ORS 517.915: Additional operating permit requirements for nonaggregate mineral mines; denial of permit if reclamation not possible.

(1) In addition to any other provision of law, the State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries shall not issue an operating permit until: (a) The department has received a reclamation plan that contains but is not limited to: (A) A description of the proposed mining operation; (B) A description of what is to be mined; (C) The present use of the land, the planned subsequent beneficial use of the land and a list of plant species to be established; (D) The measures that will adequately conserve the quantity and quality of the affected aquifers; (E) A description of any toxic or radioactive materials known to be present in the ore, spoil, tailings, overburden or any other material involved in the mining operation and their approximate concentrations; (F) A description of how the materials described in subparagraph (E) of this paragraph will be handled during mining and reclamation; (G) Environmental baseline information as may be required by the department; and (H) The name and address of the landowner, the owner of the surface estate, the operator and any parent corporations of the operator. (b) The department has received a performance bond as it may require. (c) The department finds that reclamation is possible and that the reclamation plan as approved will achieve the reclamation of affected lands. (2) If the department finds that reclamation cannot be accomplished, it shall not issue an operating permit. (3) The department shall obtain, whenever possible, a list of plant species suitable for reseeding in the area pursuant to a reclamation plan and comments on the feasibility of permanent revegetation from the soil and water conservation district in which the mined land is situated. (4) The department shall consult with affected public bodies, as defined in ORS 174.109, regarding the feasibility of reclamation, with particular attention to possible impacts on ground water aquifers. [1981 c.622 §§4,5,9; 1985 c.292 §18; 1987 c.361 §3; 2013 c.371 §3]