35-11-402. Establishment of standards.

(a) The council shall, upon recommendation by the advisory board through the administrator and the director, establish rules and regulations pursuant to the following reclamation standards for the affected areas, including but not limited to:

(i) The highest previous use of the affected lands, the surrounding terrain and natural vegetation, surface and subsurface flowing or stationary water bodies, wildlife and aquatic habitat and resources, and acceptable uses after reclamation including the utility and capacity of the reclaimed lands to support such uses;

(ii) Backfilling, regrading or recontouring to assure the reclamation of the land to a use at least equal to its highest previous use;

(iii) A time schedule encouraging the earliest possible reclamation program consistent with the orderly and economic development of the mining property;

(iv) Revegetation of affected lands including species to be used, methods of planting and other details necessary to assure the development of a vegetative cover consistent with the surrounding terrain and the highest prior use standards set out in paragraph (i) of this subsection;

(v) Stockpiling, preservation and reuse of topsoil for revegetation, unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the administrator that other methods of reclamation or types of soil are superior;

(vi) Prevention of pollution of waters of the state from mining operations, substantial erosion, sedimentation, landslides, accumulation and discharge of acid water, and flooding, both during and after mining and reclamation;

(vii) In administering established rules and regulations on such standards the administrator shall consider all the facts and circumstances bearing upon any reclamation plan. In consideration of reclamation plans for any mining operation that is presently being conducted in the state under a permit issued by the state land commission under the "Open Cut Land Reclamation Act of 1969", particular attention shall be paid to:

(A) The social and economic value of the product mined;

(B) The technological availability for economic feasibility of reclaiming the affected area.

(viii) Establishing methods of estimating cost of reclamation which shall be computed according to established engineering methods;

(ix) Establishing procedures to obtain special license to explore by dozing. Such procedures will include but not be limited to method of application, location of proposed exploration, present use of affected lands, name of surface owner, proposed reclamation program, bonding requirement, and such other procedures as are necessary to insure that the exploration work will be conducted within the intent of this act;

(x) Rules and regulations for the criteria for review and information and public notice requirements for permit revisions. A permit may be revised without public notice or hearing for revisions, including incidental boundary revisions to the area covered by the permit, if these do not propose significant alterations in the reclamation plan. Subject to applicable standards, any permit, except for surface coal mining permits, may be revised, in the permitted area, by identifying proposed alterations to the mining or reclamation plan in the annual report or addendum thereto, or by obtaining prior approval from the director, at the operator's discretion;

(xi) Rules and regulations for conducting coal exploration operations which shall include prior notice of intention to explore, written approval by the director for the removal of more than two hundred fifty (250) tons of coal and reclamation provisions for new and existing operations in accordance with the reclamation standards governing surface mining;

(xii) Rules and regulations governing new and existing special bituminous surface coal mines as recognized in P.L. 95-87, which shall be controlling notwithstanding other provisions of this act to the contrary. The regulations shall pertain only to standards governing on site handling of spoils, elimination of depressions capable of collecting water, creation of impoundments and regrading to the approximate original contour, and shall specify that all remaining highwalls be stable. All other performance standards contained in this act shall apply to such mines;

(xiii) Establishing such other rules and regulations necessary to insure full compliance with all requirements relating to reclamation, and the attainment of those objectives directed to public health, safety, and welfare.

(b) To the extent federal law or regulations require approval by state wildlife agencies regarding surface mining lands to be reclaimed for fish and wildlife habitat, the Wyoming game and fish department shall consider fish and wildlife habitat to mean as defined in W.S. 35-11-103(e)(xxvi) and does not include grazingland as defined in W.S. 35-11-103(e)(xxvii), unless the grazingland has been designated as:

(i) Critical habitat by the United States fish and wildlife service; or

(ii) Crucial habitat by the Wyoming game and fish department prior to submittal of the initial permit application or any subsequent amendments to the permit application.

(c) For the reclamation of grazingland, native shrubs shall be used for reestablishment. No shrub species shall be required to be more than one-half (1/2) of the shrubs in the post-mining standard.