| earth materials suitable
for the growth of agriculturally useful plants.
(65) Existing structure--A structure or facility used
in connection with or to facilitate surface coal mining and reclamation
operations for which construction began prior to approval of the state
program.
(66) Experimental practice--The use of alternative
surface coal mining and reclamation operation practices for experimental
or research purposes.
(67) Explosives--Any chemical compound, mixture, or
device by whose decomposition or combustion gas is generated with
such rapidity that it can be used for blasting.
(68) Extraction of coal as an incidental part--The
extraction of coal which is necessary to enable the construction to
be accomplished. For purposes of §12.21 and §12.22 of this
title (relating to Applicability, and to Information to be Maintained
On Site), only that coal extracted from within the right-of-way, in
the case of a road, railroad, utility line or other such construction,
or within the boundaries of the area directly affected by other types
of government-financed construction, may be considered incidental
to that construction. Extraction of coal outside the right-of-way
or boundary of the area directly affected by the construction shall
be subject to the requirements of the Act and this chapter.
(69) Federal Act--The "Surface Mining Control and Reclamation
Act of 1977" (Pub. L. 95-87).
(70) Federal lands--Any land, including mineral interests,
owned by the United States, without regard to how the United States
acquired ownership of the lands or which agency manages the lands.
It does not include Indian lands.
(71) Federal lands program--A program established by
the Secretary, pursuant to Section 523 of the Federal Act, to regulate
surface coal mining and reclamation operations on federal lands.
(72) Flood irrigation--With respect to alluvial valley
floors, supplying water to plants by natural overflow or the diversion
of flows, so that the irrigated surface is largely covered by a sheet
of water.
(73) Flyrock--Rock or other blasted material that is
propelled from a blast through the air or along the ground.
(74) Fragile lands--Areas containing natural, ecologic,
scientific or esthetic resources that could be significantly damaged
by surface coal mining operations. Examples of fragile lands include
valuable habitats for fish or wildlife, critical habitats for endangered
or threatened species of animals or plants, uncommon geologic formations,
paleontological sites, National Natural Landmarks, areas where mining
may result in flooding, environmental corridors containing a concentration
of ecologic and esthetic features, and areas of recreational value
due to high environmental quality.
(75) Fugitive dust--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.
(76) Fund--The Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund established
pursuant to Section 401 of the Federal Act.
(77) General area--With respect to hydrology, the topographic
and ground-water basin surrounding a permit area which is of sufficient
size, including areal extent and depth, to include one or more watersheds
containing perennial streams and ground-water zones and to allow assessment
of the probable cumulative impacts on the quality and quantity of
surface- and ground-water systems in the basins.
(78) Government financing agency--A federal, state,
county, municipal, or local unit of government, or a department, bureau,
agency or office of the unit which, directly or through another unit
of government, finances construction.
(79) Government-financed construction--Construction
funded 50% or more by funds appropriated from a government financing
agency's budget or obtained from general revenue bonds, but shall
not mean government financing agency guarantees, insurance, loans,
funds obtained through industrial revenue bonds or their equivalent,
or in-kind payments.
(80) Ground cover--The area of ground covered by the
combined aerial parts of vegetation and the litter that is produced
naturally onsite, expressed as a percentage of the total area of measurement.
(81) Ground water--Subsurface water that fills available
openings in rock or soil materials to the extent that they are considered
water saturated.
(82) Half-shrub--A perennial plant with a woody base
whose annually produced stems die back each year.
(83) Head-of-hollow fill--A fill structure consisting
of any material, other than coal processing waste and organic material,
placed in the uppermost reaches of a hollow where side slopes of the
existing hollow measured at the steepest point are greater than 20
degrees or the average slope of the profile of the hollow from the
toe of the fill to the top of the fill is greater than 10 degrees.
In fills with less than 250,000 cubic yards of material, associated
with contour mining, the top surface of the fill will be at the elevation
of the coal seam. In all other head-of-hollow fills, the top surface
of the fill, when completed, is at approximately the same elevation
as the adjacent ridge line, and no significant area of natural drainage
occurs above the fill draining into the fill area.
(84) Highwall--The face of exposed overburden and coal
in an open cut of a surface coal mining activity or for entry to underground
mining activities.
(85) Historically used for cropland--Refers to:
(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 Commission 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 some fact of ownership or control of the land unrelated to
the productivity of the land.
(86) Historic lands--Historic, cultural, or scientific
resources. Examples of historic lands include archeological sites,
National Historic Landmarks, properties listed on or eligible for
listing on a state or National Register of Historic Places, properties
having religious or cultural significance to Native Americans or religious
groups, and properties for which historic designation is pending.
(87) Hydrologic balance--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.
(88) Hydrologic regime--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.
(89) Imminent danger to the health and safety of the
public--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 condition, practice, or violation
could reasonably be expected to cause substantial physical harm to
persons outside the permit area before such 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 practices giving rise to the peril, would not
expose that person to the danger during the time necessary for abatement.
(90) Impoundment--A closed basin, naturally formed
or artificially built, which is dammed or excavated for the retention
of water, sediment, or waste.
(91) Indian lands--All lands, including mineral interests,
within the exterior boundaries of any federal Indian reservation,
notwithstanding the issuance of any patent, and including rights-of-way,
and all lands including mineral interests held in trust for or supervised
by an Indian tribe.
Cont'd... |
