Chapter 18.90 — SURFACE MINING AND RECLAMATION

• A. The ordinance codified in this chapter is adopted pursuant to the California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975, Chapter 9, Public Resources Code .

• B. The City Council finds and declares that the extraction of minerals is essential to the continued economic well-being of the City and to the needs of the society, and that the reclamation of mined lands is necessary to prevent or minimize adverse effects on the environment and to protect the public health and safety.

• C. The City Council further finds that the reclamation of mined lands as provided in this chapter will permit the continued mining of minerals and will provide for the protection and subsequent beneficial use of the mined and reclaimed land.

• D. The City Council further finds that surface mining takes place in diverse areas where the geologic, topographic, biological and social conditions may be significantly different and that reclamation operations and the specifications therefor may vary accordingly.

• E. The Council further finds that the sand found within the City is unique and suitable for a coastal dependent industry.

• (Ord. 84-3 §011)

For the purpose of this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings:

"Coastal permit" means a permit for any development within the coastal zone as set forth in Title 18 of this code.

Expanded surf zone mining. "Expansion of existing surf zone mining operations" means a significant increase in dragline capacity through multiple draglines, larger buckets or change in dragline location.

"Exploration" or "prospecting" means the search for minerals by geological, geophysical, geochemical or other techniques, including, but not limited to, sampling, assaying, drilling, or any surface or underground works needed to determine the type, extent, or quantity of minerals present.

"Local coastal program" means the adopted Local Coastal Land Use and Implementation Plan for the City as certified by the California Coastal Commission.

"Mined lands" means and includes the surface, subsurface and groundwater of an area in which surface mining operations will be, are being, or have been conducted, including private ways and roads appurtenant to any such area, land excavations, workings, mining waste, and areas in which structures, facilities, equipment, machines, tools, or other materials or property which result from, or are used in, surface mining operations are located.

"Minerals" means any naturally occurring chemical element or compound, or groups of elements and compounds, formed from inorganic processes and organic substances, including, but not limited

to, coal, peat and bituminous rock, but excluding geothermal resources, natural gas and petroleum.

"Mining waste" means and includes the residual of soil, rock, mineral, liquid, vegetation, equipment, machines, tools or other materials or property directly resulting from, or displaced by, surface mining operation.

"Operator" means any person who is engaged in surface mining operations him or herself, or who contracts with others to conduct operations on his or her behalf.

"Overburden" means soil, rock, or other materials that lie above a natural mineral deposit or in between deposits, before or after their removal, by surface mining operations.

"Permit" means any formal authorization from, or approved by, the City, the absence of which would preclude surface mining operations.

"Person" means any individual, firm, association, corporation, organization or partnership, or any city, county, district, or the state or any department or agency thereof.

"Reclamation" means the process of land treatment that minimizes water degradation, air pollution, damage to aquatic or wildlife habitat, flooding, erosion and other adverse effects from surface mining operations, including adverse surface effects incidental to underground mines, so that mined lands are reclaimed to a usable condition which is readily adaptable for alternate land uses and create no danger to public health or safety. The process may extend to affected lands surrounding mined lands, and may require backfilling, grading, resoiling, revegetation, soil compaction, stabilization or other measures.

cluding adverse surface effects incidental to underground mines, so that mined lands are reclaimed to a usable condition which is readily adaptable for alternate land uses and create no danger to public health or safety. The process may extend to affected lands surrounding mined lands, and may require backfilling, grading, resoiling, revegetation, soil compaction, stabilization or other measures.

"State board" means the State Mining and Geology Board, in the Department of Conservation, State of California.

"State geologist" means the individual holding office as structured in Section 677 of Article 3, Chapter 2 of Division 1 of the Public Resources Code.

"Stockpiled sand" means existing and proposed stockpiled areas of harvested, processed sand whose removal will not impact a natural dune formation, and is located in areas designated for such sand on a map approved by the City consistent with Local Coastal Land Use Plan policies.

"Surface mining operations" means all or any part of the process involved in the mining of minerals on mined lands by removing overburden and mining directly from the mineral deposits, openpit mining of minerals naturally exposed, mining by the auger method, dredging and quarrying, or surface work incident to an underground mine. Surface mining operations shall include, but are not limited to:

1. In-place distillation, retorting or leaching;

2. The production and disposal of mining waste;

3. Prospecting and exploratory activities.

(Ord. 84-3 §012)

• A. The provisions of this chapter shall apply to the incorporated areas of the City.

• B. The provisions of this chapter are not applicable to:

  1. Excavations or grading conducted for on-site construction or for the purpose of restoring land following a natural disaster;

  2. Prospecting and exploration for minerals of commercial value where less than 1,000 cubic yards of overburden is removed in any one location of one acre or less;

  3. Road clearing and removal of stockpile sand;

  4. Any surface mining operation that does not involve either the removal of a total of more than 1,000 cubic yards of minerals, ores and overburden, or involve more than one acre in any one location;

  5. Surface mining operations that are required by federal law in order to protect a mining claim, if such operations are conducted solely for that purpose;

  6. Such other mining operations that the City determines to be of an infrequent nature, and which involve only minor surface disturbances and are categorically identified (no such identification made as of the effective date of the regulations codified in this chapter) by the State Board pursuant to Section 2714(d) and 2758(c), California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975.

• (Ord. 84-3 §013)

• A. Any person, except as provided in Section 2776, California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975, who proposes to engage in surface mining operations as defined in this chapter shall, prior to the commencement of such operations, obtain:

  1. A permit to mine; and

  2. Approval of a reclamation plan, in accordance with the provisions set forth in this chapter and as further provided in Article 5, California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975.

A fee as established for the permitted uses in the City fee ordinance, shall be paid to the City at City Hall at the time of filing.

All applications for a reclamation plan for surface mining operations shall be made on forms provided at Sand City Hall and as called for by Section 2772 of California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975.

• B. No person who has obtained a vested right to conduct a surface mining operation prior to January 1, 1976, shall be required to secure a permit pursuant to the provisions of this chapter as long as such vested right continues; provided, that no substantial change is made in that operation except in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. A person shall be deemed to have such vested rights if, prior to January 1, 1976, he or she has in good faith and in reliance upon a permit or other authorization, if such permit or other authorization was required, diligently commenced and continued surface mining operations.

A person who has obtained a vested right to conduct surface mining operations prior to January 1, 1976, shall submit to the City Hall and receive within a period of two years or a time period as determined by the Planning Director, approval of a reclamation plan for operations to be conducted after January 1, 1976, unless a reclamation plan was approved by the City prior to January 1, 1976, and the person submitting that plan has accepted responsibility for reclaiming the mined lands in accordance with that plan. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as requiring the filing of a reclamation plan for, or the reclamation of, mined lands on which surface mining operations were conducted prior to, but not after, January 1, 1976.

• C. The State Geologist shall be notified of the filing of all permit applications.

• D. This chapter shall be continuously reviewed and revised, as necessary, in order to ensure that it is in accordance with the state policy for mined lands reclamation.

• E. New surf zone mining or expansion of existing surf zone sand mining shall be allowed only pursuant to approval of a coastal permit, mining permit and a reclamation plan.

• F. The City shall also establish a method of monitoring shoreline erosion along the City coast for the purpose of analyzing future mining proposals. This method shall consist of the submission by sand mining operations, on an annual basis, of meaningful information on shoreline retreat by way of a benchmark program or other equally effective measurement. In order to establish reference base data for the purpose of monitoring shoreline erosion it is required that all operators of existing mining operations submit to the planning department a brief written statement specifying the approximate annual volume of sand being removed and a topographic map, at a scale of one inch equals 100 feet, with two foot contour intervals. All elevations on said map shall be based on city data. Said maps may also be prepared by a licensed surveyor or civil engineer. All areas being mined shall be clearly and accurately outlined on said topographic map. The information specified above shall be certified for accuracy and be submitted by the operator to the City.

  1. Initial Submittal. Initial submittal of the reference base data shall be completed by existing operators within six months from the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter.

  2. Subsequent Resubmittal. Updated reference base data shall be resubmitted to the planning department by January 1, 1985, and every January 1st thereafter.

  3. New Mining Operations. New mining operations will be required to submit reference base data concurrent with the application for a mining permit and reclamation plan approval and shall also be required to resubmit updated reference base data every January 1st thereafter.

G. Development of dune management programs shall be required as part of reclamation plans. (Ord. 84-3 §014)

The City Council shall review the permit application and the reclamation plan and shall schedule a public hearing within 30 days of the filing of both the permit application and the reclamation plan. Such public hearing shall be held by the Council for the purpose of consideration of the issuance of a permit for the proposed surface mining operation.

The City Council retains the right subsequent to mining permit review and/or reclamation plan review to modify the terms of any mining permit and/or reclamation plan to assure continuing compliance with the local coastal program. Furthermore, the City Council may consider and approve modifications of any mining permits and/or reclamation plans so long as it finds that any such modification is in compliance with the local coastal program and any approved reclamation plan.

The City shall not approve or renew a coastal permit for new or expanded surf zone sand mining if it finds that such new or expanded sand mining, either individually or cumulatively, will have significant adverse impacts on shoreline erosion. Such determination shall be made upon consideration of the results of the continuing shoreline erosion monitoring program, available evidence on the impact of surf zone sand mining on coastal erosion, and other relevant social, economic, environmental and technological factors. (Ord. 84-3 §015)

The reclamation plan shall state that the operator, applicant, and permittee guarantee and accept responsibility for all reclamation work for the life of the surface mining operation and for a period of two years after completion of such operation or such greater period as may be determined necessary to assure the permanence of physical reclamation features. (Ord. 84-3 §016)

Reclamation plans, reports, applications and other documents submitted pursuant to this chapter are public records unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the City that the release of such information, or part thereof, would reveal production, reserves, or rate of depletion entitled to protection as proprietary information. The City shall identify such proprietary information as a separate part of each application. A copy of all permits, reclamation plans, reports, applications, and other documents submitted pursuant to this chapter, including proprietary information, shall be furnished to the district geologist of the State Division of Mines and Geology by the City. Proprietary information shall be made available to persons other than the State Geologist only when authorized by the mine operator and by the mine owner in accordance with Section 2778, California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975.

(Ord. 84-3 §017)

As a condition of approval for the permit or the reclamation plan, or both, a schedule for periodic inspections of the site shall be established to evaluate continuing compliance with the permit and the reclamation plan and the City's local coastal program. (Ord. 84-3 §018)

Amendments to an approved reclamation plan may be submitted to the City at any time, detailing proposed changes from the original plan. Substantial deviations from the original plan shall not be undertaken until such amendment has been filed with, and approved by, the City. (Ord. 84-3 §019)

Variances from an approved reclamation plan may be allowed upon request of the operator and applicant, and upon a finding by the City Council that each requested variance is necessary to achieve the prescribed or higher post-mining use of the reclaimed land and is consistent with the City local coastal program if property is located within the coastal zone. (Ord. 84-3 §020)

The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the City Council or such other persons as may be designated by the City Council. (Ord. 84-3 §021)