SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT OF 1977 1 (PUBLIC LAW 95-87) AN ACT To provide for the cooperation between the Secretary of the Interior and the States with respect to the regulation of surface coal mining operations, and the acquisition and reclamation of abandoned mines, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977". TITLE III-STATE AND MINERAL RESOURCES AND RESEARCH INSTITUTES Sec. 301. Authorization of State allotments to institutes. Sec. 302. Research funds to institutes. Sec. 303. Funding criteria. Sec. 304. Duties of the Secretary. Sec. 306. Miscellaneous provisions. Sec. 308. Interagency cooperation. Sec. 309. Advisory committee. TITLE IV-ABANDONED MINE RECLAMATION Sec. 401. Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund and purposes. Sec. 402. Reclamation fee. Sec. 403. Objective of fund. Sec. 404. Eligible lands and water. Sec. 405. State reclamation programs. Sec. 406. Reclamation of rural lands. Sec. 407. Acquisition and reclamation of land adversely affected by past coal mining practices. Sec. 408. Liens. Sec. 409. Filling voids and sealing tunnels. Sec. 410. Emergency powers. Sec. 411. Certification. Sec. 412. Fund report. Sec. 413. Miscellaneous powers. Sec. 414. Interagency cooperation. 1 The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (91 Stat. 445) consists of the Act of August 3, 1977, and subsequent amenments thereto (30 U.S.C. 1201 & following). TITLE V-CONTROL OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF SURFACE COAL MINING Sec. 501. Environmental protection standards. Sec. 502. Initial regulatory procedures. Sec. 503. State programs. Sec. 504. Federal programs. Sec. 505. State laws. Sec. 506. Permits. Sec. 507. Application requirements. Sec. 508. Reclamation plan requirements. Sec. 509. Performance bonds. Sec. 510. Permit approval or denial. Sec. 511. Revision of permits. Sec. 512. Coal exploration and permits. Sec. 513. Public notice and public hearings. Sec. 514. Decisions of regulatory authority and appeals. Sec. 515. Environmental protection performance standards. Sec. 516. Surface effects of underground coal mining operations. Sec. 518. Penalties. Sec. 519. Release of performance bonds or deposits. Sec. 520. Citizen suits. Sec. 521. Enforcement. Sec. 522. Designating areas unsuitable for surface coal mining. Sec. 524. Public agencies, public utilities, and public corporations. Sec. 526. Judicial review. Sec. 527. Special bituminous coal mines. Sec. 528. Surface mining operations not subject to this Act. Sec. 529. Anthracite coal mines. TITLE VI-DESIGNATION OF LANDS UNSUITABLE FOR NONCOAL MINING Sec. 601. Designation procedures. TITLE VII-ADMINISTRATIVE AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS Sec. 701. Definitions. Sec. 702. Other Federal laws. Sec. 703. Employee protection. Sec. 704. Protection of Government employees. Sec. 705. Grants to the States. Sec. 706. Annual report. Sec. 707. Severability. Sec. 708. Alaskan surface coal mine study. Sec. 709. Study of reclamation standards for surface mining of other minerals. Sec. 711. Experimental practices. Sec. 712. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 713. Coordination of regulatory and inspection activities. Sec. 714. Surface owner protection. Sec. 715. Federal lessee protection. Sec. 716. Alaska coal. Sec. 717. Water rights and replacement. Sec. 718. Advance appropriations. Sec. 719. Certification and training of blasters. TITLE VIII-UNIVERSITY COAL RESEARCH LABORATORIES Sec. 801. Establishment of university coal research laboratories. Sec. 802. Financial assistance. Sec. 803. Limitation of payments. Sec. 804. Payments. Sec. 805. Advisory Council on Coal Research. Sec. 806. Authorization of appropriations. TITLE IX-ENERGY RESOURCE GRADUATE FELLOWSHIPS Sec. 901. Program authorized. Sec. 902. Awarding of fellowships. Sec. 903. Distribution of fellowships. Sec. 904. Stipends and institutions of higher education allowances. Sec. 905. Limitation. Sec. 506. Fellowship conditions. Sec. 907. Appropriations authorized. Sec. 908. Research and demonstration projects of alternative coal mining technologies. TITLE I-STATEMENT OF FINDINGS AND POLICY FINDINGS SEC. 101. The Congress finds and declares that— (a) extraction of coal and other minerals from the earth can be accomplished by various methods of mining, including surface mining; (b) coal mining operations presently contribute significantly to the Nation's energy requirements; surface coal mining constitutes one method of extraction of the resource; the overwhelming percentage of the Nation's coal reserves can only be extracted by underground mining methods, and it is, therefore, essential to the national interest to insure the existence of an expanding and economically healthy underground coal mining industry; (c) many surface mining operations result in disturbances of surface areas that burden and adversely affect commerce and the public welfare by destroying or diminishing the utility of land for commercial, industrial, residential, recreational, agricultural, and forestry purposes, by causing erosion and landslides, by contributing to floods, by polluting the water, by destroying fish and wildlife habitats, by impairing natural beauty, by damaging the property of citizens, by creating hazards danagerous to life and property by degrading the quality of life in local communities, and by counteracting governmental programs and effects to conserve soil, water, and other natural resources; (d) the expansion of coal mining to meet the Nation's energy needs makes even more urgent the establishment of appropriate standards to minimize damage to the environment and to productivity of the soil and to protect the health and safety of the public. 1 (e) surface mining and reclamation technology are now developed so that effective and reasonable regulation of surface coal mining operations by the States and by the Federal Government in accordance with the requirements of this Act is an appropriate and necessary means to minimize so far as practicable the adverse social, economic, and environmental effects of such mining operations; (f) because of the diversity in terrain, climate, biologic, chemical, and other physical conditions in areas subject to mining operations, the primary governmental responsibility for devel 1 So in law. Probably should be a semicolon. oping, authorizing, issuing, and enforcing regulations for surface mining and reclamation operations subject to this Act should rest with the States; (g) surface mining and reclamation standards are essential in order to insure that competition in interstate commerce among sellers of coal produced in different States will not be used to undermine the ability of the several States to improve and maintain adequate standards on coal mining operations within their borders; (h) there are a substantial number of acres of land throughout major regions of the United States disturbed by surface and underground coal on which little or no reclamation was conducted, and the impacts from these unreclaimed lands impose social and economic costs on residents in nearby and adjoining areas as well as continuing to impair environmental quality; (i) while there is a need to regulate surface mining operations for minerals other than coal, more data and analyses are needed to serve as a basis for effective and reasonable regulation of such operations; (j) surface and underground coal mining operations affect interstate commerce, contribute to the economic well-being, security, and general welfare of the Nation and should be conducted in an environmentally sound manner; and (k) the cooperative effort established by this Act is necessary to prevent or mitigate adverse environmental effects of present and future surface coal mining operations. (30 U.S.C. 1201) PURPOSES SEC. 102. It is the purpose of this Act to (a) establish a nationwide program to protect society and the environment from the adverse effects of surface coal mining operations; (b) assure that the rights of surface landowners and other persons with a legal interest in the land or appurtenances thereto are fully protected from such operations; (c) assure that surface mining operations are not conducted where reclamation as required by this Act is not feasible; (d) assure that surface coal mining operations are so conducted as to protect the environment; (e) assure that adequate procedures are undertaken to reclaim surface areas as contemporaneously as possible with the surface coal mining operations; (f) assure that the coal supply essential to the Nation's energy requirements, and to its economic and social well-being is provided and strike a balance between protection of the environment and agricultural productivity and the Nation's need for coal as an essential source of energy; (g) assist the States in developing and implementing a program to achieve the purposes of this Act; (h) promote the reclamation of mined areas left without adequate reclamation prior to the enactment of this Act and |