2023 Tennessee Code › Title 59 - MINES AND MINING (§§ 59-1-101 — 59-13-144) › Chapter 8 - STRIP AND OPEN PIT MINES (§§ 59-8-101 — 59-8-421) › Part 1 - PRIMACY AND RECLAMATION ACT OF TENNESSEE (§§ 59-8-101 — 59-8-133) › Section 59-8-106 - Permits for engaging in surface coal mining operations

(a)
(1)
No person shall engage in surface coal mining operations without having first obtained a permit from the commissioner. All permits issued under this part must be issued for a term not to exceed five (5) years; however, if the applicant demonstrates that a specified longer term is reasonably needed to allow the applicant to obtain necessary financing for equipment and the opening of the operation, and if the application is full and complete for the specified longer term, the commissioner may issue a permit for the longer term.
(2)
A successor in interest to a permittee who submits a complete application for a new permit within thirty (30) days of succeeding to the interest, and who is able to obtain the bond coverage of the original permittee may, with the written approval of the commissioner, continue surface coal mining and reclamation operations according to the approved mining and reclamation plan of the original permittee until the successor's application for a new permit and plan is granted or denied; provided, that operations under the original permit must not exceed the termination date of the original permit.
(b)
The issuance of permits shall be subject to payment of any required fee, posting the performance bond required by this part, and submission to the department of an application, in a manner satisfactory to the commissioner, containing any information that is necessary to assure compliance with this part as prescribed in the rules promulgated by the commissioner, including but not limited to, the following:
(1)
The names and addresses of:
(A)
The permit applicant;
(B)
Every legal owner of record of the property, both surface and mineral, to be mined;
(C)
The holders of record of any leasehold interest in the property;
(D)
Any purchaser of record of the property under a real estate contract;
(E)
The operator, if the operator is a person different from the applicant; and
(F)
If any person identified in subdivisions (b)(1)(A)-(E) is a business entity other than a single proprietor, the names and addresses of the principals, officers, and resident agent of the business entity;
(2)
The names and addresses of the owners of record of all surface and subsurface areas adjacent to any part of the permit area;
(3)
A statement of any current or previous surface coal mining permits in the United States held by the applicant and the permit identification and each pending application;
(4)
If the applicant is a partnership, corporation, association, or other business entity, the following where applicable:
(A)
The names and addresses of every officer, partner, director, or person performing a function similar to a director, of the applicant;
(B)
The name and address of any person owning, of record ten percent (10%) or more of any class of voting stock of the applicant; and
(C)
A list of all names under which the applicant, partner, or principal shareholder previously operated a surface mining operation within the United States within the five-year period immediately preceding the date of submission of the application;
(5)
A statement of whether the applicant, any subsidiary, affiliate, or persons controlled by or under common control with the applicant, has ever held a federal or state mining permit which in the five-year period immediately prior to the date of submission of the application has been suspended or revoked or has had a mining bond or similar security deposited in lieu of bond forfeited and, if so, a brief explanation of the facts involved;
(6)
A copy of the applicant's advertisement to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the proposed site at least once a week for four (4) successive weeks, and which includes the ownership, a description of the exact location and boundaries of the proposed site sufficient so that the proposed operation is readily locatable by local residents, and the location of where the application is available for public inspection as provided in §
59-8-112(a)
;
(7)
A description of the type and method of coal mining operation that exists or is proposed, the engineering techniques proposed or used, and the equipment used or proposed to be used;
(8)
The anticipated or actual starting and termination dates of each phase of the mining operation and number of acres of land to be affected;
(9)
The area of land within the permit area upon which the applicant has the legal right to enter and commence surface mining operations identified on an accurate map or plan, to an appropriate scale, clearly showing the land to be affected as of the date of the application and a statement of those documents upon which the applicant bases the applicant's legal right to enter and commence surface mining operations on the area affected, and whether that right is the subject of pending court litigation; provided, however, that nothing in this part vests in the commissioner the jurisdiction to adjudicate property title disputes;
(10)
The name of the watershed and location of the surface stream or tributary into which surface and pit drainage will be discharged;
(11)
A determination of the probable hydrologic consequences of the mining and reclamation operations, both on and off the mine site, with respect to the hydrologic regime, quantity and quality of water in surface and groundwater systems including the dissolved and suspended solids under seasonal flow conditions and the collection of sufficient data for the mine site and surrounding areas so that an assessment can be made by the commissioner of the probable cumulative impacts of all anticipated mining in the area upon the hydrology of the area and particularly upon water availability; provided, however, no determination shall be required until the time hydrologic information on the general area prior to mining is made available from an appropriate federal or state agency. No permit shall be issued until the information required by this subdivision (b)(11) is available and is incorporated into the application;
(12)
When requested by the commissioner, the climatological factors that are peculiar to the locality of the land to be affected, including the average seasonal precipitation, the average direction and velocity of prevailing winds, and the seasonal temperature ranges;
(13)
Accurate maps to an appropriate scale clearly showing:
(A)
The land to be affected as of the date of application; and
(B)
All types of information set forth on topographical maps of the United States Geological Survey of a scale of 1:24,000 or 1:25,000 or larger, including all manmade features and significant known archeological sites existing on the date of application. Such a map or plan must, among other things specified by the commissioner, show all boundaries of the land to be affected, the boundary lines and names of present owners of record of all surface areas abutting the permit area, and the location of all buildings within one thousand feet (1,000') of the permit area;
(14)
Cross-section maps or plans of the land to be affected including the actual area to be mined, prepared by or under the direction of and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer, or professional geologist with assistance from experts in related fields such as land surveying and landscape architecture, showing pertinent elevations and locations of test borings or core samplings and depicting the following information:
(A)
The nature and depth of the various strata of overburden;
(B)
The location of subsurface water, if encountered, and its quality;
(C)
The nature and thickness of any coal or rider seam above the coal seam to be mined;
(D)
The nature of the stratum immediately beneath the coal seam to be mined;
(E)
All mineral crop lines and the strike and dip of the coal to be mined, within the area of land to be affected;
(F)
Existing or previous surface mining limits;
(G)
The location and extent of known workings of any underground mines, including mine openings to the surface;
(H)
The location of aquifers;
(I)
The estimated elevation of the water table;
(J)
The location of spoil, waste, or refuse areas and top-soil preservation areas;
(K)
The location of all impoundments for waste or erosion control;
(L)
Any settling or water treatment facility;
(M)
Any constructed or natural drainways and the location of any discharges to any surface body of water on the area of land to be affected or adjacent thereto; and
(N)
Profiles at appropriate cross-sections of the anticipated final surface configuration that will be achieved pursuant to the operator's proposed reclamation plan;
(15)
(A)
A statement of the result of test borings or core samplings from the permit area, including:
(i)
Logs of the drill holes;
(ii)
The thickness of the coal seam found and, an analysis of the chemical properties of such coal;
(iii)
The sulfur content of any coal seam;
(iv)
Chemical analysis of potentially acid or toxic forming sections of the overburden; and
(v)
Chemical analysis of the stratum lying immediately underneath the coal to be mined;
(B)
The provisions of this subdivision (b)(15) may be waived by the commissioner with respect to the specific application by a written determination that such requirements are unnecessary; and
(16)
For those lands in the permit application that a reconnaissance inspection suggests may be prime farmlands, a soil survey shall be made or obtained according to standards established by the United States secretary of agriculture in order to confirm the exact location of such prime farmlands, if any.
(c)
Information pertaining to coal seams, test borings, core samplings, or soil samples required by this section shall be made available to any person with an interest that is or may be adversely affected; however, information that pertains only to the analysis of the chemical and physical properties of the coal, except that information regarding any mineral or elemental content, which is potentially toxic in the environment, shall be kept confidential and not made a matter of public record under title 10, chapter 7.
(d)
Each applicant for a surface coal mining and reclamation operation permit shall submit a reclamation plan that meets the requirements of this part, to the commissioner as part of the permit application.
(e)
Each applicant for a surface coal mining and reclamation permit shall submit, as part of the permit application, a blasting plan that outlines the procedures and standards by which the applicant will meet the requirements of §
59-8-110(b)(15)
.
(f)
Each applicant for a surface coal mining permit shall submit, as part of the permit application, a certificate issued by an insurance company authorized to do business in this state, certifying that the applicant has a public liability insurance policy in force for the surface coal mining and reclamation operation for which the permit is sought, or evidence that the applicant is self-insured. The public liability insurance policy shall provide for personal injury and property damage protection in an amount adequate to compensate any persons damaged as a result of surface coal mining and reclamation operations, including the use of explosives, and entitled to compensation under the applicable provisions of law. The policy shall be maintained in full force and effect during the terms of the permit or any renewal period, including the length of all reclamation operations.
(g)
In any case when the private mineral estate has been severed from the private surface estate, the applicant for a permit shall submit one (1) of the following to the commissioner:
(1)
The written consent of the surface owner to the extraction of coal by surface mining methods;
(2)
A copy of a conveyance that expressly grants or reserves the right to extract coal by surface mining methods; or
(3)
If the conveyance does not expressly grant the right to extract coal by surface mining methods, documentation that the applicant has the legal authority to extract the coal by surface mining methods. The surface-subsurface legal relationship shall be determined in accordance with the laws of this state. Nothing in this part authorizes the commissioner to adjudicate property rights disputes.
(h)
The applicant for a permit shall submit a schedule listing any and all notices of violations of this part, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (
30 U.S.C. § 1201
et seq.), or any law, rule, or regulation of the United States, or of any department or agency in the United States pertaining to air or water environmental protection incurred by the applicant in connection with any surface coal mining operation during the three-year period immediately prior to the date of application. The schedule must also indicate the final resolution of any such notice of violation.
(i)
(1)
If the commissioner finds that the probable total annual production at all locations of an operator will not exceed three hundred thousand (300,000) tons, the cost of the following activities, which shall be performed by a qualified public or private laboratory or such other public or private qualified entity designated by the commissioner, shall be assumed by the commissioner, subject to the availability of federal or other special funds specified for that purpose, upon the written request of the operator in connection with a permit application:
(A)
The determination of probable hydrologic consequences required by subdivision (b)(11), including the engineering analyses and designs necessary for the determination;
(B)
The development of cross-section maps and plans required by subdivision (b)(14);
(C)
The geologic drilling and statement of results of test borings and core samplings required by subdivision (b)(15);
(D)
The collection of archaeological information required by subdivision (b)(13) and any other archaeological and historical information required by the commissioner, and the preparation of plans necessitated thereby;
(E)
Pre-blast surveys required by §
59-8-110(b)(15)
; and
(F)
The collection of site-specific resource information and production of protection and enhancement plans for fish and wildlife habitats and other environmental values as required by the commissioner under this part.
(2)
An operator that has received assistance pursuant to subdivision (i)(1) shall reimburse the department for the cost of the services rendered if the commissioner finds that the operator's actual and attributed annual production of coal for all locations exceeds three hundred thousand (300,000) tons during the twelve (12) months immediately following the date on which the operator is issued the surface coal mining and reclamation permit.
(j)
The commissioner shall promulgate rules implementing exemption from this part for the following activities:
(1)
Extraction of coal as an incidental part of federal, state, or local government financed highway or other construction; and
(2)
Extraction of coal by a landowner for the landowner's own noncommercial use from land owned or leased by the landowner.
Repealed and reenacted by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 548, s 3, eff. 5/26/2021.
Added by 2018 Tenn. Acts, ch. 839, s 1, eff. eight (8) months immediately following the receipt of notification from the secretary of the interior that this state has been approved to exercise primacy over the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations within its territorial boundaries.