Section 040. Bonding (Rule 40)

An active surety bond or other means of acceptable surety payable to the Director of the Department of Wate r Resources shall be on file with the Director throughout the active life of the tailings disposal site. The purpose of thi s bond is to provide a means by which the tailings impoundment can be placed in a safe maintenance-free condition if abandoned by the owner without conforming to an abandonment plan approved by the Director. (3-30-23) 01. Filing of Bond. The bond shall be filed prior to any issuance by the Director of a certificate o f approval for use of the mine tailings impoundment structure to impound mine tailings slurry and shall run for th e approval period covered on the certificate of approval. (3-30-23) 02. Provisions of Bond. Bond provisions shall provide that the surety may be held liable for a perio d of up to five (5) years following notice of default on the bond. (3-30-23) 03. Amount of Bond. The bond amount will be set by the Director and is subject to revision each tim e it is renewed. The owner must obtain approval for the amount of his surety bond prior to each renewal. (3-30-23) 04. Cost Estimate Submitted by Engineer. In order to provide a basis for setting the bond amount , the engineer shall submit a cost estimate acceptable to the Director, together with conceptual details needed to arriv e at the estimate, for abandonment of the facility at each proposed stage of its construction. (3-30-23) 05. Current Costs for Abandonment. Bond amount will be based on current costs for abandonmen t of the facility based on the approved cost estimate for abandonment at the present construction condition or the nex t approved proposed stage, whichever represents the larger bond amount. (3-30-23) 06. Determination of Bond Amount. If the final abandonment is determined to be the most costl y condition, the owner may elect to use this as a basis for bonding throughout the life of the project

en t of the facility based on the approved cost estimate for abandonment at the present construction condition or the nex t approved proposed stage, whichever represents the larger bond amount. (3-30-23) 06. Determination of Bond Amount. If the final abandonment is determined to be the most costl y condition, the owner may elect to use this as a basis for bonding throughout the life of the project. The Director may , however, revise the bonding amount to reflect updated costs when he feels it is necessary in order to maintain a realistic bond. (3-30-23) 07. Filing Initial Bond. The initial bond shall be filed upon completion of the first stage o f construction and before the required certificate of approval is issued to allow storage of mine tailings slurry in th e impoundment. No certificate of approval shall be renewed prior to filing by the owner of a bond renewal in an amount approved by the Director. (3-30-23) 08. Filing Copy of Performance Bond. Upon the filing of a copy of a performance bond with the Director, covering the terms and conditions of a state of Idaho mineral lease or an approved reclamation plan, i n which these documents specify compliance with a plan of restoration of all mining operations, including the tailing s impounding structure, the Director may determine the bond required of this section has been met, if the amount of th e bond accurately reflects the cost associated with the abandonment plan provided by the owner. (3-30-23) 041. -- 044. (RESERVED)