(a) General. Each application shall include a general
plan for each proposed sedimentation pond, water impoundment, and
coal processing waste bank, dam, or embankment within the proposed
permit area.
(1) Each general plan shall:
(A) be prepared by or under the direction of and certified
by a qualified professional engineer or by a qualified professional
geoscientist with assistance from experts in related fields such as
land surveying and landscape architecture;
(B) contain a description, map, and cross section of
the structure and its location;
(C) contain preliminary hydrologic and geologic information
required to assess the hydrologic impact of the structure;
(D) contain a survey describing the potential effect
on the structure from subsidence of the subsurface strata resulting
from past underground mining operations if underground mining has
occurred; and
(E) contain a certification statement which includes
a schedule setting forth the dates when any detailed design plans
for structures that are not submitted with the general plan will be
submitted to the Commission. The Commission shall have approved, in
writing, the detailed design plan for a structure before construction
of the structure begins.
(2) Each detailed design plan for a structure that
meets or exceeds the size or other criteria of the Mine Safety and
Health Administration, 30 CFR 77.216(a) shall:
(A) be prepared by or under the direction of and certified
by a qualified professional engineer with assistance from experts
in related fields such as geology, land surveying, and landscape architecture;
(B) include any geotechnical investigation, design,
and construction requirements for the structure;
(C) describe the operation and maintenance requirements
for each structure; and
(D) describe the timetable and plans to remove each
structure, if appropriate.
(3) Each detailed design plan for a structure that
does not meet the size or other criteria of 30 CFR 77.216(a) shall:
(A) be prepared by or under the direction of and certified
by a qualified professional engineer;
(B) include any design and construction requirements
for the structure, including any required geotechnical information;
(C) describe the operation and maintenance requirements
for each structure; and
(D) describe the timetable and plans to remove each
structure, if appropriate.
(b) Sedimentation ponds.
(1) Sedimentation ponds, whether temporary or permanent,
shall be designed in compliance with the requirements of §12.514
of this title (relating to Hydrologic Balance: Sedimentation Ponds).
Any sedimentation pond or earthen structure which will remain on the
proposed permit area as a permanent water impoundment shall also be
designed to comply with the requirements of §12.517 of this title
(relating to Hydrologic Balance: Permanent and Temporary Impoundments).
(2) Each plan shall, at a minimum, comply with the
requirements of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, 30 CFR
77.216-1 and 77.216-2.
(c) Permanent and temporary impoundments.
(1) Permanent and temporary impoundments shall be designed
to comply with the requirements of §12.517 of this title (relating
to Hydrologic Balance: Permanent and Temporary Impoundments).
(2) Each plan for an impoundment meeting the size or
other criteria of the Mine Safety and Health Administration shall
comply with the requirements of 30 CFR 77.216-1 and 30 CFR 77.216-2.
The plan required to be submitted to the District Manager of MSHA
under 30 CFR 77.216 shall be submitted to the Commission as part of
the permit application in accordance with subsection (a) of this section.
(3) An impoundment not meeting the size or other criteria
applicable under §12.517(a) of this title (relating to Hydrologic
Balance: Permanent and Temporary Impoundments) shall have a minimum
static safety factor of 1.3 for a normal pool with steady state seepage
saturation conditions.
(d) Coal mine waste banks. Coal mine waste banks shall
be designed to comply with the requirements of §§12.535-12.538
of this title (relating to Coal Mine Waste Banks: General Requirements,
to Coal Mine Waste Banks: Site Inspection, to Coal Mine Waste Banks:
Water-Control Measures, and to Coal Mine Waste Banks: Construction
Requirements).
(e) Coal mine waste dams and embankments. Coal mine
waste dams and embankments shall be designed to comply with the requirements
of §12.543 and §12.544 of this title (relating to Coal Mine
Waste: Dams and Embankments: General Requirements, and to Coal Mine
Waste: Dams and Embankments: Site Preparation). Each plan shall comply
with the requirements of the Mine Safety and Health Administration,
30 CFR 77.216-1 and 77.216-2, and shall contain the results of a geotechnical
investigation of the proposed dam or embankment foundation area, to
determine the structural competence of the foundation which will support
the proposed dam or embankment structure and the impounded material.
The geotechnical investigation shall be planned and supervised by
a qualified professional engineer or qualified professional geoscientist,
according to the following:
(1) the number, location, and depth of borings and
test pits shall be determined using current prudent engineering practice
for the size of the dam or embankment, quantity of material to be
impounded, and subsurface conditions;
(2) the character of the overburden and bedrock, the
proposed abutment sites, and any adverse geotechnical conditions which
may affect the particular dam, embankment, or reservoir site shall
be considered;
(3) all springs, seepage, and ground water flow observed
or anticipated during wet periods in the area of the proposed dam
or embankment shall be identified on each plan; and
(4) consideration shall be given to the possibility
of mudflows, rock-debris falls, or other landslides into the dam,
embankment, or impounded material.
(f) If the structure is 20 feet or higher or impounds
more than 20 acre-feet, each plan under subsections (b), (c), and
(e) of this section shall include a stability analysis of each structure.
The stability analysis shall include, but not be limited to, strength
parameters, pore pressures, and long-term seepage conditions. The
plan shall also contain a description of each engineering design assumption
and calculation, with a discussion of each alternative considered
in selecting the specific design parameters and construction methods.
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