[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 157 (Monday, August 16, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 44448-44450]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-21138]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
30 CFR Part 914
[SPATS No. IN-143-FOR; State Program Amendment No. 98-5]
Indiana Regulatory Program
AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public
hearing.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM)
is announcing receipt of a proposed amendment to the Indiana regulatory
program (Indiana program) under the Surface Mining Control and
Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). Indiana proposes revisions to rules
concerning revegetation standards for success for nonprime farmland for
surface and underground coal mining and reclamation operations under IC
14-34. Indiana intends to revise its program to be consistent with the
corresponding Federal regulations.
This document gives the times and locations that the Indiana
program and amendment to that program are available for your
inspection, the comment period during which you may submit written
comments on the amendment, and the procedures that will be followed for
the public hearing, if one is requested.
DATES: We will accept written comments until 4:00 p.m., e.s.t.,
September 15, 1999. If requested, we will hold a public hearing on the
amendment on September 10, 1999. We will accept requests to speak at
the hearing until 4:00 p.m., e.s.t. on August 31, 1999.
ADDRESSES: You should mail or hand deliver written comments and
requests to speak at the hearing to Andrew R. Gilmore, Director,
Indianapolis Field Office, at the address listed below.
You may review copies of the Indiana program, the amendment, a
listing of any scheduled public hearings, and all written comments
received in response to this document at the addresses listed below
during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding
holidays. You may receive one free copy of the amendment by contacting
OSM's Indianapolis Field Office.
Andrew R. Gilmore, Director, Indianapolis Field Office, Office of
Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Minton-Capehart Federal
Building, 575 North Pennsylvania Street, Room 301, Indianapolis, IN
46204, Telephone: (317) 226-6700.
Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Bureau of Mine Reclamation,
402 West Washington Street, Room W-295, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204,
Telephone: (317) 232-1291.
Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Reclamation, R.R.
2, Box 129, Jasonville, Indiana 47438-9517, Telephone: (812) 665-2207.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew R. Gilmore, Director,
Indianapolis Field Office. Telephone: (317) 226-6700. Internet:
[email protected]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background on the Indiana Program
On July 29, 1982, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally
approved the Indiana program. You can find background information on
the Indiana program, including the Secretary's findings, the
disposition of comments, and the conditions of approval in the July 26,
1982, Federal Register (47 FR 32107). You can find later actions on the
Indiana program at 30 CFR 914.10, 914.15, and 914.16.
II. Description of the Proposed Amendment
By letter dated August 2, 1999 (Administrative Record No. IND-
1664), Indiana sent us an amendment to its program under SMCRA. This
amendment replaces State Program Amendment No. 95-2, which we approved
in the May 30, 1995 Federal Register (60 FR 28069). Indiana sent the
amendment at its own initiative. Indiana proposes to amend the Indiana
Administrative Code (IAC). Below is a summary of the changes proposed
by Indiana. The full text of the proposed program amendment is
available for your inspection at the locations listed above under
ADDRESSES.
310 IAC 12-5-64.1 (Surface) and 12-5-128.1 (Underground) Revegetation
Standards for Success for Nonprime Farmland
Since the revisions being proposed for surface mining at Sec. 12-5-
64.1(c) are identical to those being proposed for underground mining at
Sec. 12-5-128.1(c), they will be combined for ease of discussion. These
subsections provide the standards for success which are to be applied
under the approved postmining land uses.
Indiana proposes paragraph notation changes to reflect the
organizational changes made throughout subsections (c). Additionally,
Indiana proposes revisions throughout subsections (c) to correct the
reference to the ``Soil Conservation Service'' to the ``Natural
Resources Conservation Service.''
Indiana proposes to revise subsection (c)(3)(B) by adding the
requirement that if current Natural Resources Conservation Service
predicted yield by soil map units are used to determine production of
living plants, then the standard for success shall be a weighted
[[Page 44449]]
average of the predicted yields for each unmined soil type which
existed on the permit areas at the time the permit was issued.
Indiana proposes to delete the existing language in subsection
(c)(3)(C) for determining production of living plants on pastureland
and replace it with the following:
(C) A target yield determined by the following formula: Target
Yield = NRCS Target Yield x (CCA/10 Year CA) where: NRCS Target
Yield = the average yield per acre, as predicted by the Natural
Resources Conservation Service, for the crop and the soil map units
being evaluated. The most current yield information at the time of
permit issuance shall be used, and shall be contained in the
appropriate sections of the permit application. CCA = the county
average for the crop for the year being evaluated as reported by the
United States Department of Agriculture crop reporting service, the
Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service. 10 Year CA = the ten (10)
Year Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service county average,
consisting of the year being evaluated and the nine (9) preceding
years.
Indiana proposes to add subsection (c)(3)(D) to allow other methods
approved by the director of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources
(IDNR) to be used in determining success of production of living plants
on revegetated nonprime farmland pasture land.
Indiana proposes to delete existing subsection (c)(4), and
redesignate existing subsections (c)(5), (c)(6), (c)(7), and (c)(8) as
subsections (c)(4), (c)(5), (c)(6), and (c)(7), respectively.
At new subsection (c)(5)(B), Indiana proposes to revise the
existing language by adding the requirement that if current Natural
Resources Conservation Service predicted yield by soil map units are
used to determine production of living plants, then the standard for
success shall be a weighted average of the predicted yields for each
unmined soil type which existed on the permit areas at the time the
permit was issued.
At new subsection (c)(5)(C), Indiana proposes to delete the
existing language for determining production of living plants on
cropland and replace it with the following:
(C) A target yield determined by the following formula: Target
Yield = CCA x (NRCSP/NRCSC) where: CCA = the county average for the
crop for the year being evaluated as reported by the United States
Department of Agriculture crop reporting service, the Indiana
Agricultural Statistics Service. NRCSP = the weighted average of the
current Natural Resources Conservation Service predicted yield for
each croppable, unmined soil which existed on the permit at the time
the permit was issued. NRCSC = the weighted average of the current
Natural Resources Conservation Service predicted yield for each
croppable, unmined soil which is shown to exist in the county on the
most current county soil survey. A croppable soil is any soil which
the Natural Resources Conservation Service has defined as being in
capability class I, II, III, or IV.
Indiana also proposes to add new subsections (c)(5)(D) and
(c)(5)(E) to allow other methods approved by the director of the
Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) to be used in
determining success of production of living plants on revegetated
nonprime farmland pasture land. Once the method for establishing the
standards has been selected, it may not be modified without the
approval of the director of IDNR.
Finally, Indiana proposes to revise the language in new subsection
(c)(6) by removing the requirement that if current Natural Resources
Conservation Service predicted yield by soil map units are used to
determine production of living plants, then the standard for success
shall be a weighted average of the predicted yields for each unmined
soil type which existed on the permit areas at the time the permit was
issued.
III. Public Comment Procedures
Under the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), we are requesting
comments on whether the amendment satisfies the applicable program
approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If we approve the amendment, it
will become part of the Indiana program.
Written Comments
We will make comments, including names and addresses of
respondents, available for public review during normal business hours.
We will not consider anonymous comments. If individual respondents
request confidentiality, we will honor their request to the extent
allowable by law. Individual respondents who wish to withhold their
name or address from public review, except for the city or town, must
state this prominently at the beginning of their comments. We will make
all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations
or businesses, available for public review in their entirety.
Your written comments should be specific and pertain only to the
issues proposed in this rulemaking. You should explain the reason for
any recommended change. Please submit Internet comments as an ASCII
file avoiding the use of special characters and any form of encryption.
Please also include ``Attn: SPATS No. IN-143-FOR,'' your name, and your
return address in your Internet message. If you do not receive a
confirmation that we have received your Internet message, contact the
Indianapolis Field Office at (317) 226-6700. In the final rulemaking,
we will not necessarily consider or include in the Administrative
Record any comments received after the time indicated under ``DATES''
or at locations other than the Indianapolis Field Office.
Public Hearing
If you wish to speak at the public hearing, contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4:00 p.m., e.s.t. on
August 31, 1999. We will arrange the location and time of the hearing
with those persons requesting the hearing. If you are disabled and need
special accommodations to attend a public hearing, contact the
individual listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. The hearing
will not be held if no one requests an opportunity to speak at the
public hearing.
You should file a written statement at the time you request the
hearing. This will allow us to prepare adequate responses and
appropriate questions. The public hearing will continue on the
specified date until all persons scheduled to speak have been heard. If
you are in the audience and have not been scheduled to speak and wish
to do so, you will be allowed to speak after those who have been
scheduled. We will end the hearing after all persons scheduled to speak
and persons present in the audience who wish to speak have been heard.
Public Meeting
If only one person requests an opportunity to speak at a hearing, a
public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. If you wish
to meet with us to discuss the amendment, request a meeting by
contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All
such meetings are open to the public and, if possible, we will post
notices of meetings at the locations listed under ADDRESSES. We also
make a written summary of each meeting a part of the Administrative
Record.
IV. Procedural Determinations
Executive Order 12866
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) exempts this rule from
review under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review).
Executive Order 12988
The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) and has
[[Page 44450]]
determined that, to the extent allowed by law, 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 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 30 CFR 730.11,
732.15, and 732.17(h)(10), decisions on State regulatory programs and
program amendments 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.
National Environmental Policy Act
This rule does not require an environmental impact statement since
section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that agency
decisions on 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)).
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.).
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 which is the subject of this rule is based upon
corresponding 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. Therefore, this rule will ensure that existing requirements
previously published 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 corresponding Federal regulations.
Unfunded Mandates
OSM has determined and certifies under the Unfunded Mandates Reform
Act (2 U.S.C. 1502 et seq.) that this rule will not impose a cost of
$100 million or more in any given year on local, state, or tribal
governments or private entities.
List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 914
Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.
Dated: August 6, 1999.
Charles Sandberg,
Acting Regional Director, Mid-Continent Regional Coordinating Center.
[FR Doc. 99-21138 Filed 8-13-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
