Pennsylvania Act 1959-729 — PROHIBITING MINING IN CERTAIN AREAS

Act text

PROHIBITING MINING IN CERTAIN AREAS
                 Act of Dec. 22, 1959, P.L. 1994, No. 729             Cl. 52
                                  AN ACT

     Prohibiting mining in certain areas without prior approval by
        the Department of Mines and Mineral Industries; establishing
        standards for the approval of plans for mining in such areas;
        imposing powers and duties on the mine foremen and the
        Department of Mines and Mineral Industries; and providing
        penalties.

        The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     hereby enacts as follows:

        Compiler's Note:  Section 3101 of Act 55 of 2008 provided
            that Act 729 is repealed to the extent that Act 729
            applies to bituminous coal mines.
        Section 1.  Establishment of Safety Zones.--A safety zone is
     hereby established beneath and adjacent to every stream, river
     and natural or artificial body of water in the Commonwealth that
     is sufficiently large to constitute a hazard to mining in the
     opinion and in the discretion of the department. Such safety
     zone shall, in the case of such streams and rivers, extend
     horizontally two hundred feet from the high water mark of each
     bank. In the case of any other body of water sufficiently large
     to constitute a hazard to mining in the opinion and in the
     discretion of the department, it shall extend horizontally two
     hundred feet from the known perimeter. In any case, the zone
     shall extend downward to the limit of the workable beds.
        Section 2.  Written Authorization Needed to Mine Within
     Safety Zone.--(a) No mining or removal of minerals whatsoever
     shall be permitted within the safety zone unless authorization
     is specifically granted in advance and in writing by the
     Department of Mines and Mineral Industries.
        (b)  Such authorization shall only be granted upon
     application of the operator and/or the lessor. Such application
     shall be accompanied by four copies of a plan of the proposed
     mining operation. The plan shall indicate the thickness of the
     unconsolidated strata, the thickness of the rock strata and coal
     beds overlying the bed to be mined, the thickness of the bed,
     the widths of the openings to be made and the width of the
     pillars to be left, and any other special features that may be
     deemed necessary as affecting the contemplated first mining.
        (c)  The Department of Mines and Mineral Industries shall
     make periodic examinations to determine the accuracy of all
     plans, maps and drawings submitted to them under the provisions
     of this act.
        Section 3.  Requirements for Plan Approval.--In no instance
     will any plan be approved if there is less than thirty-five feet
     of rock cover. Factors considered in plan approval shall include
     thickness of bed, width of mine openings, width of pillars and
     such other factors as are deemed applicable by the Department of
     Mines and Mineral Industries.
        Section 4.  Pillar Recovery.--No pillar recovery shall be
     undertaken until such time as the plans are approved by the
     Department of Mines and Mineral Industries. Application for
     pillar recovery shall be accompanied by four copies of the plan
     which shall include such information as shall be determined by
     the department. The approval or disapproval shall be based on
     the factors of depth, the thickness of the bed, the percentage
     of pillars proposed to be extracted and to be left, the effect
     on pillars remaining in overlying beds, and any other special
     features that may be deemed necessary by the department.
        Section 5.  Proof of Rock Cover.--(a) Proof of the existence
     of thirty-five feet of rock cover shall accompany any plans
     submitted.
        (b)  Said proof of rock cover is to be ascertained by test
     holes drilled on intersecting lines forming rectangles or
     squares where the cover thickness is less than fifty feet. These
     holes shall be drilled on spacing of not more than thirty-five
     feet centers.
        Section 6.  Copies of Plans and Proof of Rock Cover to be
     Signed.--All copies of the aforementioned plans and proof of
     rock cover must indicate the location of the test holes and the
     depth of the rock cover, and they must be signed before
     submission to the Department of Mines and Mineral Industries by
     a Registered Mining Engineer representing the operator and a
     Registered Mining Engineer of the lessor and/or owner.
        Section 7.  Approval or Disapproval of Plans.--(a) After
     examination and approval of the plans by a Registered Mining
     Engineer for the Department of Mines and Mineral Industries and
     the secretary of the department, they shall sign all copies. The
     original shall be retained in the department, one copy shall be
     forwarded to the State mine inspector for the area in which the
     mining is to be carried on, one copy is to be forwarded to the
     Registered Mining Engineer representing the operator and/or
     lessor or owner, and one copy is to be forwarded to the
     operator.
        (b)  If the plan is disapproved, the Registered Mining
     Engineer for the Department of Mines and Mineral Industries and
     the secretary of the department shall note their reasons and
     attach a copy to each set of plans. One copy of the plan shall
     then be returned to the operator, one to the State mine
     inspector for the area, one to the Registered Mining Engineer
     for the operator and/or owner or lessor and one shall be
     retained by the department.
        Section 8.  Notice to Miners Working Within the Safety
     Zone.--After approval of the plan by the Department of Mines and
     Mineral Industries, no mining or removal of minerals may begin
     within the safety zone until the mine foreman has conspicuously
     posted a notice on the outside of the mine and has orally
     notified each miner affected that he is working in the safety
     zone.
        Section 9.  Penalties.--Any agent of the mine operator or any
     of its officers or supervisory employes, or any agent of the
     owner or any of the owner's officers or supervisory employes, if
     said owner engages in active supervision and control over the
     operator, or any mine inspector who by acts of commission or
     omission, wilfully and knowingly violates any provisions of this
     act, and the act of commission or omission is the contributory
     cause of an incident which results in death or serious bodily
     harm of anyone lawfully in the mine, shall be guilty of a
     felony, and, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not
     more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) and undergo
     imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years, or both.