North Dakota Permanent Regulatory Program

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

30 CFR Part 934

North Dakota Permanent Regulatory Program

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM),

Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment period and opportunity for public

hearing on proposed amendment.

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SUMMARY: OSM is announcing the receipt of a proposal amendment to the

North Dakota permanent regulatory program (hereinafter, the ``North

Dakota program'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act

of 1977 (SMCRA). The amendment consists of proposed changes in the

State's revegetation success document.

This document sets forth the times and locations that the North

Dakota program and proposed amendment to that program are available for

public inspection, the comment period during which interested persons

may submit written comments on the proposed amendment, and procedures

that will be followed regarding the public hearing, if one is

requested.

DATES: Written comments must be received by 4 p.m., m.s.t. April 13,

1994. If requested, a public hearing on the proposed amendment will be

held on April 8, 1994. Requests to present oral testimony at the

hearing must be received by 4 p.m., m.s.t. on March 29, 1994. Any

disabled individual who has need for a special accommodation to attend

a public hearing should contact the individual listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be mailed or hand delivered to Guy

Padgett at the address listed below.

Copies of the North Dakota program, the proposed amendment, and all

written comments received in response to this document will be

available for public review at the addresses listed below during normal

business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Each

requester may receive one free copy of the proposed amendment by

contacting OSM's Casper Field Office.

Guy Padgett, Director, Casper Field Office; Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement; 100 East B Street, room 2128; Casper, WY

82601-1918 (307) 261-5776.

Mr. Edward J. Englerth, Director, Reclamation Division; North Dakota

Public Service Commission Capitol Building; Bismarck, North Dakota

58505-0165 (701) 224-4092.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Guy V. Padgett, Telephone: (307) 261-

5776.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background on the North Dakota Program

On December 15, 1980, the Secretary of the Interior conditionally

approved the North Dakota program as administered by the North Dakota

Public Service Commission. General background information on the North

Dakota program, including the Secretary's findings, the disposition of

comments, and conditions of approval of the North Dakota program can be

found in the December 15, 1980 Federal Register (45 FR 82214).

Subsequent actions concerning North Dakota's program and program

amendments can be found at 30 CFR 934.15 and 934.16.

II. Proposed Amendment

By letter dated February 17, 1994, (Administrative Record No. ND-U-

01) North Dakota submitted a proposed amendment to its permanent

program pursuant to SMCRA. The North Dakota proposed amendment XX

consists of changes to the State revegetation success document

``Standards for Evaluation of Revegetation Success and Recommended

Procedures for Pre- and Postmining Vegetation Assessments'' including

changes to address required program amendments at 30 CFR 934.16 (b

through i, w and x).

The following areas are proposed for change:

(1) Section I-A regarding concurrence of other Federal and State

agencies and additional reference cites.

(2) Section II-B regarding various modifications to the Subsections

on County Soil Survey Estimates, Cropland Productivity Indexes, Average

County Spring Wheat Yields, SCS Yield Estimates, and Updating SCS Data.

(3) Section II-C, Subsection on Requirements for Successful

Revegetation regarding statistical confidence and management practices;

Subsection on Revegetation Success Standards for Third Stage Bond

Release regarding prime farmland standards; Subsection on Revegetation

Success Standards for Fourth-Stage Release regarding changes for the

crops most commonly grown and methods of calculating success standards.

(4) Section II-D, Subsection on Premining Assessment regarding

inventory requirements and range site descriptions; Subsection on

Postmining Assessment regarding cover data requirements and mapping;

Subsection on Fourth Stage Bond Release regarding the use of aerial

photography, cover data requirements, and mapping.

(5) Section II-E, Subsection on Requirements for Successful

Revegetation regarding changes to species composition, diversity,

seasonality and permanence; Subsection on Premining Assessment

regarding inventory requirements; Subsection on Postmining Assessment

regarding data requirements, mapping, species composition, and

production standards.

(6) Section II-F, Subsection on Requirements for Successful

Revegetation regarding consultation with State agencies, erosion

control, stocking rates, and survival measurements.

(7) Section II-G, Subsection on Definition of shelterbelt;

Subsection on Requirements for Successful Revegetation regarding ground

cover requirements, species composition data, replacement requirements,

and time in place requirements.

(8) Section II-H, Changes to the Introduction and Definitions for

fish and wildlife habitat; Subsection on Grasslands regarding

statistical requirements for ground cover measurements, composition

requirements, and data requirements; Subsection on Wetlands regarding

requirements for successful vegetation.

(9) Section III-B, changes to the use of soil mapping units in

calculating standards.

(10) Section III-C, changes to sampling designs.

(11) Section III-D, changes to the methods for measuring

productivity, cover, and diversity.

(12) Section III-E, changes to the methods of statistical analysis.

(13) Appendix A, changes to management practices.

III. Public Comment Procedures

In accordance with the provisions of 30 CFR 732.17(h), OSM is

seeking comments on whether the proposed amendment satisfies the

applicable program approval criteria of 30 CFR 732.15. If the amendment

is deemed adequate, it will become part of the North Dakota program.

Written Comments

Written comments should be specific, pertain only to the issue

proposed in this rulemaking, and include explanations in support of the

commentor's recommendations. Comments received after the time indicated

under DATES or at locations other than the Casper Field Office will not

necessarily be considered in the final rulemaking or included in the

administrative record.

Public Hearing

Persons wishing to testify at the public hearing should contact the

person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 4 p.m., m.s.t.

March 29, 1994. The location and time of the hearing will be arranged

with those persons requesting the hearing. If no one requests an

opportunity to testify at the public hearing, the hearing will not be

held.

Filing of a written statement at the time of the hearing is

requested as it will greatly assist the transcriber. Submission of

written statements in advance of the hearing will allow OSM officials

to prepare adequate responses and appropriate questions.

The public hearing will continue on the specified date until all

persons scheduled to comment have been heard. Persons in the audience

who have not been scheduled to testify, and who wish to do so, will be

heard following those who have been scheduled. The hearing will end

after all persons scheduled to testify and persons present in the

audience who wish to testify have been heard.

Public Meeting

If only one person requests an opportunity to testify at a hearing,

a public meeting, rather than a public hearing, may be held. Persons

wishing to meet with OSM representatives to discuss the proposed

amendment may request a meeting at the OSM office listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. All such meetings will be open to the

public and, if possible, notices of meetings will be posted at the

locations listed under ADDRESSES.

A written summary of each meeting will be made a part of the

administrative record.

IV. Procedural Determinations

Compliance With Executive Order 12866

This proposed rule is exempted from review by the office of

Management and Budget under Executive Order 12866 (Reduction of

Regulatory Burden).

Compliance With Executive Order 12778

The Department of the Interior has conducted the reviews required

by section 2 of Executive Order 12778 (Civil Justice Reform) and has

determined that this rule meets the applicable standards of subsections

(a) and (b) of that section. However, these standards are not

applicable to the actual language of State regulatory programs and

program amendments since each such program is drafted and promulgated

by a specific State, not by OSM. Under sections 503 and 505 of SMCRA

(30 U.S.C. 1253 and 1255) and the Federal regulations at 30 CFR 730.11,

732.15, and 732.17(h)(10), decisions on proposed State regulatory

programs and program amendments submitted by the States must be based

solely on a determination of whether the submittal is consistent with

SMCRA and its implementing Federal regulations and whether the other

requirements of 30 CFR parts 730, 731, and 732 have been met.

Compliance With the National Environmental Policy Act

No environmental impact statement is required for this rule since

section 702(d) of SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1292(d)) provides that agency

decisions on proposed State regulatory program provisions do not

constitute major Federal actions within the meaning of section

102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C.

4332(2)(C)).

Paperwork Reduction Act

This rule does not contain information collection requirements that

require approval by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.

3507 et seq.).

Compliance With the Regulatory Flexibility Act

The Department of the Interior has determined that this rule will

not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).

The State submittal which is the subject of this rule is based upon

counterpart Federal regulations for which an economic analysis was

prepared and certification made that such regulations would not have a

significant economic effect upon a substantial number of small

entities. Accordingly, this rule will ensure that existing requirements

previously promulgated by OSM will be implemented by the State. In

making the determination as to whether this rule would have a

significant economic impact, the Department relied upon the data and

assumptions for the counterpart Federal regulations.

List of Subjects in 30 CFR Part 934

Intergovernmental relations, Surface mining, Underground mining.

Dated: March 4, 1994.

Raymond L. Lowrie,

Assistant Director, Western Support Center.

[FR Doc. 94-5890 Filed 3-11-94; 8:45 am]

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