Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 11 - Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality › Part 8 - Geology Regulations › Chapter 2 - Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality Regulations Governing Surface Coal Mining › Subchapter 2.2 - Areas Unsuitable for Mining › Rule 11-8-2.2-15 - State Process for Designating Areas Unsuitable for Surface Coal Mining Operations › Section 11-8-2.2-15-1503 - Procedures: Initial Processing, Record keeping, and Notification Requirements

Current through June 25, 2024
(a)
(1) Within 30 days of receipt of a petition,
					 the Department shall notify the petitioner by certified mail whether or not the
					 petition is complete under § 1505(b) or (c).
(2) The State Geologist shall determine
					 whether any identified coal resources exist in the area covered by the
					 petition, without requiring any showing from the petitioner. If the State
					 Geologist finds there are not any identified coal resources in that area, the
					 State Geologist shall recommend to the Commission that the Petition to
					 Designate Lands unsuitable be denied without prejudice, subject to the
					 discovery of information indicating that coal resources do exist in the area
					 covered by the petition. If the State Geologist determines that identified coal
					 resources do exist in the area covered by the petition, he or she will consider
					 all available information, including, without limitation, the information
					 required by this Rule to be submitted in support of the petition, and will make
					 a recommendation to the Commission for action at the conclusion of his or her
					 review.
(3) The Commission may deny
					 petitions for designations or terminations of designations which are
					 incomplete, frivolous, or if the petitioner does not meet the requirements of
					 § 1505(a). A frivolous petition is one in which the allegations of harm
					 lack serious merit. Once the requirements of § 1505 are met, no party
					 shall bear any burden of proof, but each accepted petition shall be considered
					 and acted upon by the Commission pursuant to the procedures of this
					 Rule.
(4) When considering a
					 petition for an area which was previously and unsuccessfully proposed for
					 designation, the Commission shall determine if the new petition presents new
					 allegations of fact. If the petition does not contain new allegations of fact,
					 the Commission shall deny the petition, with a statement of its findings and a
					 reference to the record of the previous designation proceedings where the facts
					 were considered.
(5) If the
					 Commission determines that the petition is incomplete or frivolous, it shall
					 deny the petition, with a written statement of the reasons for the
					 determination and the categories of information needed to make the petition
					 complete.
(6) The Commission shall
					 notify the person who submits a petition of any application for a permit
					 received which proposes to include any area covered by the petition, unless the
					 Commission has denied the petition prior to the receipt of the
					 application.
(7) The Commission may
					 determine, in deference to Permit Board procedures stated in the act and these
					 regulations, not to process any petition received, or a part of a petition,
					 that pertains to lands for which a complete permit application has been filed
					 and the first newspaper notice has been published. Based upon such a
					 determination, the Permit Board may issue a decision on a complete and accurate
					 permit application, and the Commission shall inform the petitioner why it has
					 determined not to consider the part of the petition pertaining to the proposed
					 permit area.