Colorado Regulatory Program

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is approving a proposed amendment to the Colorado regulatory program (hereinafter referred to as the ``Colorado program'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). Colorado proposed revisions to and additions of rules pertaining to Colorado's responsibility as regulatory authority for regulating surface coal mining and reclamation operations and coal exploration; definitions; commercial use or sale of coal extracted during coal exploration; public availability of information; right of entry and operation information; public notice and comment on permit applications; procedures for review of permit applications; criteria for permit approval or denial; permit conditions; permit revisions; allowance of self-bonds; terms and conditions for self-bonds; criteria and schedule for release of performance bonds; termination of jurisdiction; performance standards for signs and markers, haul and access roads, effluent standards for discharges of water from areas disturbed by surface coal mining and reclamation operations, blasting, and coal mine waste returned to underground mine workings; inspection frequency at abandoned sites; inspections based upon citizen requests; enforcement actions at abandoned sites; and show cause orders and patterns of violations involving violations of water quality effluent standards. The amendment was intended to revise the Colorado program to be consistent with the corresponding Federal regulations, incorporate the additional flexibility afforded by the revised Federal regulations, and improve operational efficiency.