Okla. Admin. Code § 460:20-3-5
As used in this Subchapter, the following terms have these specified meanings, except where otherwise indicated:
"Acid drainage" means water with a pH of less than 6.0 and in which total acidity exceeds total alkalinity, discharged from an active, inactive or abandoned surface coal mine and reclamation operation or from an area affected by surface coal mining and reclamation operations.
"Acid-forming materials" means earth materials that contain sulfide minerals or other materials which, if exposed to air, water, or weathering processes, form acids that may create acid drainage.
"Adjacent area" means the area outside the permit area where a resource or resources, determined according to the context in which adjacent area is used, are or reasonably could be expected to be adversely impacted by proposed mining operations, including probable impacts from underground workings.
"Administratively complete application" means an application for permit approval or approval for coal exploration where required, which the Department determines to contain information addressing each application requirement of the regulatory program and to contain all information necessary to initiate processing and public review.
"Affected area" means any land or water surface which is used to facilitate, or is physically altered by, surface coal mining and reclamation operations. The affected area includes the disturbed area; any area upon which surface coal mining and reclamation operations are conducted; any adjacent lands the use of which is incidental to surface coal mining and reclamation operations; all areas covered by new or existing roads used to gain access to, or for hauling coal to or from, surface coal mining and reclamation operations, except as provided in this definition; any area covered by surface excavations, workings, impoundments, dams, ventilation shafts, entryways, refuse banks, dumps, stockpiles, overburden piles, spoil banks, calm banks, tailings, holes or depressions, repair areas, storage areas, shipping areas; any areas upon which are sited structures, facilities, or other property material on the surface resulting from, or incident to, surface coal mining and reclamation operations; and the area located above underground workings. The affected area shall include every road used for purposes of access to, or for hauling coal to or from, surface coal mining and reclamation operations, unless the road:
(A) was designated as a public road pursuant to the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is located;
(B) is maintained with public funds, and constructed, in a manner similar to other public roads of the same classification within the jurisdiction; and
(C) there is substantial (more than incidental) public use.
"Agricultural use" means the 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 the cropping, cultivation, and harvesting of plants.
"Alluvial valley floors" means the unconsolidated stream-laid deposits holding streams with water availability sufficient for subirrigation or flood irrigation agricultural activities but does not include upland areas which are generally overlain by a thin veneer of colluvial deposits composed chiefly of debris from sheet erosion, deposits formed by unconcentrated runoff or slope wash, together with talus, or other mass-movement accumulations, and windblown deposits.
"Applicant" means any person seeking a permit, permit revision, renewal, and transfer, assignment, or sale of permit rights from the Department to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations or, where required, seeking approval for coal exploration.
"Application" means the documents and other information filed with the Department under this Chapter for the issuance of permits; revisions; renewals; and transfer, assignment, or sale of permit rights for surface coal mining and reclamation operations or, where required, for coal exploration.
"Applicant/Violator System (AVS)" means an automated information system of applicant, permittee, operator, violation and related data OSM maintains to assist in implementing the Act.
"Approximate original contour" means that surface configuration achieved by backfilling and grading of the mined areas so that the reclaimed area, including any terracing or access roads, closely resembles the general surface configuration of the land prior to mining and blends into and complements the drainage pattern of the surrounding terrain, with all highwalls, spoil piles and coal refuse piles eliminated. Permanent water impoundments may be permitted where the Department has determined that they comply with Sections 460:20-43-14, 460:20-43-15, and 460:20-43-51 or 460:20-45-14, 460:20-45-15, and 460:20-45-51.
"Aquifer" means a zone, stratum, or group of strata that can store and transmit water in sufficient quantities for a specific use.
"Auger" mining means a method of mining coal at a cliff or highwall by drilling holes into an exposed coal seam from the highwall and transporting the coal along an auger bit to the surface.
"Best technology currently available" means equipment, devices, systems, methods, or techniques which will:
(A) prevent, to the extent possible, additional contributions of suspended solids to stream flow or runoff outside the permit area, but in no event result in contributions of suspended solids in excess of requirements set by applicable State or Federal laws; and
(B) minimize, to the extent possible, disturbances and adverse impacts on fish, wildlife and related environmental values, and achieve enhancement of those resources where practicable. The term includes equipment, devices, systems, methods, or techniques which are currently available anywhere as determined by the Director, even if they are not in routine use. The term includes, but is not limited to, construction practices, siting requirements, vegetative selection and planting requirements, animal stocking requirements, scheduling of activities and design of sedimentation ponds in accordance with Subchapters 43 and 45 of this Chapter. Within the constraints of the permanent program, the Department shall have the discretion to determine the best technology currently available on a case-by-case basis, as authorized by the Act and this Chapter.
"Coal exploration" means the field gathering of
(A) surface or subsurface geologic, physical, or chemical data by mapping, trenching, drilling, geophysical, or other techniques necessary to determine the quality and quantity of overburden and coal of an area; or
(B) the gathering of environmental data to establish the conditions of an area before beginning surface coal mining and reclamation operations under the requirements of this Chapter.
"Coal mine waste" means coal processing waste and underground developmentwaste.
"Coal preparation" means chemical or physical processing and the cleaning,
concentrating, or other processing or preparation of coal.
"Coal preparation plant" means a facility where coal is subjected to chemical or physical processing or cleaning, concentrating, or other processing or preparation. It includes facilities associated with coal preparation activities, including, but not limited to the following: loading facilities; storage and stockpile facilities; sheds; shops, and other buildings; water-treatment and water-storage facilities; settling basins and impoundments; and coal processing and other waste disposal areas.
"Coal processing waste" means earth materials which are separated and wasted from the product coal during cleaning, concentrating, or other processing or preparation of coal.
"Combustible material" means organic material that is capable of burning, either by fire or through oxidation, accompanied by the evolution of heat and a significant temperature rise.
"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.
"Complete and accurate application" means an application for permit approval or approval for coal exploration where required, which the Department determines to contain all information required under the Act and this Chapter.
"Control or controller" means when used in Subchapter 17, Subchapter 21, and Subchapter 23 of this Chapter, refers to:
(A) A permittee of a surface coal mining operation;
(B) An operator of a surface coal mining operation; or
(C) Any person who has the ability to determine the manner in which a surface coal mining operation is conducted.
"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.
"Cumulative impact area" means the area, including the permit area, within which impacts resulting from the proposed operation may interact with the impacts of all anticipated mining on surface- and ground-water systems. Anticipated mining shall include, at a minimum, the entire projected lives through bond release of:
(A) the proposed operation,
(B) all existing operations,
(C) any operation for which a permit application has been submitted to the Department and
(D) all operations required to meet diligent development requirements for leased Federal coal for which there is actual mine development information available.
"Disturbed area" means an area where vegetation, topsoil, or overburden is removed or upon which topsoil, spoil, coal processing waste, underground development waste, or noncoal waste is placed by surface coal mining operations. Those areas are classified as disturbed until reclamation is complete and the performance bond or other assurance of performance required by this Chapter is released.
"Diversion" means a channel, embankment, or other manmade structure constructed to divert water from one area to another.
"Downslope" means the land surface between the projected outcrop of the lowest coalbed being mined along each highwall and a valley floor.
"Drinking, domestic or residential water supply" means water received from a well or spring and any appurtenant delivery system that provides water for direct human consumption or household use. Wells and springs that serve only agricultural, commercial, or industrial enterprises are not included except to the extent the water is used for direct human consumption, human sanitation, or domestic use.
"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.
"Excess spoil" means spoil material disposed of in a location other than the mined-out area; provided that spoil material used to achieve the approximate original contour or to blend the mined-out area with the surrounding terrain in accordance with Sections 460:20-43-38(d) and 460:20-45-38(d) of this Chapter in non-steep slope areas shall not be considered excess spoil.
"Existing structure" means a structure or facility used in connection with or to facilitate surface coal mining and reclamation operations for which construction begins prior to the approval of a State program.
"Federal program" means a program established by the Secretary pursuant to Section 504 of the Federal Act to regulate coal exploration and surface coal mining and reclamation operations on non-Federal and non-Indian lands within a State in accordance with P.L. 95-87 and this Chapter.
(A) Complete Federal program means a program established by the Secretary pursuant to Section 504 of the Federal Act before June 3, 1980 or upon the complete withdrawal of the Oklahoma program after June 3, 1980 by which the Director of OSM regulates all coal exploration and surface coal mining and reclamation operations.
(B) Partial Federal program means a program established by the Secretary pursuant to Sections 102, 201 and 504 of the Federal Act upon the partial withdrawal of the Oklahoma program by which the Director of OSM may regulate appropriate portions of coal exploration and surface coal mining and reclamation operations.
"Fugitive dust" means that particulate matter not emitted from a duct or stack which becomes airborne due to the forces of wind or surface coal mining and reclamation operations or both. During surface coal 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.
"Gravity discharge" means, with respect to underground mining activities, mine drainage that flows freely in an open channel down gradient. Mine drainage that occurs as a result of flooding a mine to the level of the discharge is not gravity discharge.
"Ground cover" means the area of ground covered by the combined aerial parts of vegetation and the litter that is produced naturally on site, expressed as a percentage of the total area of measurement.
"Ground water" means subsurface water that fills available openings in rock or soil materials to the extent that they are considered water saturated.
"Half-shrub" means a perennial plant with a woody base whose annually produced stems die back each year.
"Higher or better uses" means postmining land uses that have a higher economic value or nonmonetary benefit to the landowner or the community than the premining land uses.
"Highwall" means the face of exposed over burden and coal in an open cut of a surface coal mining activity or for entry to underground mining activities.
"Historically used for cropland" means:
(A) Lands that have been used for cropland for any 5 years or more out of the 10 years immediately preceding the acquisition, including purchase, lease, or option, of the land for the purpose of conducting or allowing through resale, lease or option the conduct of surface coal mining and reclamation operations;
(B) Lands that the Department determines, on the basis of additional cropland history of the surrounding lands and the lands under consideration, that the permit area is clearly cropland but falls outside the specific 5-years-in-10 criterion, in which case the regulations for prime farmland may be applied to include more years of cropland history only to increase the prime farmland acreage to be preserved; or
(C) Lands that would likely have been used as cropland for any 5 out of the last 10 years, immediately preceding such acquisition but for the same fact of ownership or control of the land unrelated to the productivity of the land.
"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 coal 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.
"Impounding structure" means a dam, embankment or other structure used to impound water, slurry, or other liquid or semi-liquid material.
"Impoundments" means all water, sediment, slurry, or other liquid or semi-liquid holding structures and depressions, either naturally formed or artificially built.
"In situ processes" means activities conducted on the surface or underground in connection with in-place distillation, retorting, leaching, or other chemical or physical processing of coal. The term includes, but is not limited to, in situ gasification, in situ leaching, slurry mining, solution mining, borehole mining, and fluid recovery mining.
"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.
"Irreparable damage to the environment" means any damage to the environment, in violation of the Act, the regulatory program, or this Chapter, that cannot be corrected by actions of the applicant.
"Knowing or knowingly" means that a person who authorized, ordered, or carried out an act or omission knew or had reason to know that the act or omission would result in either a violation or a failure to abate or correct a violation.
"Land use" means specific uses or management-related activities, rather than the vegetation or cover of the land. Land uses may be identified in combination when joint or seasonal uses occur and may include land used for support facilities that are an integral part of the use. Changes of land use from one of the following categories to another shall be considered as a change to an alternative land use which is subject to approval by the Department.
(A) Cropland. Land used for the production of adapted crops for harvest, alone or in rotation with grasses and legumes, that include row crops, small grain crops, hay crops, nursery crops, orchard crops, and other similar crops.
(B) Pastureland or land occasionally cut for hay. Land used primarily for the long-term production of adapted, domesticated forage plants to be grazed by livestock or occasionally cut and cured for livestock feed.
(C) Grazingland. Land used for grasslands and forest lands where the indigenous vegetation is actively managed for grazing, browsing, or occasional hay production.
(D) Forestry. Land used or managed for the long-term production of wood, wood fiber, or wood-derived products.
(E) Residential. Land used for single-and multiple-family housing, mobile home parks, or other residential lodgings.
(F) Industrial/Commercial. Land used for:
(i) Extraction or transformation of materials for fabrication of products, wholesaling of products, or long-term storage of products. This includes all heavy and light manufacturing facilities.
(ii) Retail or trade of goods or services, including hotels, motels, stores, restaurants, and other commercial establishments.
(G) Recreation. Land used for public or private leisure-time activities, including developed recreation facilities such as parks, camps, and amusement areas, as well as areas for less intensive uses such as hiking, canoeing, and other undeveloped recreational uses.
(H) Fish and wildlife habitat. Land dedicated wholly or partially to the production, protection, or management of species of fish or wildlife.
(I) Developed water resources. Land used for storing water for beneficial uses, such as stockponds, irrigation, fire protection, flood control, and water supply.
(J) Undeveloped land or no current use or land management. Land that is undeveloped or, if previously developed, land that has been allowed to return naturally to an undeveloped state or has been allowed to return to forest through natural succession.
"Lands eligible for remining" means those lands that would otherwise be eligible for expenditures under 45 O.S., Section 740.0, namely lands:
(A) Which were mined for coal or affected by such mining or other coal mining processes; and
(B) Which were abandoned or left in inadequate reclamation status prior to August 3, 1977; and
(C) For which there is no continuing reclamation responsibility under state of other federal laws; or
(D) Which were mined for coal or affected by such mining or other coal mining processes; and
(E) Which were left or abandoned in an inadequate reclamation status between August 4, 1977, and January 19, 1981; and
(F) For which any funds for reclamation or abatement available pursuant to a bond or other form of financial guarantee or from any other sources are not sufficient to provide for adequate reclamation or abatement; or
(G) Which were mined for coal or affected by such mining or other coal mining processes; and
(H) Which were which were left or abandoned in an inadequate reclamation status between August 4, 1977, and November 5, 1990; and
(I) For which the surety of the mining operator became insolvent during such period and that, as of November 5, 1990, funds immediately available from proceedings relating to such insolvency or from any financial guarantee or other source are not sufficient to provide for adequate reclamation or abatement.
"Material damage" means any functional impairment of surface lands, features, structures or facilities. The material damage threshold includes:
(A) Any physical change that has a significant adverse impact on the affected land's capability to support any current or reasonably foreseeable uses or causes significant loss in production or income; or
(B) Any significant change in the condition, appearance or utility of any structure or facility from its pre-subsidence condition; or
(C) Any situation in which an imminent danger to a person would be created.
"Moist bulk density" means the weight of soil (oven dry) per unit volume. Volume is measured when the soil is at field moisture capacity (1/3 bar moisture tension). Weight is determined after drying the soil at 105° C.
"MSHA" means the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
"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.
"Non-Commercial building" means any building other than an occupied residential dwelling, that, at the time the subsidence occurs, is used on a regular or temporary basis as a public building or community or institutional building as those terms are defined in section 460:20-7-3 of this Chapter. Any building used only for commercial agricultural, industrial, retail or other commercial enterprises is excluded.
"Noxious plants" meansspecies that have been included on official State lists of noxious plants for the State in which the surface coal mining and reclamation operation occurs. "Occupied residential dwelling and structures" means for purposes of 460:20-31-13 and 460:20-45-47, any building or other structure that, at the time the subsidence occurs, issued either temporarily, occasionally, seasonally, or permanently for human habitation. This term also includes:
(A) Any building, structure or facility installed on, above or below, or a combination thereof, the land surface if that building, structure or facility is adjunct to or used in connection with an occupied residential dwelling.
(B) Examples of such structures include, but are not limited to:
(i) garages;
(ii) storage sheds or barns;
(iii) greenhouses and other related buildings;
(iv) utilities and cables;
(v) fences and other enclosures;
(vi) retaining walls;
(vii) paved or improved patios;
(viii) walks and driveways;
(ix) septic sewage treatment facilities; and
(x) lot drainage and lawn and garden irrigation systems.
(C) Any structure used only for commercial agricultural, industrial, retail or other commercial purposes is excluded.
"Operator" means any person engaged in coal mining who removes or intends to remove more than 250 tons of coal from the earth or from coal refuse piles by mining within 12 consecutive calendar months in any one location.
"Other treatment facilities" means any chemical treatments, such as flocculation or neutralization, or mechanical structures, such as clarifier or precipitators, that have a point source discharge and are utilized:
(A) To prevent additional contributions of dissolved or suspended solids to streamflow or runoff outside the permit area, or
(B) To comply with all applicable State and Federal water quality laws and regulations.
"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 or unconsolidated, that overlies a coal deposit, excluding topsoil.
"Own, owner, or ownership" means as used in Subchapter 17, Subchapter 21, and Subchapter 23 of this chapter (except when used in the context of ownership of real property), being a sole proprietor or owning of record in excess of 50 percent of the voting securities or other instruments of ownership of an entity.
"Perennial stream" means a stream or part of a stream that flows continuously during all of the calendar year as a 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 the Act, this Chapter, the State program, and the requirements of the permit and reclamation plan.
"Permanent diversion" means a diversion remaining after surface coal mining and reclamation operations are completed which has been approved for retention by the Department and other appropriate State and Federal agencies.
"Permanent impoundment" means an impoundment which is approved by the Department for retention as part of the postmining land use.
"Permit" means a permit to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations issued by the Department pursuant to a State program or by the Secretary pursuant to a Federal program. For purposes of the Federal lands program, permit means a permit issued by the Department under a cooperative agreement or by OSM where there is no cooperative agreement.
"Permit area" means the area of land, indicated on the approved map submitted by the operator with his or her application, required to be covered by the operator's performance bond which shall include the area of land upon which the operator proposes to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations under the permit, including all disturbed areas.
"Permittee" means a person holding or required by the Act or this Chapter to hold a permit to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations issued by the State Department of Mines pursuant to the Oklahoma program, or where a cooperative agreement pursuant to 45 O.S. Section 784 .
"Precipitation event" means a quantity of water resulting from drizzle, rain, snow, sleet, or hail in a limited period of time. It may be expressed in terms of recurrence interval. As used in this Chapter, precipitation event also includes that quantity of water emanating from snow cover as snowmelt in a limited period of time.
"Previously mined area" means land affected by surface coal mining operations prior to August 3, 1977, that has not been reclaimed to the standards of OAC 460, Chapter 20.
"Prime farmland" means those lands which are defined by the Secretary of Agriculture in 7 CFR 657 (Federal Register Vol. 4, No. 21) and which have historically been used for cropland as that phrase is defined above.
"Principal shareholder" means any person who is the record or beneficial owner of 10 percent or more of any class of voting stock
"Property to be mined" means both the surface estates and mineral estates within the permit area and the area covered by underground workings.
"Rangeland" means land on which the natural potential (climax) plant cover is principally native grasses, forbs, and shrubs valuable for forage. This land includes natural grasslands and savannahs, such as prairies, and juniper savannahs, such as brushlands. Except for brush control, management is primarily achieved by regulating the intensity of grazing and season of use.
"Reasonably available spoil" means spoil and suitable coal mine waste material generated by the remining operation or other spoil or suitable coal mine waste material located in the permit area that is accessible and available for use and that when rehandled will not cause a hazard to public safety or significant damage to the environment.
"Recharge capacity" means the ability of the soils and underlying materials to allow precipitation and runoff to infiltrate and reach the zone of saturation.
"Reclamation" means those actions taken to restore mined land as required by this Chapter to a postmining land use approved by the Department.
"Recurrence interval" means the interval of time in which a precipitation event is expected to occur once, on the average. For example, the 10-year 6-hour precipitation event would be that 6-hour precipitation event expected to occur on the average once in 10 years. "Reference area" means a land unit maintained under appropriate management for the purpose of measuring vegetation ground cover, productivity, and plant species diversity that are produced naturally or by crop production methods approved by the Department. Reference areas must be representative of geology, soil, slope, and vegetation in the permit area.
"Refuse pile" means a surface deposit of coal mine waste that does not impound water, slurry, or other liquid or semi-liquid material.
"Remining" means conducting surface coal mining and reclamation operations which affect previously mined areas.
"Renewable resource lands" means aquifers and areas for the recharge of aquifers and other underground waters, areas for agricultural or silvicultural production of food and fiber, and grazinglands.
"Replacement of water supply" means, with respect to protected water supplies contaminated, diminished, or interrupted by coal mining operations, provision of water supply on both a temporary and permanent basis equivalent to premining quantity and quality. Replacement includes provision of an equivalent water delivery system and payment of operation and maintenance costs in excess of customary and reasonable delivery costs for premining water supplies.
(A) Upon agreement by the permittee and the water supply owner, the obligation to pay such operation and maintenance costs may be satisfied by a one-time payment in an amount which covers the present worth of the increased annual operation and maintenance costs for a period agreed to by the permittee and the water supply owner.
(B) If the affected water supply was not needed for the land use in existence at the time of the loss, contamination, or diminution, and if the supply is not needed to achieve the postmining land use, replacement requirements may be satisfied by demonstrating that a suitable alternative water source is available and could feasiblely be developed. If the latter approach is selected, written concurrence must be obtained from the water supply owner.
"Road" means a surface right-of-way for purposes of travel by land vehicles used in surface coal mining and reclamation operations or coal exploration. A road consists of the entire area within the right-of-way, including the roadbed, shoulders, parking and side areas, approaches, structures, ditches, and surface. The term includes access and haulroads constructed, used, reconstructed, improved, or maintained for use in surface coal mining and reclamation operations or coal exploration, including use by coal hauling vehicles to and from transfer, processing, or storage areas. The term does not include ramps and routes of travel within the immediate mining area or within spoil or coal mine waste disposal areas.
"Safety factor" means the ratio of the available shear strength to the developed shear stress, or the ratio of the sum of the resisting forces to the sum of the loading or driving forces, as determined by accepted engineering practices.
"Sedimentation pond" means an impoundment used to remove solids from water in order to meet water quality standards or effluent limitations before the water leaves the permit area.
"Significant, imminent environmental harm to land, air or water resources" means:
(A) An environmental harm is an adverse impact on land, air, or water resources which resources include, but are not limited to, plant and animal life.
(B) An environmental harm is imminent, if a condition, practice, or violation exists which:
(i) Is causing such harm; or,
(ii) May reasonably be expected to cause such harm at any time before the end of the reasonable abatement time that would be set under Section 777 of the Act.
(C) An environmental harm is significant if that harm is appreciable and not immediately reparable.
"Siltation structure" means a sedimentation pond, a series of sedimentation ponds, or other treatment facility.
"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., 1v:5h). It may also be expressed as a percent or in degrees.
"Soil Horizons" means contrasting layers of soil parallel or nearly parallel to the land surface. Soil horizons are differentiated on the basis of field characteristics and laboratory data. The four master soil horizons are:
(A) A horizon. The uppermost mineral layer, often called the surface soil. It is the part of the soil in which organic matter is most abundant, and leaching of soluble or suspended particles is typically the greatest;
(B) E horizon. The layer commonly near the surface below an A horizon and above a B horizon. An E horizon is most commonly differentiated from an overlying A horizon by lighter color and generally has measurably less organic matter than the A horizon. An E horizon is most commonly differentiated from an underlying B horizon in the same sequum by color of higher value or lower chroma, by coarser texture, or by a combination of theses properties.
(C) B horizon. The layer that typically is immediately beneath the E horizon and often called the subsoil. This middle layer commonly contains more clay, iron, or aluminum than the A, E, or C horizons; and
(D) C horizon. The deepest layer of soil profile. It consists of loose material or weathered rock that is relatively unaffected by biologic activity.
"Soil survey" means a field and other investigation, resulting in a map showing the geographic distribution of different kinds of soils and an accompanying report that describes, classifies, and interprets such soils for use. Soil surveys must meet the standards of the National Cooperative Soil Survey as incorporated by reference in Section 460:20-33-1(c)(1) of this Chapter.
"Spoil" means overburden that has been removed during surface coal 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.
"State program" means a program established by a State and approved by the Secretary pursuant to Section 503 of the Federal Act to regulate surface coal mining and reclamation operations on non-Indian and non-Federal lands within that State, according to the requirements of the Act and in this Chapter. If a cooperative agreement has been entered into, a State program may apply to Federal lands, in accordance with the terms of the cooperative agreement.
"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.
"Substantially disturb" means, for the purpose of coal exploration, to significantly impact land or water resources by blasting; by removal of vegetation, topsoil, or overburden; by construction of roads or other access routes; by placement of excavated earth or waste material on the natural land surface or by other such activities; or to remove more than 250 tons of coal.
"Successor in interest" means any person who succeeds to rights granted under a permit, by transfer, assignment, or sale of those rights.
"Surface mining activities" means those surface coal mining and reclamation operations incident to the extraction of coal from the earth by removing the materials over a coal seam, before recovering the coal, by auger coal mining, or by recovery of coal from a deposit that is not in its original geologic location.
"Suspended solids" or nonfilterable residue, expressed as milligrams per liter, means organic or inorganic materials carried or held in suspension in water which are retained by a standard glass fiber filter in the procedure outlined by the Environmental Protection Agency's regulations for waste water and analyses ( 40 CFR 136).
"Temporary diversion" means a diversion of a stream or overland flow which is used during coal exploration or surface coal mining and reclamation operations and not approved by the Department to remain after reclamation as part of the approved postmining land use.
"Temporary impoundment" means an impoundment used during surface coal mining and reclamation operations, but not approved by the Department to remain as part of the approved postmining land use.
"Topsoil" means the A and E soil horizon layers of the four master 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 coal exploration or surface coal mining and reclamation operations, which contains a substance that through chemical action or physical effects is likely to kill, injure, or impair biota commonly present in the area that might be exposed to it.
"Transfer, assignment, or sale of permit rights" means a change of a permittee.
"Unanticipated event or condition" means, as used in 460:20-15-6, an event or condition related to prior mining activity which arises from a surface coal mining and reclamation operation on lands eligible for remining and which was not contemplated by the applicable permit.
"Underground development waste" means waste-rock mixtures of coal, shale, claystone, siltstone, sandstone, limestone, or related materials that are excavated, moved, and disposed of from underground workings in connection with underground mining activities.
"Underground mining activities" means a combination of:
(A) Surface operations incident to underground extraction of coal or in situ processing, 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 ventilating ducts, areas utilized for the disposal and storage of waste, and areas on which materials incident to underground mining operations are placed; and
(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.
"Undeveloped rangeland" means, for purposes of alluvial valley floors, lands where the use is not specifically controlled and managed.
"Upland areas" means, with respect to alluvial valley floors, those geomorphic features located outside the floodplain and terrace complex, such as isolated higher terraces, alluvial fans, pediment surfaces, landslide deposits, and surfaces covered with residuum, mud flows or debris flows, as well as highland areas underlain by bedrock and covered by residual weathered material or debris deposited by sheetwash, rillwash, or windblown material.
"Valley fill" means a fill structure consisting of any material, other than organic material, that is placed in a valley where side slopes of the existing valley, measured at the steepest point, are greater than 20 degrees, or where the average slope of the profile of the valley from the toe of the fill to the top of the fill is greater than 10 degrees.
"Violation" when used in the context of the permit application information or permit eligibility requirements of Sections 45 O.S. 745.8 and 45 O.S. 745.9 of the Act and related regulations means:
(A) A failure to comply with an applicable provision of a Federal or State law or regulation pertaining to air or water environmental protection, as evidenced by a written notification from a governmental entity to the responsible person; or
(B) A noncompliance for which OSM has provided one or more of the following types of notice or a State regulatory authority has provided equivalent notice under corresponding provisions of a State regulatory program:
(i) A notice of violation under Section 460:20-59-4 of this chapter.
(ii) A cessation order under Section 460:20-59-3 of this chapter.
(iii) A final order, bill, or demand letter pertaining to a delinquent civil penalty assessed under Subchapter 61 or Subchapter 63 of this chapter.
(iv) A bill or demand letter pertaining to delinquent reclamation fees owed under Subchapter 15 of this chapter.
(v) A notice of bond forfeiture under Section 460:20-37-16 of this chapter when:
(I) One or more violations upon which the forfeiture was based have not been abated or corrected;
(II) The amount forfeited and collected is insufficient for full reclamation under Section 460:20-37-16(d)(1) of this chapter, the regulatory authority orders reimbursement for additional reclamation costs, and the person has not complied with the reimbursement order; or
(III) The site is covered by an alternative bonding system approved under Section 460:20-37(e)(4) of this chapter, that system requires reimbursement of any reclamation costs incurred by the system above those covered by any site-specific bond, and the person has not complied with the reimbursement requirement and paid any associated penalties.
"Violation, failure or refusal," for purposes of Subchapters 61 and 63 of this chapter, means:
(A) A failure to comply with a condition of a permit that the Department Of Mines has issued; or
(B) A failure or refusal to comply with any order issued under section 776 of the Act, or any order incorporated in a final decision issued by the Department under the Act, except an order incorporated in a decision issued under Section 769 of the Act.
"Violation notice", means any written notification from a government entity of a violation of law, whether by letter, memorandum; legal or administrative pleading, or other written communication.
"Water table" means the upper surface of a zone of saturation, where the body of ground water is not confined by an overlying impermeable zone.
"Willful or willfully" means that a person who authorized, ordered or carried out an act or omission that resulted in either a violation or the failure to abate or correct a violation acted:
(A) Intentionally, voluntarily, or consciously; and
(B) With intentional disregard or plain indifference to legal requirements.
"Willful violation" means an act or omission which violates the Act, this chapter, the applicable program, or any permit condition committed by a person who intends the result which actually occurs.
Okla. Admin. Code § 460:20-3-5