GENERAL
§ 89.101. General requirements.
(a) Impoundments shall meet the structural design, construction and other requirements of this subchapter. The detailed design plan for large impoundments as described in § 89.111(a) (relating to large impoundments) or when impoundments meet or exceed the MSHA size classification or other criteria of 30 CFR 77.216(a) (relating to water sediment or slurry impoundment and impounding structures; general) shall be prepared by or under the direction of, and certified by, a qualified registered professional engineer with assistance, as necessary, from experts in related fields such as geology, land surveying and landscape architecture. The detailed design plan for other impoundments shall be prepared by or under the direction of, and certified by, a qualified registered professional engineer or qualified registered professional land surveyor.
(b) An impoundment as described in § 89.111(a) or when impoundments meet or exceed the MSHA size classification or other criteria of 30 CFR 77.216(a) shall be inspected during construction and certified after construction and annually thereafter by a qualified registered professional engineer until removal of the structure or release of the performance bond. Impoundments other than those described in § 89.111(a) or impoundments which do not meet or exceed the MSHA size classification or other criteria of 30 CFR 77.216(a) shall be inspected during construction and certified after construction and annually thereafter, by a qualified registered professional engineer or qualified registered professional land surveyor until removal of the structure or release of the performance bond. The professional engineer or professional land surveyor making the inspections or certifications shall be experienced in the construction of impoundments. A certification report shall include monitoring and instrumentation results and a statement regarding the condition of the impoundment. The impoundment shall be certified that it has been constructed and is being maintained as designed and in accordance with the approved plan and applicable performance standards.
(c) An impoundment shall be examined by a qualified person designated by the operator at intervals not exceeding 7 days for structural weakness, erosion and other hazardous conditions. Impoundments less than 20 feet in height or 20 acre feet of storage shall be inspected once every 3 months unless otherwise required by the Department. If an examination or inspection discloses that a potential hazard exists, the person who examined the impoundment shall promptly inform the Department of the finding and provide a remedial action plan to protect the public. If adequate procedures cannot be formulated or implemented the Department will then notify the appropriate agencies that other emergency procedures are required to protect the public. The permittee shall make and retain a record of the inspection, including record of actions taken to correct deficiencies found in the inspection. A copy of the record shall be provided to the Department on request.
(d) Impoundments subject to 30 CFR 77.216-1 and 77.216-2 (relating to water, sediment or slurry impoundments and impounding structures; identification; and water, sediment, or slurry impoundments and impounding structures; minimum plan requirements; changes or modifications; certification) shall have duplicate plans submitted to the District Manager of MSHA and to the Department. The Department may consider MSHA’s review for impoundments. However, the Department will review impoundments under the requirement of § 89.111(b).
Authority The provisions of this § 89.101 amended under the Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation Act (52 P. S. § § 1396.1—1396.19a); the Bituminous Mine Subsidence and Land Conservation Act (52 P. S. § § 1406.1—1406.21); The Clean Streams Law (35 P. S. § § 691.1—691.1001); and section 1920-A of The Administrative Code of 1929 (71 P. S. § 510-20).
Source The provisions of this § 89.101 adopted December 19, 1980, 10 Pa.B. 4789, effective July 31, 1982, 12 Pa.B. 2382; amended July 30, 1982, 12 Pa.B. 2473, effective July 31, 1982, 12 Pa.B. 2382; amended June 15, 1990, 20 Pa.B. 3383, effective July 27, 1991, 21 Pa.B. 3316; amended December 15, 1995, effective December 16, 1995, 25 Pa.B. 5821. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (199252) to (199253).
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