§ 290.105. Beneficial use at abandoned mine lands.
(a) Reclamation contract with the Department. Coal ash may be beneficially used for the purposes of reclamation at abandoned mine lands, as defined in § 86.252 (relating to definitions), only if the reclamation work is performed pursuant to a contract with the Department. The beneficial use of coal ash at abandoned mine lands will, at a minimum, be based on the following:
(1) Compliance with this section and the applicable environmental statutes and regulations promulgated thereunder.
(2) Certification under § 290.201 (relating to coal ash certification) by the Department for the intended use.
(3) Approval of a contract proposal submitted under subsection (b).
(b) Contract proposal. A proposal for the use of coal ash at abandoned mine lands must contain the following:
(1) A narrative description of the project, including an estimated beginning date and ending date for the project, an explanation of how coal ash will be placed, where and how coal ash will be stored prior to placement, identification of the sources of coal ash and an estimate of the cubic yards of coal ash to be used. For the beneficial use of coal ash as a soil substitute or additive, the proposed application rate and justification for the application rate shall also be included.
(2) Information demonstrating that the coal ash has been certified for its intended use in accordance with § 290.201, including the identity of the generator and the Department-assigned certification identifier, as described in § 290.201(c).
(3) Reclamation plans, including a stability analysis, when necessary, prepared by a licensed professional engineer in accordance with sound engineering practice and signed and sealed by the engineer.
(4) A signed statement by the owner of the land on which the coal ash is to be placed, acknowledging and consenting to the placement of coal ash. This statement by the landowner shall be a recordable document. Prior to beneficial use of coal ash under this section, the statement by the landowner shall be recorded at the office of the recorder of deeds in the county in which the proposed coal ash beneficial use will take place.
(5) A water quality monitoring plan consistent with the requirements in § 290.101(d) (relating to general requirements for beneficial use).
(c) Public notice. As a condition of contract award, a person proposing to use coal ash for reclamation involving use of more than 10,000 tons of coal ash per acre on a project or more than 100,000 tons of coal ash in total at any project shall place an advertisement in a local newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the proposed coal ash beneficial use activities at least once a week for 3 consecutive weeks. Contiguous projects will be considered a single project for purposes of this section. The Department may require public notice for projects involving lesser amounts of coal ash if the Department determines that the proposed beneficial use activities are of significant interest to the public or site conditions warrant. If public notice is required, a copy shall be provided to the local municipality and proof of notice shall be submitted to the Department. At a minimum, the notice must contain the following information:
(1) The name and business address of the person proposing to beneficially use coal ash.
(2) A brief description of the location and scope of the proposed beneficial use.
(3) The location of the public office where a copy of the contract proposal submitted to the Department is available for public inspection.
(d) Department notification. The Department will publish a summary of each contract in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
(e) Operating requirements. The use of coal ash as part of the reclamation activity at abandoned mine lands must satisfy the following additional requirements:
(1) The slope of the reclaimed area may not be greater than 2.5 horizontal to 1.0 vertical. The Department may approve a greater slope based on a demonstration of stability.
(2) Coal ash shall be spread uniformly and compacted in layers not exceeding 2 feet in thickness unless otherwise approved by the Department. The coal ash shall be spread and compacted within 24 hours of its delivery to the site unless stored in accordance with Subchapter E (relating to coal ash storage).
(3) Surface runoff from the reclamation area shall be minimized during construction activity. Stormwater shall be managed in accordance with The Clean Streams Law (35 P. S. § § 691.1—691.1001) and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
(4) Surface water shall be diverted away from the disturbed area during construction activity.
(5) Coal ash shall be covered with 12 inches of soil, unless infiltration is prevented by other cover material.
(6) Coal ash must achieve a minimum compaction of 90% of the maximum dry density as determined by the Modified Proctor Test, or 95% of the maximum dry density as determined by the Standard Proctor Test. Ash from each source shall be tested individually.
(7) The offsite dispersion of dust from coal ash and other materials shall be minimized.
(8) Coal ash used for reclamation may not be placed:
(i) Within 100 feet of an existing intermittent or perennial stream, unless the person demonstrates to the Department’s satisfaction that ash placement within 100 feet of the stream is necessary to remediate abandoned mine features located within 100 feet of the stream.
(ii) Within 300 feet of exceptional value or high quality waters as defined in § 93.1 (relating to definitions), unless the person demonstrates to the Department’s satisfaction that ash placement within 300 feet of the waters is necessary to remediate abandoned mine features located within 300 feet of the waters.
(iii) Within 300 feet of a water supply unless the person obtains, in a form acceptable to the Department, a written waiver from the owner of the water supply, allowing for another distance.
(iv) Within 100 feet of a sinkhole or area draining into a sinkhole.
(v) Within a 100-year floodplain of a water of this Commonwealth, unless a properly engineered dike, levee or other structure that can protect the reclamation area from a 100-year flood is permitted by the Department in a manner that is consistent with the Flood Plain Management Act (32 P. S. § § 679.101—679.601), the Storm Water Management Act (32 P. S. § § 680.1—680.17) and the Dam Safety and Encroachments Act.
(vi) In or within 100 feet of a wetland, other than an exceptional value wetland.
(vii) In or within 300 feet of an exceptional value wetland.
(9) The following apply to the beneficial use of coal ash as a soil substitute or soil additive:
(i) Coal ash shall be applied at a rate per acre that will protect public health, public safety and the environment.
(ii) The coal ash that is applied will be part of the approved reclamation plan in order to increase the productivity or properties of the soil.
(iii) The coal ash is not used in amounts that exceed the maximum cumulative loading rates in § 290.103(e).
(f) Annual report. Prior to January 31, any person that placed coal ash at an abandoned mine land site in the previous calendar year shall submit a report for the previous calendar year to the Department that includes company contact information, the identity of the reclamation contract with the Department, the identity of each source of coal ash and its Department-assigned certification identifier, and the volume in cubic yards and the weight in dry tons for each source of coal ash that was placed at the site.
(g) Notification to Department. A person beneficially using coal ash under this section must notify the Department within 72 hours of any evidence that the material does not meet the certification requirements in § 290.201.
Cross References This section cited in 25 Pa. Code § 290.101 (relating to general requirements for beneficial use).
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