Alabama Administrative Code

When rills or gullies deeper than 9 inches form in areas that have been regraded and topsoiled, the rills and gullies shall be filled, graded, or otherwise stabilized and the area reseeded or replanted according to Rules 880-X-10C-.58 - 880-X-10C-.63. The State Regulatory Authori…

(1) The permittee shall establish on regraded areas and on all other disturbed areas except water areas and surface areas of roads that are approved as part of the postmining land use, a vegetative cover that is in accordance with the approved permit and reclamation plan and that…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.59

The permittee shall plant disturbed areas during the first normal period for favorable planting conditions after replacement of the plant growth medium. The normal period for favorable planting is that planting time generally accepted locally for the type of plant materials selec…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.61

(1) Success of Revegetation shall be judged on the effectiveness of the vegetation for the approved post-mining landuse, the extent of cover compared to the cover occurring in natural vegetation of the area, and the general requirements of Section 880-X-10C-.58. (a) The permittee…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.63

(1) Each person who conducts surface mining activities shall effectively secure surface facilities in areas in which there are no current operations, but in which operations are to be resumed under an approved permit. Temporary abandonment shall not relieve a person of their obli…

(1) Persons who cease surface mining activities permanently shall close or backfill or otherwise permanently reclaim all areas, in accordance with these regulations and the permit approved by the State Regulatory Authority. (2) All underground openings, equipment, structures, or …

(1) General. All affected areas shall be restored in a timely manner --(a) To conditions that are capable of Supporting the uses which they were capable of supporting before any mining; or (b) To higher or better uses achievable under criteria and procedures of this Rule. (2) (a)…

(1) Road classification system. (a) Each road, as defined in 880-X-2A-.06, shall be classified as either a primary road or an ancillary road. (b) A primary road is any road which is -- 1. Used for transporting coal or spoil; 2. Frequently used for access or other purposes for a p…

Primary roads shall meet the requirements of Section 880-X-10C-.67 and the additional requirements of this section. (1) Certification. The construction or reconstruction of primary roads shall be certified in a report to the Alabama Surface Mining Commission by a qualified regist…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.69

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.70

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10C-.71

Railroad loops, spurs, sidings, surface conveyor systems, chutes, aerial tramways, or other transportation facilities shall be designed, constructed or reconstructed and maintained, and the area restored to -- (a) Prevent, to the extent possible using the best technology currentl…

(1) 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, prepara…

This Rule sets forth the environmental, protection performance standards for underground mining activities. Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10D-.01 Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, §§ 9-16-71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 89, 90, 91, 97.

This Rule is intended to ensure that all underground mining activities are conducted in a manner which preserves or enhances environmental and other values in accordance with the Act. Author: Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10D-.02 Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, §§ 9-16-…

(1) Specifications. Signs and markers required under this Rule shall --(a) Be posted and maintained, and removed by the person who conducts the underground mining operations; (b) Be of a uniform design throughout the operation that can be easily seen and read; (c) Be made of dura…

Each exploration hole, or other drill-hole or borehole, shaft, well, or other exposed underground opening shall be cased, lined, or otherwise managed to prevent acid or other toxic drainage from entering ground and surface waters, to minimize disturbance to the prevailing hydrolo…

(1) Each mine entry which 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 to prevent access into the entry and posted with signs to identify the hazardous…

When no longer needed for monitoring or other use approved by the State Regulatory Authority upon a finding of no adverse environmental or health and safety effects, or unless approved for transfer as a water well under Rule 880-X-10D-.23, each shaft, drift, adit, tunnel, explora…

(1) Before disturbance of areas affected by surface operations, topsoil and subsoils to be saved under Rule 880-X-10D-.08 shall be separately removed and segregated from other material. (2) After removal, topsoil shall be immediately redistributed in accordance with Rule 880-X-10…

(1) Timing. Topsoil shall be removed from areas to be affected by surface operations or major structures, after vegetative cover that would interfere with the use of the topsoil is cleared from portions of those areas that will be disturbed, but before any drilling for blasting, …

(1) Topsoil and other materials removed in accordance with Rule 880-X-10D-.07 shall be stockpiled only when it is impractical to promptly redistribute such materials on regraded areas. (2) Stockpiled materials shall be selectively placed on a stable area within the permit area, n…

(1) After final grading and before the replacement of topsoil and other materials segregated in accordance with Rule 880-X-10D-.08, regraded land shall be scarified or otherwise treated as required by the State Regulatory Authority to eliminate slippage surfaces and to promote ro…

Nutrients and soil amendments in the amounts determined by soil tests shall be applied to the redistributed surface soil layer so that it supports the postmining land use approved by the State Regulatory Authority and meets the revegetation requirements of Rules 880-X-10D-.52 - 8…

(1) General. All underground mining and reclamation activities shall be conducted to minimize disturbance of the hydrologic balance within the permit and adjacent areas, to prevent material damage to the hydrologic balance outside the permit area, and to support approved postmini…

(1) (a) All surface drainage from the disturbed area and point source discharges from underground workings shall be passed through a sedimentation pond, a series of sedimentation ponds or other treatment facility before leaving the permit area. (b) Other treatment facilities shal…

(1) General Requirements. (a) With the approval of the Regulatory Authority, any flow from mined areas abandoned before May 3, 1978, and any flow from undisturbed areas or reclaimed areas, after meeting the criteria of Section 880-X-10D-.25 for siltation structure removal, may be…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10D-.15

(1) Appropriate sediment control measures shall be designed, constructed, and maintained using the best technology currently available to: (a) Prevent, to the extent possible, additional contributions of sediment to streamflow or to runoff outside the permit area, (b) Meet the mo…

(1) Definitions. For the purposes of this Section only: (a) (RESERVED) (b) Disturbed area shall not include those areas --1. In which the only underground mining activities include diversion ditches, siltation structures, or roads that are designed, constructed and maintained in …

Discharge from sedimentation ponds, permanent and temporary impoundments, coal processing-waste dams and embankments, and diversions shall be controlled, by energy dissipaters, riprap channels, and other devices, where necessary, to reduce erosion, to prevent deepening or enlarge…

Drainage from acid-forming and toxic-forming underground development waste and spoil, if any, into ground and surface water shall be avoided by -- (a) Identifying, burying, or treating, where necessary, waste and spoil which, in the judgment of the State Regulatory Authority, may…

(1) General requirements. The requirements of this Paragraph apply to both temporary and permanent impoundments. (a) Impoundments meeting the Class B or C criteria for dams in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service Technical Release No. 60 (210-VI-TR60, Oct…

(1) Surface entries and accesses 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. (2) Gravity discharge of water from an under ground mine, other than a drift …

(1) Ground water.(a) When underground mining activities may affect groundwater systems which serve as aquifers which significantly ensure the hydrologic balance of water use either on or off permit area, ground water levels and ground water quality shall be periodically monitored…

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10D-.23

(Not Used) Notes Ala. Admin. Code r. 880-X-10D-.24

Before abandoning a permit area or seeking bond release, the operator shall ensure that all temporary structures are removed and reclaimed, and that all permanent sedimentation ponds, diversions, impoundments, and treatment facilities meet the requirements of this chapter for per…

(1) No land within 100 feet of a perennial stream or an intermittent stream shall be disturbed by underground mining activities, unless the Regulatory Authority specifically authorizes underground mining activities closer to, or through, such a stream, the Regulatory Authority ma…

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 ope…

(1) Rules 880-X-10D-.28 - 880-X-10D-.32 apply only to surface blasting activities incident to underground mining, including, but not limited to, initial rounds of slopes and shafts. (2) Each person who conducts underground mining activities shall comply with all applicable State …

(1) At least 30 days before initiation of blasting, the operator shall notify, in writing, all residents or owners of dwellings or other structures located within 1/2 mile of the permit area now to request a preblasting survey. (2) A resident or owner of a dwelling or structure w…

(1) Blasting signs. Blasting signs shall meet the specification of Rule 880-X-10D-.03. The operator shall:(a) Conspicuously place signs reading "Blasting Area" along the edge of any blasting area that comes within 100 feet of any public road right-of-way, and at the point where a…

(1) General requirements. Blasting shall be conducted to prevent injury to persons, damage to public or private property outside the permit area, adverse impacts on any underground mine, and change in the course, channel, or availability of surface or ground-water outside the per…

The Operator shall retain a record of all blasts for at least three years. Copies of these records shall be kept at the mine site and, upon request, made available to the Regulatory Authority and to the public for inspection. Such records shall contain the following data: (1) Nam…

(1) Spoil or underground development waste (hereafter referred to as "spoil") not required to achieve the approximate original contour within the area where overburden has been removed shall be transported and placed in a controlled manner in position for concurrent compaction an…