(a) General
requirements for revegetation are as follows:
(1) The operator shall establish, on areas
disturbed by surface operations and facilities, effective, diverse and
permanent vegetative cover. For areas designated as prime farmland, the
requirements of Subchapter E (relating to prime farmlands) apply.
(2) Revegetation shall comply with the
reclamation plan submitted under this subchapter and approved by the Department
in the permit, and shall be carried out in a manner that encourages a prompt
vegetative cover and recovery of productivity levels compatible with the
approved postmining land use.
(i) Disturbed
lands, except water areas and surface areas of roads that are approved as part
of the postmining land use, shall be seeded or planted to achieve a permanent
vegetative cover.
(ii) The
vegetative cover shall be of the same seasonal characteristics of growth as the
original vegetation and be capable of self-regeneration and plant
succession.
(iii) Vegetative cover
shall be at least equal in extent of cover to the natural vegetation of the
area.
(iv) If the postmining land
use is cropland, planting of the crops normally grown shall meet the
requirements of subparagraph (i).
(b) If approved by the Department, introduced
species may be used to achieve a quick, temporary cover that will stabilize the
area, or when necessary and desirable to achieve the approved postmining land
use. The following requirements shall be met:
(1) The species used for temporary cover are
replaced by permanent vegetation that supports the approved postmining land
use.
(2) The species are compatible
with the plant and animal species of the region.
(3) The species meet the requirements of
applicable State and Federal seed or introduced species statutes, and are not
poisonous or noxious.
(c)
Seeding and planting of disturbed areas shall be conducted during the first
normal period for favorable planting conditions after final preparation. The
normal period for favorable planting shall be that planting time generally
accepted locally for the type of plant materials selected. When necessary to
effectively control erosion, a disturbed area shall be seeded, as
contemporaneously as practicable, with a temporary cover of small grains,
grasses or legumes until a permanent cover is established.
(d) Mulching and other soil stabilizing
practices shall be as follows:
(1) Suitable
mulch or other soil stabilizing practices shall be used on regraded and
topsoiled areas to control erosion, to promote germination of seeds or to
increase the moisture retention of the soil. The Department may, on a
case-by-case basis, suspend the requirement for mulch if the operator can
demonstrate that alternative procedures do not cause or contribute to
pollution.
(2) Mulches shall be
anchored to the soil surface to assure effective protection of the soil and
vegetation when required by the Department.
(3) Annual grasses and grains may be used
alone or in conjunction with another mulch if the Department determines they
will provide adequate soil erosion control and will later be replaced by
perennial species approved for the postmining land use.
(4) Chemical soil stabilizers, alone or in
combination with appropriate mulches, may be used in conjunction with
vegetative covers approved for the postmining land use.
(e) Standards for successful revegetation
shall be as follows:
(1) When the approved
postmining land use is cropland:
(i) The
standards for successful revegetation shall be based upon crop productivity,
yield or soil tests.
(ii) The
approved standard shall be the average yield per acre for the crop and soil
type as specified in the Soil Surveys of the United States Department of
Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service.
(iii) The productivity or yield of the mined
area shall be equal to or greater than the approved standard for the last 2
consecutive growing seasons of the 5-year responsibility period established in
this section. Productivity or yield shall be considered equal if production or
yield is at least 90% of the approved standard.
(2) When the approved postmining land use is
other than cropland:
(i) The standards for
successful revegetation shall be determined by ground cover.
(ii) The approved standard shall be the
percent ground cover of the vegetation which exists on the proposed area to be
affected by mining activities. The Department will not approve less than a
minimum of 70% ground cover of permanent plant species with not more than 1.0%
of the area having less than 30% ground cover with no single or contiguous area
having less than 30% ground cover exceeding 3,000 square feet. When woody
species are planted in mixture with herbaceous species, the standards in this
paragraph shall be met and 400 woody plants shall be planted per acre except:
(A) On slopes greater than 20 degrees, the
minimum number of woody plants shall be 600 per acre.
(B) When the approved postmining land use is
commercial forest land, the minimum number of woody plants shall be 450 trees
per acre with at least 75% commercial tree species.
(C) When the approved postmining land use is
wildlife habitat, a minimum of 75% of the land affected shall be planted with a
mixture and minimum of 400 woody plants per acre. The configuration and species
composition of the cover types shall be established in accordance with
guidelines established by the Fish and Boat Commission and the Game Commission.
(iii) For purposes of
measuring the stocking standards for woody species, the following shall apply:
(A) Root crown or root sprouts over 1 foot in
height shall count as one toward meeting the stocking requirements. When
multiple stems occur, only the tallest stem will be counted.
(B) A tree or shrub shall count as one toward
meeting the stocking requirements if the tree or shrub has been in place at
least 2 growing seasons and is alive and healthy with at least 1/3 of its
length in live crown.
(iv) The percent ground cover of the
reclaimed area shall meet the standards of this paragraph for a minimum of the
last 2 consecutive years of the 5-year period of responsibility, and the 5-year
period of responsibility shall commence after the last year of augmented
seeding and fertilizing.
(v) For
purposes of this section, herbaceous species means grasses, legumes and
nonleguminous forbs; woody plants means woody shrubs, trees and vines; and
ground cover means the area of ground covered by the combined aerial parts of
vegetation and the litter that is produced naturally onsite, expressed as
percentage of the total area of measurement.
(3) When the approved postmining land use is
pastureland, the crop productivity standards of paragraph (1) and the ground
cover standards of paragraph (2) shall be met.
(f) Exceptions to the standards contained in
this section may be authorized by the Department under the following
conditions:
(1) For previously mined areas
that were not reclaimed to the requirements of this subchapter, as a minimum,
the ground cover of living plants may not be less than that which can be
supported by the best available topsoil or other suitable material in the
reaffected area, may not be less than the ground cover existing before
redisturbance and shall be adequate to control erosion.
(2) For areas to be developed for industrial
or residential use less than 2 years after regrading is completed, the ground
cover of living plants may not be less than that required to control erosion.
(g) The operator shall:
(1) Maintain necessary fences and proper
management practices.
(2) Conduct
periodic measurements of vegetation, soils and water prescribed or approved by
the Department, to identify conditions during the applicable period of
liability specified in subsection (e) and §
86.151 (relating to period of
liability).