Environmental Reclamation Standards Flashcards

Under SMCRA's permit application requirements, what must a baseline 'premining hydrologic information' study document?

Answer: Existing surface and groundwater quality, quantity, and flow regimes before disturbance

Premining hydrologic information must document existing surface water and groundwater quality, quantity, and seasonal flow patterns to establish a baseline for impact evaluation and reclamation planning.

What is the primary environmental concern with 'highwalls' left after surface coal mining, and how does SMCRA address them?

Answer: Highwalls represent unreclaimed slopes and safety hazards; SMCRA generally requires their elimination through backfilling

SMCRA generally requires that highwalls be eliminated by backfilling excavated spoil material to restore the approximate original contour and eliminate unstable, unreclaimed slopes.

A mineral manager evaluating reclamation success must understand that 'ground cover' measurements differ from 'vegetative cover' measurements because:

Answer: Ground cover includes all surface materials (litter, rock, plants), while vegetative cover refers specifically to living plant cover

Ground cover includes all materials covering the soil surface (living plants, litter, rocks, and mulch), while vegetative cover refers specifically to the percentage covered by living plants.

Under 30 CFR Part 817 (underground mining), what reclamation requirement applies to subsidence-affected surface structures?

Answer: Operators must promptly repair or compensate for subsidence damage to structures and water supplies

SMCRA requires operators to promptly repair or compensate for subsidence damage to non-commercial buildings and occupied residential structures, and to replace or restore damaged water supplies.

What reclamation requirement applies specifically to coal mine refuse (gob) piles or slurry impoundments?

Answer: They must be compacted, contoured, revegetated, and stabilized to prevent erosion and AMD

Coal refuse disposal areas must be reclaimed by grading to stable configurations, covering with topsoil or approved substitute, and revegetating to control erosion and prevent AMD formation.

What is the 'revegetation success standard' in areas with less than 26 inches of average annual precipitation under SMCRA?

Answer: A 10-year liability period applies and success is measured by ground cover and productivity

In areas receiving less than 26 inches of annual precipitation, a 10-year revegetation liability period applies, requiring demonstration of ground cover and productivity success at that longer interval.

Under state primacy programs approved under SMCRA, what must a state's regulatory program be 'no less stringent than' to receive approval?

Answer: The federal SMCRA requirements and federal regulations promulgated by OSMRE

State programs must be no less stringent than SMCRA and the federal regulations promulgated by OSMRE; states may adopt more stringent requirements but not weaker ones.