Oklahoma Administrative Code › Title 460 - Department of Mines › Chapter 10 - Non-Coal Rules and Regulations › Subchapter 3 - Regulatory Program › Section 460:10-3-5 - Definitions

Current through Vol. 41, No. 20, July 1, 2024
The following words and terms when used, in this Subchapter,
				  shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicates
				  otherwise:
"Acid water"
means water with a ph of less than
				  7.0 and in which total acidity exceeds total alkalinity.
"Adjacent area"
means land located outside the
				  affected area or permit area, depending on the context in which adjacent area
				  is used, where air, surface or ground water, fish, wildlife, vegetation, or
				  other resources protected by this Title may be adversely impacted by surface
				  mining and reclamation operations.
"Affected area"
means with respect to surface
				  mining activities, any land or water upon which those activities are conducted
				  or located. With respect to Underground mining activities, affected area
				  means:
(A) any water or surface land upon or in which those
				  activities are conducted or located; and
(B) land or water which is located above underground mine
				  workings.
"Agricultural use"
means that use of any tract
				  of land for the production of animal or vegetable life. The uses include, but
				  are not limited to, the pasturing, grazing, and watering of livestock, and
				  cropping, cultivation, and harvesting of plants.
"Applicant"
means any person seeking a permit
				  from the Department of Mines to conduct Non-Coal surface mining and reclamation
				  operations pursuant to the regulatory program.
"Aquifer"
means a zone, stratum or group of
				  strata that can store and transmit water in sufficient quantities for a
				  specific use.
"Compaction"
means increasing the density of a
				  material by reducing the voids between the particles and is generally
				  accomplished by controlled placement and mechanical effort such as from
				  repeated application of wheel, track or roller loads from heavy
				  equipment.
"Cropland"
means land used for the production of
				  adapted crops for harvest, alone or in a rotation with grasses and legumes, and
				  includes row crops, small grain crops, hay crops, nursery crops, orchard crops
				  and other similar specialty crops.
"Disturbed area"
means an area where vegetation,
				  topsoil, or overburden is removed or upon which topsoil, spoil, underground
				  development waste, or non-coal waste is placed by Non-Coal surface mining
				  operations. Those areas are classified as disturbed until reclamation is
				  complete and the performance bond or other assurance of performance required by
				  these regulations is released.
"Diversion"
means a channel, embankment, or
				  other man made structure constructed to divert water from one area to
				  another.
"Embankment"
means an artificial deposit of
				  material that is raised above the natural surface of the land and used to
				  contain, divert, or store water, support roads or railways, or for other
				  similar purposes.
"Ephemeral stream"
means a stream which flows
				  only in direct response to precipitation in the immediate watershed or in
				  response to the melting of a cover of snow and ice, and which has a channel
				  bottom that is always above the local water table.
"Existing structure"
means a structure or
				  facility used in connection with or to facilitate non-coal surface mining and
				  reclamation operations for which construction begins prior to the approval of
				  the Oklahoma program.
"Fugitive dust"
means that particulate matter
				  not emitted from a duct or stack which becomes airborne due to the forces of
				  wind or non-coal surface mining and reclamation operations or both. During
				  non-coal surface mining and reclamation operations it may include emissions
				  from haul roads; wind erosion of exposed surfaces, storage piles, and spoil
				  piles; reclamation operations, and other activities in which material is either
				  removed, stored, transported or redistributed.
"Ground water"
means subsurface water that fills
				  available openings in rock or soil materials to the extent that they are
				  considered water saturated.
"Highwall"
means the face of exposed overburden
				  and mineral in an open cut of a surface mining activity or for entry to
				  underground mining activities.
"Hydrologic balance"
means the relationship
				  between the quality and quantity of water inflow to, water outflow from and
				  water storage in a hydrologic unit such as a drainage basin, aquifer, soil
				  zone, lake, or reservoir. It encompasses the dynamic relationships among
				  precipitation, runoff, evaporation and changes in ground and surface water
				  storage.
"Hydrologic regime"
means the entire state of
				  water movement in a given area. It is a function of the climate and includes
				  the phenomena by which water first occurs as atmospheric water vapor, passes
				  into a liquid or solid form, falls as precipitation, moves along or into the
				  ground surface, and returns to the atmosphere as vapor by means of evaporation
				  and transpiration.
"Imminent danger to the health and safety of the
				  public"
means the existence of any condition or practice, or any
				  violation of a permit or other requirements of the Act in a surface mining and
				  reclamation operation, which could reasonably be expected to cause substantial
				  physical harm to persons outside the permit area before the condition,
				  practice, or violation can be abated. A reasonable expectation of death or
				  serious injury before abatement exists if a rational person, subjected to the
				  same condition or practice giving rise to the peril, would avoid exposure to
				  the danger during the time necessary for abatement.
"Impoundment"
means a closed basin, naturally
				  formed or artificially built, which is dammed or excavated for the retention of
				  water, sediment, or waste.
"Intermittent stream"
means:
(A) A stream or reach of a stream that drains a watershed of
				  at least one square mile, or
(B) A stream or reach of a stream that is below the local
				  water table for at least some part of the year, and obtains its flow from both
				  surface runoff and ground water discharge.
"Mulch"
means vegetation residues or other
				  suitable materials that aid in soil stabilization and soil moisture
				  conservation, thus providing micro-climatic conditions suitable for germination
				  and growth.
"Noxious plants"
means species that have been
				  included on official State lists of noxious plants for Oklahoma.
"Operator"
means any person, partnership, firm,
				  or corporation engaged in non-coal minerals mining who removes or intends to
				  remove more than 500 tons of non-coal minerals from the earth within 12
				  consecutive calendar months in any one location.
"Outslope"
means the face of the spoil or
				  embankment sloping downward from the highest elevation to the toe.
"Overburden"
means material of any nature,
				  consolidated to unconsolidated, that overlies a Non-Coal mineral deposit,
				  excluding topsoil.
"Perennial stream"
means a stream or part of a
				  stream that flows continuously during all of the calendar year as result of
				  ground-water discharge or surface runoff. The term does not include
				  intermittent stream or ephemeral stream.
"Performance bond"
means a surety bond,
				  collateral bond or self-bond or a combination thereof, by which a permittee
				  assures faithful performance of all the requirements of 45 O.S. (1981), Section
				  721 et seq., Chapter 10, the State program and the requirements of the permit
				  and reclamation plan.
"Permanent diversion"
means a diversion
				  remaining after non-coal surface mining and reclamation operations are
				  completed which has been approved for retention by the Department of Mines and
				  other appropriate State and Federal agencies.
"Permit"
means a permit to conduct non-coal
				  mining and reclamation operations issued by the State Department of
				  Mines.
"Permit areas"
means the area of land and water
				  within the boundaries of the permit which are designated on the permit
				  application maps, as approved by the Department of Mines. This area shall
				  include, at a minimum, all areas which are or will be affected by the Non-Coal
				  surface mining and reclamation operations during the term of the permit.
"Permittee"
means an operator holding or
				  required by Chapter 10 or this Subchapter to hold a permit to conduct non-coal
				  mining and reclamation operations issued by the State Department of
				  Mines.
"Reclamation"
means those actions taken to
				  restore mined land as required by this Chapter to postmining land use approved
				  by the Department.
"Slope"
means average inclination of a surface,
				  measured from the horizontal, generally expressed as the ratio of a unit of
				  vertical distance to a given number of units of horizontal distance (E.G.,
				  Iv:5h). It may also be expressed as a percent or in degrees.
"Spoil"
means overburden that has been removed
				  during non-coal surface mining operations.
"Stabilize"
means to control movement of soil,
				  spoil piles, or areas of disturbed earth by modifying the geometry of the mass,
				  or by otherwise modifying physical or chemical properties, such as by providing
				  a protective surface coating.
"Steep slope"
means any slope of more than 20
				  degrees or such lesser slope as may be designated by the Department after
				  consideration of soil, climate and other characteristics of a region or
				  State.
"Temporary diversion"
means a diversion of a
				  stream or overland flow which is used during non-coal mineral exploration of
				  non-coal surface mining and reclamation operations and not approved by the
				  Department to remain after reclamation as part of the approved postmining land
				  use.
"Topsoil"
means the "A" soil horizon layer of
				  the three major soil horizons.
"Toxic-forming materials"
means earth materials
				  or wastes which, if acted upon by air, water, weathering, or microbiological
				  processes, are likely to produce chemical or physical conditions in soils or
				  water that are detrimental to biota or uses of water.
"Toxic mine drainage"
means water that is
				  discharged from active or abandoned mines or other areas affected by non-coal
				  exploration or non-coal surface mining and reclamation operations, which
				  contains a substance that through chemical action or physical effects if likely
				  to kill, injure or impair biota commonly present in the area that might be
				  exposed to it.
"Underground mining activities"
means a
				  combination of-
(A) Surface operations incident to underground extraction of
				  non-coal minerals such as construction, use, maintenance and reclamation of
				  roads, above ground repair areas, storage areas, processing areas, shipping
				  areas, areas upon which are sited support facilities including hoist and
				  ventilation ducts, areas utilized for the disposal and storage of waste, and
				  areas on which materials incident to underground mining operations are
				  placed;
(B) Underground operations such as underground construction,
				  operation, and reclamation of shafts, adits, underground support facilities, in
				  situ processing, and underground mining, hauling, storage and blasting.