Section NR 131.104 - Environmental baseline data collection prior to preapplication notification(1) A person who intends to submit a preapplication notification under s. 293.31, Stats., may, prior to obtaining, collecting, or generating environmental baseline data intended to be used to support a prospecting permit application, submit to the department a description of the methodology that the person intends to use in obtaining, collecting, or generating the data. The description shall include all of the following: (a) The sampling equipment and instrumentation.(b) The sampling locations.(c) The sample collection protocols.(d) The sampling schedules.(e) The analytical methods and reporting procedures.(2) Information submitted under sub. (1), shall be submitted in a format prescribed by the department, including a complete electronic version and duplicate reproducible paper copies of the information in a quantity specified by the department.(3) Any request under sub. (1) for department review of proposed environmental data collection methodology shall be accompanied by a fee of $1,500. The department may waive the fee if the requested review is of limited scope or is substantively duplicative of previous requests.(4)(a) The department shall review the proposed methodology and shall either inform the person that the proposed methodology is accepted by the department or provide the person with the methodology that the department requires the person to use.(b) The review conducted by the department under this subsection is limited specifically to the proposed methodology for data collection and analysis. Department approval of the methodology is not an endorsement or approval of the intended data collection program, including adequacy of the scope of the data collection program and appropriateness of sampling locations and analytical parameters.(c) In approving the proposed methodology under this subsection, the department may require the person to provide notice to the department prior to specific data collection activities to facilitate verification of data collection by department staff, as necessary.(5) If a person obtains, collects, or generates data or information intended to be used to support a prospecting permit application without obtaining department approval of the person's methodology under sub. (4), the department may not exclude any of the data or information that consists of general environmental information such as soil characteristics, hydrologic conditions, and air and water data contained in publications, maps, documents, studies, reports, and similar sources, whether public or private, not prepared by or for the applicant.(6) If the period of data collection prior to the filing of a preapplication notice under s. NR 131.105 continues for longer than 12 months, the department may require the person to enter into a pre-application services agreement with the department under s. 23.40(4), Stats., to cover costs incurred by the department in verifying or reviewing the environmental data.Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 131.104
Adopted by, CR 20-043: cr. Register December 2021 No. 792, eff. 1/1/2022