[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 12 (Thursday, January 19, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3790-3791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-1221]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
30 CFR Part 934
North Dakota Regulatory Program
ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening and extension of public comment period
on proposed amendment.
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SUMMARY: OSM is announcing receipt of revisions and additional
explanatory information pertaining to a previously 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 revisions and additional explanatory information pertain
to North Dakota's ``Standards for Evaluation of Revegetation Success
and Recommended Procedures for Pre- and Postmining Vegetation
Assessments.'' The amendment is intended to revise this document to be
consistent with the Federal regulations and to improve operational
efficiency.
DATES: Written comments must be received by 4:00 p.m., m.s.t., February
3, 1995.
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 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, Room 2128, Casper, WY
82601-1918, Telephone: (307) 261-5776.
Edward J. Englerth, Director, Reclamation Division, North Dakota Public
Service Commission, Capitol Building, Bismarck, ND 58505-0165,
Telephone: (701) 224-4092.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Guy Padgett, Telephone: (307) 261-5776.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. 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 the 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 934.12, 934.13, 934.15,
934.16, and 934.30.
II. Proposed Amendment
By letter dated February 17, 1994, North Dakota submitted a
proposed amendment to its program pursuant to SMCRA (administrative
record No. ND-U-01). North Dakota submitted the proposed revisions to
its ``Standards for Evaluation of Revegetation Success and Recommended
Procedures for Pre- and Postmining Vegetation Assessments''
(hereinafter, the ``revegetation success document'') in response to
required program amendments at 30 CFR 934.16 (b) through (i), (w), and
(x), and at its own initiative.
OSM announced receipt of the proposed amendment in the March 14,
1994, Federal Register (49 FR 11744), provided an opportunity for a
public hearing or meeting on its substantive adequacy, and invited
public comment on its adequacy (administrative record No. ND-U-05).
Because no one requested a public hearing or meeting, none was held.
The public comment period ended on April 13, 1994.
During its review of the amendment, OSM identified concerns
relating to (1) Revegetation success standards for recreation,
residential, or industrial and commercial postmining land uses; (2)
revegetation success standards for prime farmlands; (3) use of sampling
procedures not included in an approved State program; (4) revegetation
success standards for tame pastureland; (5) consultation with the
appropriate State agencies for stocking and planting arrangements for
woodland and shelterbelt postmining land uses; (6) revegetation success
standards for non-replacement shelterbelt postmining land use; (7)
designation of fish and wildlife habitat and the premining assessment
for fish and wildlife habitat; (8) revegetation success standards for
wetlands and annual grain crops used for fish and wildlife habitat; (9)
the establishment of a maximum sample
[[Page 3791]]
size when determining sample adequacy; (10) sampling techniques for
measuring woody plant density; (11) the use of representative strips to
measure soil productivity on prime farmlands; (12) inter-seeding as a
normal husbandry practice; (13) random sampling of clipped forage
samples; and (14) t-test statistical calculations.
OSM notified North Dakota of the concerns by letter dated September
9, 1994 (administrative record No. ND-U-10). North Dakota responded in
a letter dated December 21, 1994, by submitting a revised amendment and
additional explanatory information (administrative record No. ND-U-14)
that addressed the concerns identified by OSM.
Specifically, North Dakota (1) Proposes a requirement for
vegetative ground cover sufficient to control erosion for recreation,
residential, or industrial and commercial postmining land uses; (2)
provides Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly the Soil
Conservation Service) concurrence with the sampling techniques used to
demonstrate revegetation success on reclaimed prime farmlands; (3)
proposes to indicate that the use of any alternative sampling
techniques must be approved by OSM as well as by North Dakota; (4)
provides additional explanatory information concerning the
demonstration of productivity on tame pastureland; (5) provides
additional explanatory information concerning consultation and approval
from the State Game and Fish Department and State Forester for woodland
and shelterbelt stocking and planting arrangements; (6) proposes to
delete the revegetation success standards for non-replacement
shelterbelts; (7) proposes to clarify the requirements for a premining
land use assessment when an area is primarily used by wildlife; (8)
proposes to require (a) that the fourth-stage bond release standard for
annual grain crops must be met for the last two consecutive years of
the liability period and (b) the approved standard for wetlands must be
met at the time of final bond release; (9) provides additional
explanatory information concerning the establishment of a maximum
sample size; (10) proposes to require that woody plant density must be
determined using methods that are statistically valid with a 90 percent
confidence level; (11) provides additional explanatory information
concerning the use of representative strips to measure soil
productivity on prime farmlands; (12) provides additional explanatory
information concerning the use of inter-seeding as a normal husbandry
practice; (13) proposes to disallow the use of random samples to
determine moisture content of all samples; (14) proposes an additional
statistical formula for use in t-tests; and (15) proposes correction of
typographical errors.
III. Public Comment Procedures
OSM is reopening the comment period on the proposed North Dakota
program amendment to provide the public an opportunity to reconsider
the adequacy of the proposed amendment in light of the additional
materials submitted. 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.
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.
IV. Procedural Determinations
I. 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).
2. Executive Order 12778
The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required
by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 (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 12550) 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 States must
be based solely on a determination of whether the submittal is
consistent with SMCRA and its implementing Federal regulations and
whether other requirements of 30 CFR Parts 730, 731, and 732 have been
met.
3. 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)) 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 of 1969 (42 U.S.C.
4332(2)(C)).
4. 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.).
5. 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 data and
assumptions for the counterpart Federal regulations.
V. List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 934
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Dated: January 10, 1995.
Charles E. Sandberg,
Acting Assistant Director, Western Support Center.
[FR Doc. 95-1221 Filed 1-18-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-05-M
