1501:13-13-02. Auger mining additional performance standards

(A) General.

(1) Auger mining operations shall be conducted in accordance with the requirements of Chapters 1501:13-9 to 1501:13-11 of the Administrative Code, except as provided in this rule.

(2) The chief may prohibit auger mining, if necessary, to:

(a) Maximize the utilization, recoverability, or conservation of the solid-fuel resource; or

(b) Protect against adverse water-quality impacts.

(B) Coal recovery.

(1) Auger mining shall be conducted so as to maximize the utilization and conservation of the coal in accordance with rule 1501:13-9-05 of the Administrative Code.

(2) Auger mining shall be planned and conducted to maximize recoverability of mineral reserves remaining after the operation and reclamation are complete.

(3) Each person who conducts auger mining operations shall leave areas of undisturbed coal, as approved by the chief, to provide access for future underground mining operations to coal reserves remaining after augering is complete, unless it is established that the coal reserves have been depleted or are so limited in thickness or extent that it will not be practicable to recover the remaining coal. This determination shall be made by the chief upon presentation of appropriate technical evidence by the operator.

(C) Hydrologic balance.

(1) Auger mining shall be planned and conducted to minimize disturbances of the prevailing hydrologic balance in accordance with the requirements of rule 1501:13-9-04 of the Administrative Code.

(2) All auger holes, except as provided in paragraph (C)(3) of this rule, shall be:

(a) Sealed within seventy-two hours after completion with an impervious and noncombustible material, if the holes are discharging water containing acid- or toxic-forming material. If sealing is not possible within seventy-two hours, the discharge shall be treated commencing within seventy-two hours after completion to meet applicable effluent limitations and water-quality standards until the holes are sealed; and

(b) Sealed with an impervious noncombustible material, as contemporaneously as practicable with the augering operation, as approved by the chief, if the holes are not discharging water containing acid- or toxic-forming material.

(3) Auger holes need not be sealed with an impervious material so as to prevent drainage if the chief determines that:

(a) The resulting impoundment of water may create a hazard to the environment or public health or safety; and

(b) The drainage from the auger holes will:

(i) Not pose a threat of pollution of surface water; and

(ii) Comply with the requirements of rule 1501:13-9-04 of the Administrative Code.

(D) Subsidence protection. Auger mining shall be conducted in accordance with the requirements of paragraphs (A) and (D) of rule 1501:13-12-03 of the Administrative Code.

(E) Backfilling and grading.

General. Auger mining shall be conducted in accordance with the backfilling and grading requirements of rule 1501:13-9-14 of the Administrative Code.

(F) Protection of underground mining. Auger holes shall not extend closer than five hundred feet (measured horizontally) to any abandoned or active underground mine workings, except as approved in accordance with rule 1501:13-9-08 of the Administrative Code.

(G) Remining. Auger mining operations that affect previously mined areas containing a preexisting highwall shall comply with the requirements of rule 1501:13-9-14 of the Administrative Code except as provided in paragraph (K) of rule 1501:13-4-12 of the Administrative Code.

Effective: 11/26/2020
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates: 9/11/2020 and 11/26/2025
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 1513.02
Rule Amplifies: 1513.02(G), 1513.16
Prior Effective Dates: 08/28/1978, 08/16/1982 (Emer.), 10/27/1982, 10/01/1988, 04/30/2009