GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1991

S	1 

SENATE BILL 239

Short Title:  Mining Permit Amendments.	(Public)
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Sponsors: Senator Kaplan.
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Referred to:  Environment and Natural Resources.
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March 18, 1991

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO AMEND THE MINING PERMIT REQUIREMENTS AND TO ALLOW THE MINING COMMISSION TO CONSIDER ADDITIONAL FACTORS IN GRANTING OR DENYING A MINING PERMIT.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 74-51 reads as rewritten:
"§ 74-51.  Permits – Application, granting, conditions.
Any operator desiring to engage in mining shall make written application to the Department for a permit.  Such application shall be upon a form furnished by the Department and shall fully state the information called for; in addition, the applicant may be required to furnish such other information as may be deemed necessary by the Department in order adequately to enforce this Article.
The application shall be accompanied by a reclamation plan which meets the requirements of G.S. 74-53.  No permit shall be issued until such plan has been approved by the Department.
The application shall be accompanied by a signed agreement, in a form specified by the Department, that in the event a bond forfeiture is ordered pursuant to G.S. 74-59, the Department and its representatives and its contractors shall have the right to make whatever entries on the land and to take whatever actions may be necessary in order to carry out reclamation which the operator has failed to complete.
Before deciding whether to grant a new permit, the Department shall circulate copies of a notice of application for review and comment as it deems advisable.  Notice shall be sent to the unit of local government with jurisdiction and any other unit of local government within one-half mile of the proposed activity.  The Department shall grant or deny the permit requested as expeditiously as possible, but in no event later than 60 days after the application form and any relevant and material supplemental information reasonably required shall have been filed with the Department, or if a public hearing is held, within 30 days following the hearing and the filing of any relevant and material supplemental information reasonably required by the Department.  Priority consideration shall be given to applicants who submit evidence that the mining proposed will be for the purpose of supplying materials to the Board of Transportation.
Upon its determination that significant public interest exists, the Department shall conduct a public hearing on any application for a new mining permit.  Such hearing shall be held before the Department reaches a final decision on the application, and in making its determination, the Department shall give full consideration to all comments submitted at the public hearing.  Such public hearing shall be held within 60 days of the filing of the application.
The Department may deny such permit upon finding:
(1)	That any requirement of this Article or any rule promulgated hereunder will be violated by the proposed operation;
(2)	That the operation will have unduly adverse effects on wildlife or fresh water, estuarine, or marine fisheries;
(3)	That the operation will violate standards of air quality, surface water quality, or groundwater quality which have been promulgated by the Department;
(4)	That the operation will constitute a substantial physical hazard to a neighboring dwelling house, school, church, hospital, commercial or industrial building, public road or other public property;
(5)	That the operation will have a significantly adverse effect on the purposes of a publicly owned park, forest or recreation area;
(6)	That previous experience with similar operations indicates a substantial possibility that the operation will result in substantial deposits of sediment in stream beds or lakes, landslides, or acid water pollution; 
(7)	That the operator has not corrected all violations which he may have committed under any prior permit and which resulted in,
a.	Revocation of his permit,
b.	Forfeiture of part or all of his bond or other security,
c.	Conviction of a misdemeanor under G.S. 74-64, or
d.	Any other court order issued under G.S. 74-64.
(8)	That the unit of local government with jurisdiction over the area has certified that the activity is not in accordance with its comprehensive plan; or
(9)	That the operation will be within one-half mile of 10 or more occupied dwellings.
In the absence of any such findings, a permit shall be granted.
Any permit issued shall be expressly conditioned upon compliance with all requirements of the approved reclamation plan for the operation and with such further reasonable and appropriate requirements and safeguards as may be deemed necessary by the Department to assure that the operation will comply fully with the requirements and objectives of this Article.  Such conditions may, among others, include a requirement of visual screening, vegetative or otherwise, so as to screen the view of the operation from public highways, public parks, or residential areas, where the Department finds such screening to be feasible and desirable.  Violation of any such conditions shall be treated as a violation of this Article and shall constitute a basis for suspension or revocation of the permit.
Any operator wishing any modification of the terms and conditions of his permit or of the approved reclamation plan shall submit a request for modification in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 74-52.
If the Department denies an application for a permit, it shall notify the operator in writing, stating the reasons for its denial and any modifications in the application which would make it acceptable.  The operator may thereupon modify his application or file an appeal, as provided in G.S. 74-61, but no such appeal shall be taken more than 60 days after notice of disapproval has been mailed to him at the address shown on his application.
Upon approval of an application, the Department shall set the amount of the performance bond or other security which is to be required pursuant to G.S. 74-54.  The operator shall have 60 days following the mailing of such notification in which to deposit the required bond or security with the Department.  The operating permit shall not be issued until receipt of this deposit.
When one operator succeeds to the interest of another in any uncompleted mining operation, by virtue of a sale, lease, assignment, or otherwise, the Department may release the first operator from the duties imposed upon him by this Article with reference to such operation and transfer the permit to the successor operator; provided, that both operators have complied with the requirements of this Article and that the successor operator assumes the duties of the first operator with reference to reclamation of the land and posts a suitable bond or other security."
Sec. 2. This act is effective upon ratification.