reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-63 - Cessation of operations; permanent

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 63.
(a) Persons
				who cease surface mining activities permanently shall close or backfill or
				otherwise permanently reclaim all affected areas in accordance with this
				article and the permit approved by the director.
(b) All underground openings, equipment,
				structures, or other facilities not required for monitoring, unless approved by
				the director as suitable for the postmining land use or environmental
				monitoring, shall be removed and the affected lands reclaimed.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-64 - Postmining land use

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 64.
(a) All
				affected areas shall be restored in a timely manner to:
(1) conditions that are capable of supporting
				the uses that they were capable of supporting before any mining; or
(2) higher or better uses achievable under
				criteria and procedures of this section.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-65 - Surface mining; roads

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 65.
(a) Each
				road, as defined in
				312 IAC
				25-1-126, shall be classified as either a primary road
				or an ancillary road as follows:
(1) A
				primary road is any road that is:
(A) used for
				transporting coal or spoil;
(B)
				frequently used for access or other purposes for a period in excess of six (6)
				months; or
(C) to be retained for
				an approved postmining land use.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-66 - Surface mining; primary roads

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-10-2-4; IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 66.
Primary roads shall meet the requirements of section 65 of
				  this rule and the following:
(1) The
				construction or reconstruction of primary roads shall be certified in a report
				to the director by a qualified registered professional engineer with experience
				in the design and construction of roads. The report shall indicate that the
				primary road has been constructed or reconstructed as designed and in
				accordance with the approved plan.
(2) Each primary road embankment shall have a
				minimum static safety factor of one and three-tenths (1.3) or be designed in
				compliance with the following design standards:
(A) The:
(i) embankment foundation area shall be
				cleared of all organic material; and
(ii) entire foundation surface shall be
				scarified.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-67 - Surface mining; other transportation facilities

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 67.
Railroad loops, spurs, sidings, surface conveyor systems,
				  chutes, aerial tramways, or other transportation facilities shall be designed,
				  constructed or reconstructed, maintained, and the area restored to do the
				  following:
(1) Prevent, to the extent
				possible, using the best technology currently available, the following:
(A) Damage to fish, wildlife, and related
				environmental values.
(B)
				Additional contributions of suspended solids to stream flow or run-off outside
				the permit area. Any such contributions shall not be in excess of limitations
				of Indiana or federal law.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-68 - Support facilities and utility installations

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 68.
(a) Support
				facilities required for, or used incidentally to, the operation of the mine,
				including, but not limited to, mine buildings, coal loading facilities at or
				near the mine site, coal storage facilities, equipment storage facilities, fan
				buildings, hoist buildings, preparation plants, shed, shops, and other
				buildings shall be designed, constructed, and located to prevent or control
				erosion and siltation, water pollution, and damage to public or private
				property. Support facilities shall be designed, constructed or reconstructed,
				maintained, and used in a manner that prevents, to the extent possible using
				the best technology currently available, the following:
(1) Damage to fish, wildlife, and related
				environmental values.
(2)
				Additional contributions of suspended solids to stream flow or run-off outside
				the permit area. Any such contributions shall not be in excess of limitations
				of Indiana or federal law.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-69 - Surveyor corner markers; replacement

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34-10; IC
				  36-2-12-13
Sec. 69.
Any person who conducts surface coal mining activities shall,
				  prior to release of any portion of the applicable performance bond, ensure that
				  all surveyor corner markers disturbed by surface mining activities are replaced
				  to the same location as found prior to the surface disturbance.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-70 - Underground mining; applicability

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 70.
This section and sections 71 through 132 of this rule apply
				  to all underground mining activities conducted under IC 14-34.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-71 - Underground mining; signs and markers

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 71.
(a) All
				signs required to be posted shall be of a standard design that can be seen and
				read easily and shall be made of durable material. The signs and other markers
				shall be maintained for the duration of all operations to which they
				pertain.
(b) Signs identifying the
				mine area shall be displayed at all points of access to the permit area from
				public roads and highways. Signs shall show the name, business address, and
				telephone number of the permittee and identification number of the current
				mining and reclamation permit or other authorization to operate. Such signs
				shall not be removed until after release of all bonds.
(c) The perimeter of the permit area shall be
				clearly marked before the beginning of underground mining activities.
(d) If surface blasting is conducted incident
				to underground mining activities, the permittee shall do the following:
(1) Conspicuously display signs reading
				"Blasting Area" along the edge of any blasting area that comes within one
				hundred (100) feet of any public road right-of-way and at the point where any
				other road provides access to the blasting area.
(2) Conspicuously flag or post within the
				blasting area, the immediate vicinity of charged holes.
(3) Place at all entrances to the permit area
				from public roads or highways conspicuous signs that:
(A) state "Warning! Explosives in
				Use";
(B) clearly explain the blast
				warning and all clear signals that are in use; and
(C) explain the marking of blast areas and
				charged holes within the permit area.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-72 - Underground mining; casing and sealing exposed underground openings; general requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 72.
Each drilled hole, shaft, well, or other exposed underground
				  opening shall be cased, sealed, or managed to:
(1) prevent acid or toxic water drainage from
				entering ground or surface waters; and
(2) minimize disturbance to the prevailing
				hydrologic balance.
Each drill hole or well that is uncovered or exposed by
				  mining activities within the permit area shall be sealed in a manner to prevent
				  exposure by any mining activity. Use of a drilled hole, shaft, or monitoring
				  well as a water well must meet section 87 of this rule. This section does not
				  apply to holes drilled and used for blasting in the area affected by surface
				  operations.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-73 - Underground mining; casing and sealing exposed underground openings; temporary

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 73.
(a) Each
				mine entry that is temporarily inactive, but has a further projected useful
				service under the approved permit application, shall be protected by barricades
				or other covering devices, fenced, and posted with signs, to prevent access
				into the entry and to identify the hazardous nature of the opening. These
				devices shall be periodically inspected and maintained in good operating
				condition by the person who conducts the underground mining
				activities.
(b) Each drilled hole,
				shaft, well, and other exposed underground opening identified in the approved
				permit application for use:
(1) to return
				underground development waste, coal processing waste, or water to underground
				workings; or
(2) to be used to
				monitor ground water conditions;
shall be temporarily sealed until actual use and shall be
				  protected during use by barricades, fences, or other protective devices.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-74 - Underground mining; casing and sealing exposed underground openings; permanent

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 74.
Each drilled hole, shaft, well, drift, adit, tunnel,
				  entryway, or other opening to the surface from underground when no longer in
				  use, unless approved for transfer as a water well under section 87 of this
				  rule, shall be capped, sealed, backfilled, or otherwise properly managed in
				  accordance with sections 72 and 85 of this rule to prevent acid or other toxic
				  surface drainage from entering ground and surface water. Permanent closure
				  measures shall be designed to prevent access to the mine workings by people,
				  livestock, fish and wildlife, and machinery.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-75 - Underground mining; topsoil and subsoil

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 75.
(a) All
				topsoil shall be removed as a separate layer from the area to be disturbed and
				segregated.
(1) Where the topsoil is of
				insufficient quantity or of poor quality to sustain vegetation, the material
				approved by the director as a topsoil substitute or supplement in accordance
				with subsection (c) shall be removed separately from the area to be disturbed
				and segregated.
(2) If the topsoil
				is less than six (6) inches thick, the permittee may remove the topsoil and the
				unconsolidated materials immediately below the topsoil to a total depth of six
				(6) inches and treat the mixture as topsoil.
(3) Topsoil need not be removed:
(A) at sites disturbed only by power poles,
				signs, fence posts, electrical substations, transformers and switchboxes,
				explosives magazines, temporary building on skids, topsoil stockpiles, culvert
				installations, cable routes, cable storage areas, powerline cable suspension
				towers or "horses", pumps, pump hoses, and pipelines; and
(B) with the director's approval, for minor
				disturbances that will not permanently destroy the existing vegetation and will
				not cause erosion.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-76 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; general requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 76.
(a)
				Underground mining activities shall be planned and conducted to minimize
				changes to the prevailing hydrologic balance in both the permit area and
				adjacent areas, to prevent material damage to the hydrologic balance outside
				the permit area, in order to prevent long term adverse changes in that balance
				that could result from those activities.
(b) Changes in water quality and quantity, in
				the depth of ground water, and in the location of surface water drainage
				channels shall be minimized so that the approved postmining land use of the
				permit is not adversely affected.
(c) In no case shall federal and Indiana
				water quality statutes, regulations, rules, standards, or effluent limitations
				be violated.
(d) Operations shall
				be conducted to minimize water pollution. If necessary, treatment methods shall
				be used to control water pollution.
(e) Each person who conducts surface mining
				activities shall emphasize mining and reclamation practices that prevent or
				minimize water pollution. Changes in flow or drainage shall be used in
				preference to the use of water treatment facilities.
(f) Acceptable practices to control and
				minimize water pollution include the following:
(1) Stabilizing disturbed areas through land
				shaping.
(2) Diverting
				run-off.
(3) Achieving quickly
				germinating and growing stands of temporary vegetation.
(4) Regulating channel velocity of
				water.
(5) Lining drainage channels
				with rock or vegetation.
(6)
				Mulching.
(7) Selectively placing
				and sealing acid-forming and toxic-forming materials.
(8) Designing mines to prevent gravity
				drainage of acid waters.
(9)
				Sealing.
(10) Controlling
				subsidence.
(11) Preventing acid
				mine drainage.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-76.5 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; application of ground water quality standards at underground coal mining and reclamation operations permitted under IC 14-34 on which coal extraction, coal processing, coal processing waste disposal, or underground development waste and spoil deposition occurs after the effective date of this section, or on which disposal activity subject to IC 13-19-3-3 has occurred and the area is not fully released from the performance bond required by IC 14-34-6

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 76.5.
(a)
				Ground water is classified under 327 IAC 2-11 to determine appropriate criteria
				that shall be applied to ground water.
(b) Underground coal mining and reclamation
				operations must be planned and conducted to prevent violations of ground water
				quality standards under 327 IAC 2-11.
(c) Underground coal mining and reclamation
				operations must be planned and conducted to prevent impacts to the ground water
				in a drinking water well or a nondrinking water supply well, including an
				industrial, commercial, or agricultural supply well, that result in a
				contaminant concentration that, based on best scientific information, renders
				the well unusable for its current use. If a drinking water well or a
				nondrinking water supply well is affected by contamination, diminution, or
				interruption proximately resulting from surface mining activities,
				312
				IAC 25-4-74 and
				312
				IAC 25-6-88 govern water replacement.
(d) The ground water management zone
				described in
				327 IAC
				2-11-9 must be established as follows:
(1) At each drinking water well that is
				within three hundred (300) feet from the edge of any of the following:
(A) A coal mine processing waste disposal
				site.
(B) A location at which coal
				is crushed, washed, screened, stored, and loaded at or near the mine
				site.
(C) An underground
				development waste and spoil deposition area.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-77 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; water quality standards and effluent limitations

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 77.
(a) All
				surface drainage from the disturbed area shall be controlled through use of a
				siltation structure, a series of siltation structures, or such alternative
				techniques as provided in section 80 of this rule before leaving the permit
				area. Any discharge of water from underground workings to surface waters that
				does not meet the effluent limitations of this section shall also be controlled
				through use of a siltation structure, a series of siltation structures, or such
				alternative techniques as provided in section 80(b) of this rule before leaving
				the permit area.
(b) Siltation
				structures and other approved alternate techniques as provided in section 80 of
				this rule for surface drainage from the disturbed area shall be operated and
				maintained to achieve applicable federal and state effluent limitations.
				Siltation structures and treatment facilities for discharges from underground
				workings shall also be operated and maintained to achieve applicable federal
				and state effluent limitations.
(c)
				For the purposes of this section only, "disturbed area" shall not include those
				areas affected by surface operations in which only diversion ditches, siltation
				structures, or roads are installed in accordance with sections 70 through 76 of
				this rule, this section, and sections 78 through 132 of this rule.
(d) Siltation structures required by this
				section shall be constructed in accordance with section 81 of this rule, in
				appropriate locations before beginning any underground mining activities in the
				drainage area to be affected.
(e)
				Discharges of water from areas disturbed by underground mining activities shall
				be made in compliance with each of the following:
(1) All applicable state and federal water
				quality laws and regulations.
(2)
				Effluent limitations for coal mining promulgated by the United States
				Environmental Protection Agency as set forth in 40 CFR 434.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-78 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; diversions; general requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 78.
(a) Flow
				may be diverted around disturbed areas through temporary or permanent
				diversions if approved by the director for:
(1) mined areas abandoned before May 3,
				1978;
(2) reclaimed areas that meet
				the criteria of section 81(e) of this rule for siltation structure
				removal;
(3) undisturbed areas;
				or
(4) active underground coal
				mining operations after passing through a siltation structure and meeting the
				applicable effluent limitations.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-79 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; diversions of perennial streams, intermittent streams with a watershed greater than one square mile, miscellaneous flows; stream channel diversions; supplemental requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 79.
(a) This
				section provides requirements that are supplemental to those contained in
				section 78 of this rule for:
(1) diversions of
				perennial streams;
(2) intermittent
				streams with a watershed greater than one (1) square mile; and
(3) miscellaneous flows.
Subsection (b) governs perennial streams and intermittent
				  streams with a watershed greater than one (1) square mile. Subsection (c)
				  governs miscellaneous flows.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-80 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; sediment control measures

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 80.
(a)
				Appropriate sediment control measures shall be designed, constructed, and
				maintained using the best technology currently available to do the following:
(1) Prevent, to the extent possible,
				additional contributions of suspended solids to stream flow or to run-off
				outside the permit area.
(2) Meet
				the more stringent of applicable Indiana or federal effluent
				limitations.
(3) Minimize erosion
				to the extent possible.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-81 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; siltation structures

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 81.
(a)
				Siltation structures shall be constructed according to the following:
(1) Additional contributions of suspended
				solids sediment to stream flow or run-off outside the permit area shall be
				prevented to the extent possible using the best technology currently
				available.
(2) All surface drainage
				from the disturbed area shall be passed through a siltation structure before
				leaving the permit area except as provided in subdivision (5) or section 77 of
				this rule.
(3) Siltation structures
				for an area shall be constructed before beginning any surface mining activities
				in that area and, upon construction, shall be certified by a qualified
				registered professional engineer to be constructed as designed and as approved
				in the reclamation plan.
(4) Any
				siltation structure that impounds water shall be designed, constructed, and
				maintained in accordance with section 84 of this rule.
(5) Siltation structures shall be maintained
				until removal is authorized by the director and the disturbed area has been
				stabilized and revegetated in accordance with the reclamation plan and sections
				111 through 122 of this rule so that the following requirements are met:
(A) Removal of the structure will not result
				in violations of applicable water quality standards in the receiving
				stream.
(B) Postmining drainage is
				shown to be of the approximate quality of the drainage from the area prior to
				mining.
(C) If baseline data is
				unavailable concerning the quality of drainage before mining, it is shown to be
				of the approximate quality of drainage from similar areas of unmined land.
In no case shall the structure be removed sooner than two (2)
				  years after the last augmented seeding.
(6) When the siltation structure is removed,
				the land on which it was located shall be regraded and revegetated in
				accordance with the reclamation plan and sections 115 through 122 of this rule.
				Siltation structures approved by the director for retention as permanent
				impoundments shall meet all the requirements for permanent impoundments of
				sections 84 and 90 of this rule.
(7) Any point source discharge of water from
				underground workings to surface waters that does not meet the effluent
				limitations of section 77 of this rule shall be passed through a siltation
				structure before leaving the permit area.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-82 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; discharge structures

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 82.
Discharge from siltation structures, permanent and temporary
				  impoundments, coal processing waste dams and embankments, and diversions shall
				  be controlled by energy dissipators, riprap channels, and other devices, where
				  necessary, to do the following:
(1)
				Reduce erosion.
(2) Prevent
				deepening or enlargement of stream channels.
(3) Minimize disturbance of the hydrologic
				balance.
Discharge structures shall be designed according to standard
				  engineering design procedures.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-83 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; acid-forming and toxic-forming materials

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 83.
Drainage from acid-forming and toxic-forming underground
				  development waste and spoil, if any, into ground and surface water shall be
				  avoided by doing the following:
(1)
				Identifying, burying, and treating, where necessary, waste and spoil that, in
				the judgment of the director, may be detrimental to vegetation, or may
				adversely affect water quality, if not treated or buried.
(2) Preventing water from coming into contact
				with acid-forming and toxic-forming materials in accordance with section 112 of
				this rule.
(3) Burying or treating
				all acid-forming or toxic-forming spoil within a reasonable period of time. If
				the director determines that such spoil is detrimental to the offsite
				hydrologic balance, the operator shall bury or treat the acid-forming or
				toxic-forming spoil within thirty (30) days.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-85 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; underground mine entry and access discharges

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 85.
(a) Surface
				entries and access to underground workings, including adits and slopes, shall
				be located, designed, constructed, and utilized to prevent or control gravity
				discharge of water from the mine.
(b) Gravity discharge of water from an
				underground mine, other than a drift mine subject to subsection (c), may be
				allowed by the director if either of the following is demonstrated:
(1) The discharge:
(A) without treatment, satisfies the water
				effluent limitations of section 77 of this rule and all applicable Indiana and
				federal water quality standards; and
(B) will result in changes in the prevailing
				hydrologic balance that are minimal and approved postmining land uses will not
				be adversely affected.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-86 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; surface and ground water monitoring

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 86.
(a) This
				subsection establishes standards for maintaining the hydrologic balance of
				ground water as follows:
(1) Ground water
				levels, and the quality of ground water, shall be monitored through bond
				release in a manner approved by the director according to the requirements of
				312
				IAC 25-4-72 to determine the effects of mining
				activities on the recharge capacity of reclaimed lands and the quantity and
				quality of water in ground water systems in the permit and adjacent
				areas.
(2) When mining activities
				may affect the ground water systems that serve as aquifers which significantly
				ensure the hydrologic balance of water use on or off the permit area, ground
				water levels and ground water quality shall be periodically monitored according
				to the requirements of
				312
				IAC 25-4-72. Monitoring shall include measurements
				from a sufficient number of wells and the mineralogical and chemical analyses
				of aquifer, overburden, and spoil that are adequate to reflect changes in
				ground water quantity and quality resulting from those activities. Monitoring
				shall be adequate to plan for modification of mining activities, if necessary,
				to minimize disturbance of the prevailing hydrologic balance.
(3) The director may require additional tests
				and shall require the reporting of the results of these tests to demonstrate
				compliance with section 85 of this rule and this section.
(4) If the analysis of a ground water sample
				indicates noncompliance with a permit condition, the permittee must do the
				following:
(A) Promptly notify the
				director.
(B) Immediately take any
				action required by the reclamation plan or by a permit condition.
(5) If the director determines
				that the permit area and adjacent area do not contain significant ground water
				resources, the director shall waive or otherwise modify the monitoring
				requirements of this subsection.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-87 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; transfer of wells

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 87.
(a) An
				exploratory or monitoring well may only be transferred by the person who
				conducts underground mining activities for further use as a permanent water
				well with the prior approval of the director. That person and the surface owner
				of the lands where the well is located shall jointly submit a written request
				to the director for that approval.
(b) Upon an approved transfer of a well, the
				transferee shall:
(1) assume primary liability
				for damages to persons or property from the well;
(2) plug the well when necessary, but in no
				case later than abandonment of the well; and
(3) assume primary responsibility for
				compliance with sections 72 through 74 of this rule with respect to the
				well.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-88 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; water rights and replacement

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34;
				  30
				  CFR 817.41(j)
Sec. 88.
The permittee must promptly replace any drinking, domestic,
				  or residential water supply that is contaminated, diminished, or interrupted by
				  underground mining activities if the affected well or spring was in existence
				  before the date the director received the permit application for the activities
				  causing the loss, contamination, or interruption. The baseline hydrologic
				  information required in
				  312
				  IAC 25-4-47 and
				  312
				  IAC 25-4-85 and the geologic information concerning
				  baseline hydrologic conditions required in
				  312
				  IAC 25-4-30 and
				  312
				  IAC 25-4-71 will be used to determine the impact of
				  mining activities upon water supply. Water replacement rights are not
				  determined by this article.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-89 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; discharge of water into underground mine

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 89.
Water from the surface or from an underground mine shall not
				  be diverted or otherwise discharged into other underground mine workings unless
				  the person who conducts the underground mining activities demonstrates to the
				  director that this diversion or discharge will:
(1) abate water pollution or otherwise
				eliminate public hazards resulting from underground mining
				activities;
(2) be discharged as a
				controlled flow;
(3) meet the
				effluent limitations of section 77 of this rule for pH and total suspended
				solids, except as provided in this subdivision and the director may approve
				that the limitation on total suspended solids be exceeded for:
(A) coal processing waste;
(B) underground mine development
				waste;
(C) fly ash from a
				coal-fired facility;
(D) sludge
				from an acid mine drainage treatment facility;
(E) flue gas desulfurization sludge;
				or
(F) inert materials used for
				stabilizing underground mines.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-90 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; postmining rehabilitation of siltation structures, diversions, impoundments, and treatment facilities

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 90.
Before abandoning a permit area or seeking bond release, the
				  person who conducts the underground mining activities shall ensure that:
(1) all temporary structures are removed and
				reclaimed; and
(2) all permanent
				sedimentation ponds, diversions, impoundments, and treatment facilities:
(A) meet the requirements of this article for
				permanent structures; and
(B) have
				been maintained properly and meet the requirements of the approved reclamation
				plan for permanent structures and impoundments.
The person who conducts the underground mining activities
				  shall renovate such structures, if necessary, to meet the requirements of this
				  article and to conform to the approved reclamation plan.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-91 - Underground mining; hydrologic balance; stream buffer zones

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC 14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34;
				  30
				  CFR 817.57
Sec. 91.
(a) No land
				within one hundred (100) feet of a perennial stream or an intermittent stream
				shall be disturbed by underground mining activities unless the director
				specifically authorizes underground activities closer to or through such a
				stream. The director may authorize such activities only upon finding that:
(1) underground mining activities will not
				cause or contribute to the violation of applicable state or federal water
				quality standards and will not adversely affect the water quantity and quality
				or other environmental resources of the stream; and
(2) if there will be a temporary or permanent
				stream-channel diversion, it will comply with sections 78 through 79 of this
				rule.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-92 - Underground mining; coal recovery

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 92.
Underground mining activities shall be conducted so as to
				  maximize the utilization and conservation of the coal, while utilizing the best
				  technology currently available to maintain environmental integrity, so that
				  reaffecting the land in the future through surface coal mining operations is
				  minimized.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-93 - Underground mining; explosives; general requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 93.
(a) This
				section and sections 94 through 97 of this rule apply to blasting activities
				incident to underground mining. This section and sections 94 through 97
[of this rule]
do not apply when blasts are detonated, for
				slopes and shafts, at depths greater than fifty (50) vertical feet below the
				original ground surface.
(b) Each
				permittee must comply with Indiana and federal laws that regulate the use of
				explosives.
(c) All blasting
				operations conducted after July 1, 1987, shall be conducted under the direct
				supervision of a certified blaster.
(d) A permittee must comply with the
				following blast design requirements:
(1) An
				anticipated blast design shall be submitted if blasting operations will be
				conducted within:
(A) one thousand (1,000)
				feet of any building used as a dwelling (not owned by the permittee), public
				building, school, church, or community or institutional building; or
(B) five hundred (500) feet of an active or
				abandoned underground mine.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-94 - Underground mining; explosives; preblasting survey

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 94.
(a) At
				least thirty (30) days before the initiation of blasting, the permittee shall
				notify in writing all residents or owners of dwellings or other structures
				located within one-half (1/2) mile of the permit area how to request a
				preblasting survey.
(b) The
				applicant or permittee shall notify the public by publication, at least once a
				week for four (4) consecutive weeks in a local newspaper of general circulation
				in the county in which the blasting will occur, that they will conduct a
				preblasting survey upon the request by a resident or owner of a manmade
				dwelling or structure within one (1) mile of any portion of the permit area. A
				copy of the public notice and publisher's affidavit or other proof of
				publication shall be filed with the director not later than four (4) weeks
				after the last date of publication.
(c) On the written request to the director or
				the permittee by a resident or owner of a dwelling or structure that is located
				within one (1) mile of any portion of the permit area covered by section 93 of
				this rule, this section, and sections 96 through 97 of this rule, the permittee
				shall promptly:
(1) conduct a survey of the
				dwelling or structure; and
(2)
				submit a report of the survey to the director and to the person requesting the
				survey.
If a structure is renovated or added to subsequent to a
				  survey, upon request by the resident or owner, a survey of the additions or
				  renovations shall be performed by the permittee under this section.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-95 - Underground mining; explosives; publication of blasting schedule

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 95.
(a)
				Blasting schedule publication and distribution requirements are as follows:
(1) Each permittee shall publish a blasting
				schedule at least ten (10) days, but not more than thirty (30) days, before
				beginning a surface blasting program in which blasts that use more than five
				(5) pounds of explosive or blasting agent are detonated. The blasting schedule
				shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the
				blasting site.
(2) Copies of the
				schedule shall be distributed to local governments and public utilities and by
				mail to each residence within one-half (1/2) mile of the proposed blasting area
				described in the schedule.
(3) The
				permittee shall republish and redistribute the schedule under subdivisions (1)
				and (2) at least every twelve (12) months.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-96 - Underground mining; explosives; surface blasting operations

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 96.
(a) Surface
				blasting operations shall be conducted at times approved by the director and
				announced in the blasting schedule. The permittee shall submit the blasting
				schedule required by section 95 of this rule to the director for approval sixty
				(60) days prior to the date of publication specified in section 95(a) of this
				rule.
(b) All blasting shall be
				conducted between sunrise and sunset unless nighttime blasting is approved by
				the director upon a showing that the public will be protected from adverse
				noise and other impacts.
(1) The director may
				specify more restrictive time periods, based on public requests or other
				considerations, including the proximity to residential areas.
(2) Unscheduled blasting operations may be
				conducted only when operator or public health and safety require unscheduled
				detonation. When a permittee conducts unscheduled blasting operations, the
				permittee shall do the following:
(A) Notify
				persons with one-half (½) mile of the blasting site using audible
				warning signals.
(B) Take
				sufficient measures to ensure the public will be protected from adverse noise
				and other impacts.
(C) Document the
				reason for the unscheduled blasting including why the blast could not be held
				over to the next day, when the blast was actually conducted the warning signals
				given, in accordance with section 97 of this rule. The director may require any
				permittee to submit a report of unscheduled blasts if needed to respond to
				citizen complaints concerning blasting.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-97 - Underground mining; explosives; records of blasting operations

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 97.
A record of each blast, including seismograph records when
				  obtained, shall be retained by the permittee for at least three (3) years and
				  shall be made available for inspection by the director and the public on
				  request. The record shall contain the following data:
(1) Name of the operator conducting the
				blast.
(2) Location, date, and time
				of blast.
(3) Name, signature, and
				certification number of the certified blaster conducting the blast.
(4) Direction and distance, in feet, to the
				nearest dwelling, school, church, or community or institutional building that
				is not owned or leased by the permittee.
(5) Weather conditions that may cause
				possible adverse blasting effects, including temperature, wind direction, and
				approximate velocity.
(6) Type of
				material blasted.
(7) Sketches of
				the blast pattern, including the following:
(A) Number of holes.
(B) Burden.
(C) Spacing.
(D) Decks.
(E) Delay pattern.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-98 - Underground mining; disposal of underground development waste and excess spoil

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 98.
All excess underground development waste and spoil material
				  resulting from coal mining and reclamation activities must be placed as
				  follows:
(1) Spoil shall be
				transported and placed in a controlled manner in position for concurrent
				compaction and to:
(A) assure mass
				stability;
(B) prevent mass
				movement; and
(C) ensure a long
				term static safety factor of one and five-tenths (1.5).
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-99 - Underground mining; coal mine waste; general requirements

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 99.
(a) All
				coal mine waste disposed of in an area other than the mine workings or
				excavations shall be hauled or conveyed and placed in new or existing disposal
				areas within a permit area. The disposal area shall be designed, constructed,
				and maintained in accordance with section 98 of this rule, this section, and
				sections 100 through 104 of this rule.
(b) Coal mine waste materials from activities
				located outside a permit area, such as those activities at other mines or
				abandoned mine waste piles, may be disposed of in the permit area, only if
				approved by the director.
(c)
				Approval for the disposal of waste from subsection (a) or (b) shall be based on
				a showing by the person who conducts underground mining activities in the
				permit area, using hydrologic, geologic, geotechnical, physical, and chemical
				analyses, that disposal of such materials:
(1) minimizes adverse effects of leachate and
				surface water run-off on surface water and ground water quality and
				quantity;
(2) does not create
				public health hazards;
(3) ensures
				mass stability and prevents mass movement during and after
				construction;
(4) ensures that the
				final disposal facility is suitable for reclamation and revegetation compatible
				with the natural surroundings and the approved postmining land use by covering
				with a four (4) foot layer of the best available, nontoxic, noncombustible
				material. The director may allow less than four (4) feet of cover based upon
				physical and chemical analyses which show that the requirements of this section
				and sections 100 through 102 are met; and
(5) prevents combustion.
Indiana Administrative Code › Title 312 - NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION › Article 25 - COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS › Rule 6 - Performance Standards › Section 6-100 - Underground mining; coal mine waste; refuse piles; site inspection

Current through July 10, 2024
Authority: IC
				  14-34-2-1
Affected: IC 14-34
Sec. 100.
(a) All
				refuse piles shall be inspected, on behalf of the person conducting underground
				mining activities, by a qualified registered engineer, or a Mine Safety and
				Health Administration certified inspector or another qualified person either of
				whom shall conduct their inspection under the direction of a qualified
				registered professional engineer. The professional engineer or specialist shall
				be experienced in the construction of similar earth and waste
				structures.
(b) The inspection
				required under subsection (a) shall occur at least quarterly throughout
				construction and during critical construction periods. Examples of critical
				construction periods include the following:
(1) Foundation preparation, including the
				removal of organic material and topsoil.
(2) The placement of underdrains and
				protective filter systems.
(3) The
				installation of final surface drainage systems.
(4) The establishment of the final graded and
				revegetated facility.