, That for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2000, expenditures are authorized from collections rather than pursuant to an appropriation by the Legislature. Amounts collected which are found from time to time to exceed the funds needed for purposes set forth in this article may be transferred to other accounts or funds and redesignated for other purposes by appropriation of the Legislature.
WV Code § 22-19-6 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 19. Hazardous Waste Emergency Response Fund|§22-19-6. State Hazardous Waste Contingency Plan

The director shall promulgate rules in compliance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, establishing a state hazardous waste contingency plan which shall set forth procedures and standards for responding to hazardous waste emergencies, releases of hazardous substances, for conducting remedial cleanup and maintenance of hazardous waste sites and for making expenditures from the fund after the date of promulgation of the plan. The plan shall include:(a) Methods for discovering, reporting and investigating sites at which hazardous waste or hazardous substances may present significant risk of harm to the public health and safety or to the environment;(b) Methods and criteria for establishing priority responses and for determining the appropriate extent of cleanup, containment and other measures authorized by this article;(c) Appropriate roles for governmental, interstate and nongovernmental entities in effectuating the plan;(d) Methods for identifying, procuring, maintaining, and storing hazardous waste response equipment and supplies; and(e) Methods to identify the most appropriate and cost-effective emergency and remedial actions in view of the relative risk or danger presented by each case or event.
WV Code § 22-20-1 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 20. Environmental Advocate|§22-20-1. Appointment of Environmental Advocate; Powers and Duties; Salary

The director of the Division of Environmental Protection shall appoint a person to serve as the environmental advocate within the Division of Environmental Protection, and shall adopt and promulgate rules in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code governing and controlling the qualifications, powers and duties of the person to be appointed to the position of environmental advocate. The environmental advocate shall serve at the will and pleasure of the director, who shall also set the salary of the environmental advocate. All funding for the office of environmental advocate shall be from existing funds of the Division of Environmental Protection. The director shall provide an office and secretarial and support staff as needed.
WV Code § 22-21-1 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 21. Coalbed Methane Wells and Units|§22-21-1. Declaration of Public Policy; Legislative Findings

(a) The Legislature hereby declares and finds that the venting of coalbed methane from mine areas and degasification of coal seams has been and continues to be approved by the state for the purpose of ensuring the safe recovery of coal; that the value of coal is far greater than the value of coalbed methane and any development of the coalbed methane should be undertaken in such a way as to protect and preserve coal for future safe mining and maximum recovery of the coal; that subject to the above declarations and findings, commercial recovery and marketing of coalbed methane should in some cases be facilitated because the energy needs of this state and the United States indicate that the fullest practical recovery of both coal and coalbed methane should be encouraged; that the Energy Policy Act of 1992 was enacted in part to encourage coalbed methane development and the State of West Virginia should enact legislation which carries out the purposes of said act; that in order to encourage and ensure the fullest practical recovery of coal and coalbed methane in this state and to further ensure the safe recovery of both natural resources, it is in the public interest to enact this article authorizing coalbed methane well permits, regulating the design of coalbed methane wells and recovery techniques, authorizing coalbed methane well units and pooling of interests therein to provide all coalbed methane operators and coalbed methane owners with an opportunity to recover their just and equitable share of production.(b) It is hereby declared to be the public policy of this state and in the public interest to:(1) Preserve coal seams for future safe mining; facilitate the expeditious, safe evacuation of coalbed methane from the coalbeds of this state, and maintain the ability and absolute right of coal operators at all times to vent coalbed methane from mine areas;(2) Foster, encourage and promote the commercial development of this state's coalbed methane by establishing procedures for issuing permits and forming drilling units for coalbed methane wells without adversely affecting the safety of mining or the mineability of coal seams;(3) Safeguard, protect and enforce the correlative rights of coalbed methane well operators and coalbed methane owners in a pool of coalbed methane to the end that each such operator and owner may obtain his or her just and equitable share of production from coalbed methane recovered and marketed under this article;(4) Safeguard and protect the mineability of coal during the removal of coalbed methane, as permitted under this article;(5) Create a state permitting procedure and authority to provide for and facilitate coalbed methane development as encouraged by the Energy Policy Act of 1992; and(6) Seek the deletion of the State of West Virginia from the list of affected states by the secretary of the United States department of the interior as provided for in the Energy Policy Act of 1992.
WV Code § 22-21-4 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 21. Coalbed Methane Wells and Units|§22-21-4. Chief; Powers and Duties Generally

(a) The chief of the office of oil and gas shall have the duty of issuing permits and otherwise supervising the execution and enforcement of the provisions of this article, all subject to the review and approval of the director.(b) The chief of the office of oil and gas is authorized to enact rules necessary to effectuate the purposes of this article, subject to the review and approval by the director.(c) In addition to all other powers and duties conferred upon the chief, the chief shall have the power and duty to:(1) Perform all duties which are expressly imposed upon him by the provisions of this article, as well as duties assigned to him or her by the director;(2) Perform all duties as the permit issuing authority for the state in all matters pertaining to the exploration, development, production and recovery of coalbed methane in accordance with the provisions of this article;(3) Perform such acts as may be necessary or appropriate to secure to this state the benefits of federal legislation by establishing programs relating to the exploration, development, production and recovery of coalbed methane, which programs are assumable by the state;(4) Visit and inspect any coalbed methane well or well site and call for the assistance of any oil and gas inspectors or other employees of the office of oil and gas in the enforcement of the provisions of this article;(5) Collect the permit application fee for the drilling of a coalbed methane well;(6) Collect the permit application fee for a drilling unit.
WV Code § 22-21-8 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 21. Coalbed Methane Wells and Units|§22-21-8. Performance Bonds; Corporate Surety or Other Security

(a) No permit shall be issued pursuant to this article unless a bond is or has been furnished as provided in this section.(b) A separate bond may be furnished for a particular coalbed methane well in the sum of $5,000, payable to the State of West Virginia, conditioned on full compliance with all laws and rules relating to the drilling, operation and stimulation of such wells, to the plugging, abandonment and reclamation thereof, and for furnishing such reports and information as may be required by the chief.(c) When an operator makes or has made application for permits to drill, operate or stimulate more than one coalbed methane well or a combination of coalbed methane wells and wells regulated under article one, chapter twenty-two-b of this code, the operator may in lieu of furnishing a separate bond furnish a blanket bond in the sum of $5,000, payable to the State of West Virginia, and conditioned as stated in subsection (b) of this section.(d) All bonds submitted hereunder shall have a corporate bonding or surety company authorized to do business in the State of West Virginia as surety thereon, or in lieu of a corporate surety, the operator may elect to deposit with the chief cash, collateral securities or any combination thereof as provided in subsection (d), section twenty-six, article six of this chapter.(e) For purposes of bonding requirements, a coalbed methane well shall be treated as a well, as defined and regulated in article one, chapter twenty-two-b of this code, and the provisions of subsections (e), (g), (h), (i) and (j) of section twenty-six thereof shall apply.
WV Code § 22-21-10 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 21. Coalbed Methane Wells and Units|§22-21-10. Procedure for Filing Comments

All persons described in subsection (a), section nine of this article may file comments with the chief as to the location or construction of the applicant's proposed well within fifteen days after the application is filed with the chief.
WV Code § 22-21-11 (2021)
2021 West Virginia Code|Chapter 22. Environmental Resources|Article 21. Coalbed Methane Wells and Units|§22-21-11. Objections or Comments to Coalbed Methane Wells by Coal Owner or Operator; Hearings

The owner or operator of any coal seam whose interests may be adversely affected by a coalbed methane well may, within fifteen days from the receipt of notice required by section nine of this article, file objections in writing to such proposed drilling with the chief, setting out the grounds on which such objections are based.