North Dakota Administrative Code

1. All blasting must be conducted between sunrise and sunset, unless nighttime blasting is approved by the commission upon a showing by the operator that the public will be protected from adverse noise and other impacts. The commission may specify more restrictive time periods fo…

The commission may require an operator to conduct seismic monitoring of any or all blasts and may specify the location at which the measurements are taken and the degree of detail necessary in the measurement. History: Effective August 1, 1980; amended effective June 1, 1983; May…

A log of each blast, including any seismograph reports, must be retained at the minesite under subsection 13 of North Dakota Century Code section 38-14.1-24. The log must contain: 1. Name of the operator. 2. Location, date, and time of blast. 3. Name, signature, and certificate n…

In addition to satisfying subsection 19 of North Dakota Century Code section 38-14.1-24, the operator shall: 1. Place excess spoil from the initial pit and excess spoil not needed to meet the grading requirements of section 69-05.2-21-02 in approved designated disposal areas with…

Repealed effective June 1, 1983.

wastes. 1. All coal processing waste and waste materials from coal utilization processes and coal conversion facilities to be permanently disposed of within a permit area and that are required to be permitted under the solid waste management rules of the North Dakota department o…

processing wastes. The commission may approve the temporary disposal of coal processing wastes in areas other than excavated pits if the operator demonstrates that: 1 1. All surface drainage from the area above the disposal site will be diverted as required by the commission. 2. …

1. All noncoal waste materials disposed of within a permit area and that are required to be permitted under solid waste management rules of the department of environmental quality must be disposed of according to those rules and this chapter. Before disposal operations begin, the…

impounding coal processing waste - General requirements. Dams and embankments constructed of or impounding coal processing waste as a temporary disposal method must comply with this chapter and permanent disposal of the waste must comply with section 69-05.2-19-02. Waste may not …

impounding coal processing waste - Site preparation. Before coal processing waste is placed at a dam or embankment site: 1. All vegetative material must be cleared from the site, and suitable plant growth material removed and stockpiled according to this article; and 2. Surface d…

impounding coal processing waste - Design and construction. 1. The design of each dam and embankment constructed of coal processing waste or intended to impound the waste must comply with subsections 9 through 21 of section 69-05.2-16-09, modified as follows: a. The design freebo…

1. Area surface mining with thin overburden. Rough backfilling and grading must occur according to the time schedule approved by the commission on the basis of the materials submitted under subsection 3 of section 69-05.2-09-11. 2. Area surface mining. Rough backfilling and gradi…

1. All disturbed areas must be backfilled and graded according to subsection 3 of North Dakota Century Code section 38-14.1-24 so that they support the approved postmining land use, except that the commission may approve a different contour or topography if: a. The different cont…

toxic-forming materials. All exposed coal seams and toxic-forming and combustible materials exposed, used, or produced during mining must be adequately covered with nontoxic and noncombustible materials, or treated, to control the impact on surface and ground water in accordance …

The provisions of this section apply only to mining activities where the final thickness of all available spoil and waste materials over the permit area is less than 0.8 of the initial thickness of the overburden and the coal prior to coal removal. The final thickness is the prod…

The commission may require the operator to use current research findings and the best technology currently available to minimize subsurface piping in the spoil and slippage at the suitable plant growth material spoil interface. History: Effective August 1, 1980; amended effective…

1. The permittee shall submit a postmining contour map to the commission for approval before spreading suitable plant growth materials. Along with the contour map, the permittee shall specify the thickness of topsoil and subsoil to be respread over the graded area. 2. The commiss…

When rills and gullies form in areas that have been regraded, the rills and gullies must be filled, graded, or otherwise stabilized as required by the commission prior to respreading suitable plant growth material or when necessary to minimize erosion of the regraded spoil. Histo…

The permittee shall establish a diverse, effective, and permanent vegetative cover of the same seasonal variety native to the area for all disturbed areas, except water areas, surface areas of roads, and other facilities that are approved as a part of the postmining land use, or …

1. All revegetation must be carried out in accordance with the approved reclamation plan. 2. When the approved postmining land use is tame pastureland, the permittee shall seed or plant species of introduced grasses and legumes adapted to the local site conditions and capable of …

Repealed effective May 1, 1990.

Seeding and planting of disturbed areas must be conducted during the first normal period for favorable planting conditions after suitable plant growth materials have been spread. The normal period for favorable planting is that planting time generally accepted locally for the typ…

practices. 1. Mulching or other soil stabilizing practices must be used on all regraded and topsoiled areas to control erosion, promote germination of seeds, or increase the moisture-retention capacity of the soil. The commission may, on a case-by-case basis, suspend the requirem…

Livestock grazing will not be allowed on revegetated land until the seedlings are established and can sustain managed grazing. No grazing will be permitted unless the grazing and stocking capacity is agreed to by the commission, the permittee, and the landowner or the governmenta…

1. Success of revegetation must be measured by using statistically valid techniques approved by the commission. Comparison of ground cover and productivity may be made on the basis of reference areas, through the use of standards in technical guides published by the United States…

woodlands. Repealed effective May 1, 1990. 6

use. 1. The postmining land use must be compared to those uses the land previously supported under proper management unless the land has been previously mined and not reclaimed. 2. The postmining land use for land that has been previously mined and not reclaimed must be judged on…

Land use is categorized as follows: 1. Cropland. 2. Tame pastureland. 3. Native grassland. 4. Woodland. 5. Fish and wildlife habitat. 6. Developed water resources. 7. Recreation. 8. Residential. 9. Industrial and commercial. 10. Shelterbelts. History: Effective August 1, 1980; am…

alternative postmining land uses. An alternative postmining land use may be approved by the commission, after consulting the landowner or the land management agency having jurisdiction over state or federal lands, if the following criteria are met: 1. There is reasonable likeliho…

1. Each road, as defined in subsection 93 of section 69-05.2-01-02, must be classified as either a primary or ancillary road. a. 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 period in excess o…

Repealed effective May 1, 1992.

Primary roads must meet the requirements of section 69-05.2-24-01 and the additional requirements of this section. 1. The construction or reconstruction of primary roads must be certified in a report to the commission by a qualified registered professional engineer with experienc…

Repealed effective May 1, 1992.

Repealed effective May 1, 1992.

Repealed effective May 1, 1992.

1. Unless the commission approves retention of a road as suitable for the approved postmining land use, immediately after the road is no longer needed for mining and reclamation operations: a. The road must be closed to vehicular traffic; b. The natural-drainage patterns must be …

Railroad loops, spurs, sidings, surface conveyor systems, chutes, aerial tramways, or other transportation facilities must be designed, constructed or reconstructed, and maintained, and the area restored, to: 1. Control and minimize diminution or degradation of water quality and …

1. Support facilities required for, or used incidentally to, the operation of the mine, including mine buildings, coal loading facilities at or near the minesite, coal storage facilities, equipment storage facilities, fan buildings, hoist buildings, preparation plants, sheds, sho…

functions. 1. The essential hydrologic functions of alluvial valley floors not within an affected area must be preserved by maintaining the geologic, hydrologic, and biologic characteristics that support those functions. 2. Surface coal mining and reclamation operations must be c…

uses. Surface coal mining and reclamation operations must be conducted to ensure that the agricultural utility and the level of productivity of alluvial valley floors in affected areas are reestablished. History: Effective August 1, 1980; amended effective May 1, 1990. General Au…

1. An environmental monitoring system must be installed, maintained, and operated by the permittee on all alluvial valley floors during operations and continued until all bonds are released. The monitoring system must provide sufficient information to allow the commission to dete…

water supplies. 1. If environmental monitoring shows that a mining operation is responsible for interrupting, discontinuing, or precluding farming on alluvial valley floors, or is causing material damage to water that supplies alluvial valley floors, the operation must cease unti…

Repealed effective June 1, 1983.

For all prime farmlands to be mined, in addition to satisfying subdivisions a and b of subsection 6 of North Dakota Century Code section 38-14.1-24 and the applicable requirements of section 69-05.2-15-02, the operator or permittee shall ensure that the minimum thickness of soil …

If stockpiling is approved in lieu of immediate redistribution, the prime farmland topsoil and subsoil must be stockpiled separately from each other. Stockpiles must be protected according to section 69-05.2-15-03. History: Effective August 1, 1980; amended effective June 1, 1983…

In addition to meeting the applicable requirements of section 69-05.2-15-04, the operator shall replace soil materials on areas to be reconstructed as prime farmland according to the following: 1. The suitable plant growth materials must be respread over areas that have a landsca…

productivity. The following revegetation requirements must be met for areas being returned to prime farmland after mining: 1. Following soil replacement, the operator shall establish a vegetative cover capable of stabilizing the soil surface. All revegetation must comply with the…

This chapter does not apply to: 1. Lands on which surface coal mining and reclamation operations are conducted under any permit issued before July 1, 1979. 2. Lands on which surface coal mining and reclamation operations are conducted under any renewal or revision of a permit iss…

Any agency or authorized organization wishing to establish experimental or evaluation plots of any kind on mined land prior to the release of bond shall obtain the written approval of the commission and the operator. Landowner approval need be obtained only if the anticipated lif…

1. In order to encourage advances in surface mining and reclamation practices, or to allow postmining land use for industrial, commercial, residential, or public use (including recreational facilities), on an experimental basis where the postmining land use proposed requires an e…