Permanent program and abandoned mine land reclamation plan submissions: North Dakota,
[Federal Register: September 21, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 182)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 50177-50179]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21se98-29]
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
[ND-038-FOR, Amendment NO. XXVII]
North Dakota Regulatory Program
AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public hearing on proposed amendment.
SUMMARY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the North Dakota regulatory program (hereinafter, the ``North Dakota program'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The proposed amendment consists of the addition of the: definition of water supply, and revision of existing rules on: rulemaking notices, consolidation of information in permits, water management design plans, annual maps, wildlife monitoring reports, subsoil removal approvals, soil respreading requirements, sedimentation pond performance standards, and noncoal waste disposal. In addition to the above, the U.S. Office of Surface Mining is proposing to: remove the program requirement at 30 CFR 934.16(n) concerning the submission of specific fish and wildlife resource information.
The amendment is intended to revise the North Dakota program to be consistent with the corresponding Federal regulations and incorporate the additional flexibility afforded by the revised Federal regulations and provide additional safeguards, and clarify ambiguities, and improve operational efficiency.
DATES: Written comments must be received by 4:00 p.m., m.d.t. October 21, 1998. If requested, a public hearing on the proposed amendment will be held on October 16, 1998. Requests to present oral testimony at the hearing must be received by 4:00 p.m., m.d.t. on October 6, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be mailed or hand delivered to Guy Padgett at the address listed below.
Copies of the North Dakota program, the proposed amendment, and all written comments received in response to this document will be available for public review at the addresses listed below during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Each requester may receive one free copy of the proposed
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amendment by contacting OSM's Casper Field Office.
Guy Padgett, Director, Casper Field Office, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 100 East ``B'' Street, Federal Building, Room 2128, Casper, Wyoming 82601-1918, Telephone: 307/261-6550 Jim Deutsch, Director, Reclamation Division, North Dakota Public Service Commission, Capitol Building, 600 E. Boulevard Ave., Bismarck, North Dakota 58505-0480, Telephone: 701/328-2251
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Guy Padgett, Telephone: 307/261-6550; Internet: GPadgett@OSMRE.GOV
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Background on the North Dakota Program
On December 15, 1980, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally approved the North Dakota program. General background information on the North Dakota program, including the Secretary's findings, the disposition of comments, and conditions of approval of the North Dakota program can be found in the December 15, 1980 Federal Register (45 FR 82214). Subsequent actions concerning North Dakota's program and program amendments can be found at 30 CFR 934.15 and 934.16.
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Proposed Amendment
By letter dated September 2, 1998, North Dakota submitted a proposed amendment to its program pursuant to SMCRA (Amendment number XXVII, administrative record No. ND-BB-01, 30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.). North Dakota submitted the proposed amendment in response to a July 17, 1997 letter (administrative record No. ND-BB-02) that OSM sent to North Dakota in accordance with 30 CFR 732.17(c), and in response to the required program amendments at 30 CFR 934.16(cc) and at its own initiative. The provisions of the North Dakota Administrative Code (NDAC) that North Dakota proposed to revise and add were: (1) NDAC 69- 05.2-01-02.90, Replacement of water supply; (2) NDAC 69-05.2-01-03, publication of hearing notices; (3) NDAC 69.05.2-05-09, Permit Applications--Consolidation for multiple permit operations; (4) NDAC 69-05.2-09-09, Permit applications--Operation plans--Surface water management--Ponds, impoundments, banks, dams, embankments, and diversions; (5) NDAC 69-05.2-13-02, Performance standards--General requirements--Annual map; (6) NDAC 69-05.2-13-08, Performance standards--General requirements Protection of fish, wildlife, and related environmental values; (7) NDAC 69-05.2-15-02, Performance standards--Suitable plant growth material--Removal; (8) NDAC 69-05.2- 15-04, Performance standards--Suitable plant growth material-- Redistribution; (9) NDAC 69-05.2-16-09, Performance standards-- Hydrologic balance--Sedimentation ponds; and (10) NDAC 69-05.2-19-04, Performance standards--Waste materials--Disposal of noncoal wastes. In addition, the U.S. Office of Surface Mining is proposing to remove the program requirement at 30 CFR 934.16(n) which would have revised NDAC 69-05.2-08-15(3)(a), to require the submission of site-specific fish and wildlife resource information when the permit or adjacent areas are likely to include species listed or proposed to be listed by North Dakota under State statutes similar to the Endangered Species Act.
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Public Comment Procedures
In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is seeking comments on whether the proposed amendment satisfies the applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the amendment is deemed adequate, it will become part of the North Dakota program.
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Written Comments
Written comments should be specific, pertain only to the issues proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in support of the commenter's recommendations. Comments received after the time indicated under DATES or at locations other than the Casper Field Office will not necessarily be considered in the final rulemaking or included in the administrative record.
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Public Hearing
Persons wishing to testify at the public hearing should contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., m.d.t. on October 6, 1998. Any disabled individual who has need for a special accommodation to attend a public hearing should contact the individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. The location and time of the hearing will be arranged with those persons requested the hearing. If no one requests an opportunity to testify at the public hearing, the hearing will not be held.
Filing of a written statement at the time of the hearing is requested as it will greatly assist the transcriber. Submission of written statements in advance of the hearing will allow OSM officials to prepare adequate responses and appropriate questions.
The public hearing will continue on the specified date until all persons scheduled to testify have been heard. Persons in the audience who have not been scheduled to testify, and who wish to do so, will be heard following those who have been scheduled. The hearing will end after all persons scheduled to testify and persons present in the audience who wish to testify have been heard.
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Public Meeting
If only one person requests an opportunity to testify at a hearing, a public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. Persons wishing to meet with OSM representatives to discuss the proposed amendment may request a meeting by contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings will be open to the public and, if possible, notices of meetings will be posted at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. A written summary of each meeting will be made a part of the administrative record.
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Procedural Determinations
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Executive Order 12866
This rule is exempted from review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review).
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Executive Order 12988
The Department of the Interior had conducted the reviews required by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) and has determined that this rule meets the applicable standards of subsections (a) and (b) of that section. However, these standards are not applicable to the actual language of State regulatory programs and program amendments since each such program is drafted and promulgated by a specific State, not by OSM. Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and the Federal regulations at 30 CFR 730.11, 732.15, and 732.17(h)(10), decisions on proposed State regulatory programs and program amendments submitted by the State must be based solely on a determination of whether the submittal is consistent with SMCRA and its implementing Federal regulations and whether the other requirements of 30 CFR Parts 730, 731, and 732 have been met.
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National Environmental Policy Act
No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d))
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provides that agency decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)).
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Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule does not contain information collection requirements that require approval by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3507 et seq.).
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Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). The State submittal that is the subject of this rule is based upon counterpart Federal regulations for which an economic analysis was prepared and certification made that such regulations would not have a significant economic effect upon a substantial number of small entities. Accordingly, this rule will ensure that existing requirements previously promulgated by OSM will be implemented by the State. In making the determination as to whether this rule would have a significant economic impact, the Department relied upon the date and assumptions for the counterpart Federal regulations.
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Unfunded Mandates
This rule will not impose a cost of $100 million or more in any given year on any governmental entity or the private sector.
List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 934
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Dated: September 10, 1998. Richard J. Seibel, Regional Director, Western Regional Coordinating Center.
[FR Doc. 98-25116Filed9-18-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-M
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