North Dakota Administrative Code

1. The operator may dispose and bury drill cuttings in a pit at the well site, such as the mud pit used to circulate drilling fluids, once the drilling operation is complete, if: a. The drill cuttings are generated from the well at the well site; b. The drill cuttings are not con…

1. Injection and production wells must maintain mechanical integrity until the wells are plugged under the approved plugging and abandonment plan. 2. Before putting a new injection well into service, its mechanical integrity must be tested. A schedule and methods for mechanical i…

All phases of well construction and testing must be done under the supervision of a water well or monitoring well contractor pursuant to chapter 33.1-18-01 and North Dakota Century Code chapter 43-35. History: Effective January 1, 2009; amended effective October 1, 2020. General …

wells. The requirements for plugging drill holes and repairing, converting, and plugging wells are as follows: 1. All drill holes must be plugged under subsection 19 of section 33.1-18-01-06 requirements, as applicable, in a manner that will not allow fluids to move either into o…

1. Improperly sealed, completed, or abandoned wells must be corrected. The operator shall submit a plan, for department approval, that sets forth actions to be taken to prevent movement of fluid between or into water-bearing strata, including underground sources of drinking water…

The department may approve proposed technical revisions under section 43-02-02.2-22 to allow the operator to construct and operate new injection wells within the permit area if: 1. The wells meet the construction requirements; and 2. The cumulative effect of drilling and operatin…

1. The operator shall submit plans and specifications to the department before constructing the following surface facilities: a. Process or recovery plants and satellite facilities; 27 b. Ponds and impoundments; c. Pipelines; d. Well houses or transfer stations; e. Fuel storage a…

1. The operator shall develop, for the department's approval, a construction quality assurance plan that addresses all aspects of constructing surface facilities. The plan must include the following: a. A description of the responsibilities and authorities of key personnel, inclu…

1. Pipeline systems must be constructed with materials that have the strength, thickness, and chemical properties that prevent failure due to pressure gradients, physical contact with the waste or fluids to which the pipes are exposed, climatic conditions, stress of installation,…

construction requirements. Radioactive element mine recovery plants and satellite facilities must be designed and constructed in accordance with United States nuclear regulatory commission requirements. History: Effective January 1, 2009; amended effective October 1, 2020. Genera…

Radioactive solids must be disposed of in accordance with article 33.1-10, United States nuclear regulatory commission source and byproduct material license requirements, and North Dakota Century Code chapters 23.1-02 and 38-23. History: Effective January 1, 2009; amended effecti…

All liquid waste streams must be: 1. Collected and retained in lined evaporation ponds or impoundments constructed in accordance with chapter 33.1-20-08.1; 2. Disposed of in a permitted class I or V underground injection control disposal well under a department of environmental q…

All nonradioactive solid waste must be disposed of offsite at a permitted solid waste facility or may be disposed of onsite if disposal occurs in a solid waste facility permitted according to the North Dakota 29 solid waste rules in article 33.1-20. In addition, the demolition an…

The permit must include maximum injection volume and pressure limits that may not be exceeded, except during well stimulation, to ensure that fractures are not created in the confining zone or zones, injected fluids do not migrate into any unauthorized zone or underground source …

The permit's monitoring plan must describe the procedures for monitoring the quantity and quality of mining solution and ground water in the production area and must include provisions for: 1. The analysis of the physical and chemical characteristics of the injected fluid, with s…

Production area monitoring wells may be located no more than three hundred feet [91.44 meters] from the production area and with spacing no greater than four hundred feet [121.92 meters] between 30 monitoring wells. Alternative monitoring well locations and spacing may be conside…

The majority of monitoring wells in nonproduction zones must be located in the down gradient direction of ground water flow in the aquifer in which the wells are completed. In addition: 1. Nonproduction zone monitoring wells must be completed in any aquifer potentially affected b…

Subsidence must be controlled to ensure that the values and uses of the aquifers and the surface resources will not be degraded. If the injection wells penetrate an aquifer in an area subject to subsidence or catastrophic collapse, an adequate number of monitoring wells must be c…

Recovery fluid must be restricted to those production zones that have been classified by the department as an exempted aquifer within the area of production. If recovery fluids migrate outside the production zone or into aquifers above or below the production zone, the operator s…

The operator shall report any suspected excursion to the department within twenty-four hours of detection and initiate actions required by section 43-02-02.2-49. The operator shall provide monitoring data or other information that indicates any contaminant may cause adverse impac…

1. If a routine sample analysis ("initial sampling") indicates a control parameter is exceeding its upper level value in a monitoring well, the operator shall complete a verifying analysis ("second sampling") of samples taken from the affected well and the monitoring wells adjace…

Throughout the time when any control parameter is present in a monitoring well, a water sample must be taken at least two times a week from the well. The samples must be analyzed for all control parameters within one week after the sample is taken. History: Effective January 1, 2…

the initial sampling event that indicated an excursion might be present, the excursion will be considered verified. 2. If the results from the first and second sampling events provide conflicting information about whether or not an excursion has occurred, then a third sampling ev…

1. An excursion is controlled if it can be demonstrated through water quality and ground water gradients or, if applicable, pressure measurements, that recovery fluid in unauthorized areas is declining. 2. If the excursion is controlled, but the control parameters have not been r…

1. If an excursion is not controlled within thirty days following its confirmation, a sample must be collected from each of the affected monitoring wells and analyzed for the following: ammonia, antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, bicarbonate, boron, cadmium, calcium, carbonate…

In determining the adequacy of the remedial action plan required in section 43-02-02.2-51 proposed by the operator and in determining the additional steps needed to prevent an excursion into unauthorized zones or underground sources of drinking water, the department shall conside…

The operator's reporting requirements are as follows: 1. A qualitative analysis and ranges in concentrations of all constituents of injected fluids at least once within the first year of authorization and thereafter whenever the mining solution is modified to the extent that the …

For all wells constructed for a mining operation, the person constructing the well shall prepare and submit well construction records as required by subsection 12 of section 33.1-18-01-06. The well construction records shall be submitted to the department and to the department of…

For any well plugged and abandoned as part of a mining operation, the person performing plugging and abandonment work shall prepare and submit well plugging records as required by subsection 19 of section 33.1-18-01-06. The plugging records shall be submitted to the department an…

The operator shall retain records of all monitoring information at the mine site, including the following: 1. Laboratory analyses, including a description of or reference for the procedures and methods used for sample collection, preservation, and quality control and the name, ad…

When the mining of a production area is completed, the operator shall notify the department and immediately proceed to reestablish ground water quality in the affected production area to levels consistent with the values in the permit's restoration table. History: Effective Janua…

After notifying the department that mining in a production area is complete and that ground water restoration has begun, the operator shall sample and complete an analysis of the baseline wells in the mine production area or as directed by the department. The samples and analysis…

Beginning six months after initiating restoration of a production area, the operator shall provide semiannual progress reports to the department until restoration is accomplished. History: Effective January 1, 2009. General Authority: NDCC 38-12-02 Law Implemented: NDCC 38-12-02

The operator shall notify the department if the results of six consecutive sample sets taken once every two months show that ground water quality in the production zone meets the restoration values on the restoration table and that the restoration values indicate stable trends. A…

1. If the restoration values established in the restoration table of the mine permit are not met after application of best available technology, the operator may submit an amendment to establish alternative restoration values. A one thousand dollar amendment application fee must …

After completing restoration of all permit area aquifers, the operator shall plug wells that will not be used for postclosure monitoring, and reclaim the facilities in accordance with plans in the permit and reclamation plan. When well plugging and surface reclamation are complet…

Prior to the start of the postclosure period, the operator shall submit to the department the estimated costs for postclosure care and maintenance as computed in accordance with established engineering principles. This information will be used to determine the amount of the postc…

1. Unless otherwise approved by the department, the reclamation of surface facilities shall include the removal of all buildings, roads, and structures, and the surface restored to its original contour. Tailings impoundments and ponds must be reclaimed and filled in. All grading,…

At mine closure, the operator shall comply with all United States nuclear regulatory commission radiation standards in preparing a radiation sampling and survey plan for mines that produced radioactive elements. A copy of that plan must be filed with the department. History: Effe…

The operator of a radioactive element mine shall comply with all United States nuclear regulatory commission radiation standards. Closed surface facilities must be considered suitable for release for unrestricted use if those standards are met. Copies of all radiological analysis…

During the postclosure period, the operator shall conduct site maintenance and other activities in accordance with the approved postclosure plan, including the following, as applicable: 1. Conduct quarterly inspections of the entire mine site to monitor the following: a. Conditio…

During the postclosure period, the operator shall continue surface and ground water quality monitoring in accordance with the approved postclosure plan or water quality monitoring plan. The results of all water quality monitoring and laboratory analyses must be included in the an…

1. Ground water contamination detected during the postclosure period must be confirmed by additional sampling conducted by the operator as required by the department and must be evaluated to determine whether remedial action is required. The remedial action required by the operat…

The commission will give notice of public hearing to determine if the postclosure period shall end. The postclosure period ends when the restored aquifer's water quality consistently meets the restoration values on the permit restoration table and care and maintenance for the per…

The department will provide on its website quarterly updates on the operational status, compliance status, technical revisions submitted or approved, and other pertinent information regarding an active in situ leach mine permit. History: Effective January 1, 2009. General Authori…

All reclamation required by the approved reclamation plan must be completed prior to final bond release. History: Effective January 1, 2009. General Authority: NDCC 38-12-02 Law Implemented: NDCC 38-12-02

The director has the authority to require additional reports, data, or information relative to mining. History: Effective January 1, 2009. General Authority: NDCC 38-12-02 Law Implemented: NDCC 38-12-02