Solano County Municipal Code Art. I General (CA)

29-10 Purpose and intent

(a) The Surface Mining and Reclamation Act, in Division 2, Chapter 9 of the Public Resources Code, authorizes and directs local agencies to adopt ordinances establishing procedures for the review and approval of reclamation plans and the issuance of permits to conduct mining operations. This chapter is adopted to comply with the directive and fulfill various purposes of the Act.

(b) The board of supervisors hereby finds and declares that the extraction of minerals is essential to the continued economic well-being of the county and to the needs of 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 board further finds that the reclamation of mined lands, as provided in this chapter, will permit the continued mining of materials and will provide for the protection and subsequent beneficial use of the mined and reclaimed land.

(d) The board further finds that surface mining takes place in diverse areas where geologic, topographic, climatic, geological and social conditions are significantly different and that reclamation operations and the specifications may vary accordingly.

(Ord. No. 1839, §3)

29-11. Incorporation of SMARA and state regulations

The provisions of this chapter are intended to impose requirements on surface mining operations and operators that are equivalent to, or more restrictive than, correlative provisions of SMARA and related state regulations. Where this chapter is more restrictive than, but not in conflict with, SMARA, this chapter shall prevail.

(a) In the event that the state amends SMARA to the extent that it adds to or conflicts with this chapter, state law shall prevail.

(Ord. No. 1839, §3)

29-12 Definitions

As used in this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

Areas of regional significance means an area designated by the State Mining and Geology Board pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 2790 which is known to contain a deposit of minerals, the extraction of which is judged to be in a particular region of the state within which the minerals are located and which, if prematurely developed for alternate incompatible land uses, could result in the permanent loss of minerals that are of more than local significance.

Areas of statewide significance means an area designated by the State Mining and Geology Board pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 2790 which is known to contain a deposit of minerals, the extraction of which is judged to be of prime importance in meeting future needs for minerals in the state and which, if prematurely developed for alternate incompatible land uses, could result in the permanent loss of minerals that are of more than local or regional significance.

Bench means a relatively level step excavated into earth material on which fill is to be placed.

Berm means an elongated earthen structure which acts as a barrier to make it difficult for a vehicle to cross, or to reduce the flow of water.

CEQA means the California Environmental Quality Act, Public Resources Code Section 21000 et seq.

Compatible land use means land uses inherently compatible with mining and/or that require a minimum public or private investment in structures, land improvements, and which may allow mining because of the relative economic value of the land and its improvements. Examples of such uses may include, but shall not be limited to, very low density residential, geographically extensive but low impact industrial, recreational, agricultural, silvicultural, grazing and open space.

County means the County of Solano, state of California.

Director means the director of the Solano County department of resource management or his/her designee.

Excavation means the mechanical removal of earthen material.

Exploration or prospecting means the search for minerals by geological, geophysical, geochemical and 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.

Farming means the management and/or cultivation of land for the production of crops or livestock.

Financial assurances means a current approved financial assurance cost estimate and financial assurance mechanism that is at least equal to the current approved financial assurance cost estimate.

Financial assurances cost estimate (FACE) means an estimate that is prepared and reviewed on an annual basis by the county, which is based on a mining operation’s existing conditions, performance standards of the approved reclamation plan and the methods, efforts, and direct and indirect expenses anticipated to achieve the performance standards and end use of the approved reclamation plan. The estimate shall also account for all materials, labor, annual inflation, and administrative costs that would be associated with the county or the Department of Conservation managing the performance of reclamation by a third party. The estimate shall serve as the basis for the financial assurance mechanism, which shall also be adjusted annually based on the outcome of the FACE.

Haul road means an internal road along which material is transported from the area of excavation to the processing plant or stockpile area of the surface mining operation.

Haul route means an external road along which previously excavated, processed or stockpiled material is transported to an off-site area.

Highwall means the unexcavated face of exposed overburden and ore in a surface mine.

Idle means that an operator of a surface mining operation has curtailed production at the surface mining operation, with the intent to resume the surface mining operation at a future date, for a period of one (1) year or more than ninety (90%) percent of its maximum annual mineral production within any of the last five (5) years during which an interim management plan has not been approved.

Incompatible land uses means land uses inherently incompatible with mining and/or that require public or private investment in structures, land improvements, and landscaping and that may prevent mining because of the greater economic value of the land and its improvements. Examples of such uses may include, but are not limited to, high density residential, low density residential with high unit value, public facilities, geographically limited but impact intensive industrial, and commercial.

Interim management plan (IMP) means an amendment to the approved reclamation plan that describes the measures the operator will implement during the mining operation’s idle status to maintain the site in compliance with the provisions of the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act (SMARA), including, but not limited to, all permit conditions. For purposes of CEQA, an IMP is not considered a project under CEQA.

Mine includes all mineral-bearing properties of whatever kind of character, whether underground, or in a quarry or pit, or any other source from which any mineral substance is or may be obtained, but excludes the recycling of materials such as asphalt and concrete and does not include backfilling operations, such as those typically associated with sanitary landfills or backfilling of material usually through the issuance of a grading permit.

Mined lands 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 wastes, and areas in which structures, facilities, equipment, machines, tools, or other materials or property which result from, or are used in, areas in which 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, bituminous rock, but excluding geothermal resources, natural gas and petroleum.

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

Nonsubstantial deviation means an amendment to a reclamation plan involving insignificant changes and does not require review under CEQA.

On-site construction means the construction of buildings, roads or other improvements including landscaping, excavation and grading required to prepare a site for construction of structures, landscaping or other land improvements, and which is beneficially modified by such construction, is not deemed to be a surface mining operation. Additionally, all required permits for the construction, landscaping, or related land improvements must be obtained from the county in accordance with applicable provisions of state law and locally adopted plans and ordinances.

Operator means any person who is engaged in surface mining operations, or who contracts with others to conduct operations on the operator’s behalf but does not include a person engaged in surface mining operations as an employee with wages as the person’s sole compensation.

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

Permit means any authorization from or approval by the county, the absence of which would preclude surface mining operations.

Person includes 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 combined 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 to 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.

Reclamation plan means the plan approved by the County of Solano and, as required, by the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975, which meets all the requirements of Section 2772 of the Public Resources Code, administrative guidelines and regulations adopted pursuant thereto, and ordinances and resolutions of Solano County adopted in accordance therewith. A reclamation plan shall include, but not be limited to, environmental setting of the site, effect that possible alternate reclaimed site conditions may have upon existing and future uses of surrounding lands, the designed steepness and proposed treatment of mined lands, such as final slopes, physical properties of slope material, maximum water content, landscaping requirements, slope stability, backfilling and grading, disposition of equipment, stream or watercourse diversions, roads, building sites, or other improvements sensitive to settlement, compaction of fill materials in conformance with good engineering practice, as well as other factors applicable to the site as further described in Section 29-23.

Reclamation plan amendment is defined as an amendment to the approved reclamation plan. The amendment may be considered by the planning commission or the director of resource management based on authorization and jurisdiction as defined within this chapter.

Riparian vegetation means vegetation situated on the bank of a stream, river, or other body of water.

SMARA means the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975, Public Resources Code Section 2710 et seq.

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

State Geologist means the individual holding office created by Section 677 of the Public Resources Code.

Substantial deviation means a change or deviation from the originally approved reclamation plan, as determined by the director of resource management, that could include a change in the end use, slope configurations, new stream or watercourse diversions that were not contained in the original plan, increase in quantities of materials to be mined or displaced as well as a change in the time periods for the completion of mining and reclamation, change in mining boundaries as an example, as well as the following factors outlined in California Code of Regulations Section 3502(d), which include but are not limited to: (1) a substantial increase in the disturbance of a surface area or in the maximum depth of mining; (2) a substantial extension of the termination date of the mining operation as set out in an approved reclamation plan; (3) changes that would substantially affect the approved end use of the site as established by the reclamation plan; (4) the consistency of any proposed change to the operation with the previously adopted environmental determinations; and (5) any other changes that the county deems substantial deviations as defined in this section, and shall not be undertaken until such time as an amendment to the reclamation plan has been filed with, and approved by, the planning commission. Any amendments to a reclamation plan must be reviewed by the Department of Conservation pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 2772.1.

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, open pit mining of minerals naturally exposed, mining by auger method, dredging and quarrying, or surface work incident to an underground mine. Surface mining operations shall include, but are not limited to:

(a) In-place distillation, retorting or leaching;

(b) The production and disposal of mining waste;

(d) Gravel extraction operation;

(e) Borrow pits; and

(f) Segregation and stockpiling of mined materials (and recovery of same).

Terrace means a relatively level step constructed in the face of a graded slope surface for drainage and maintenance purposes.

Topsoil means the upper part of the soil profile that is relatively rich in humus, which is typically known as the “A-horizon” of the soil profile.

Turbidity means a condition where water is cloudy or muddy due to the presence of suspended matter such as clay, silt, finely divided organic and inorganic matter, plankton, and other microscopic organisms.

Vested Right. A person shall be deemed to have vested rights if, prior to January 1, 1976, the person has, in good faith and in reliance upon a permit or other authorization if such permit or other authorization was required and was in compliance with county regulations, diligently commenced surface mining operations and incurred substantial liabilities for work and materials necessary. Expenses incurred in obtaining the enactment of an ordinance in relation to a particular operation or the issuance of a permit shall not be deemed liabilities for work or materials. No person who obtained a vested right to conduct surface mining operations prior to January 1, 1976, shall be required to secure a permit to mine, so long as the vested right continues and as long as no substantial changes have been made in the operation except in accordance with SMARA, state regulations, and this chapter. The provisions describing vested rights, as set forth in Public Resources Code Section 2776 and California Code of Regulations Section 3505(b), as amended, are made part of this chapter by reference with the same force and effect as if those provisions were specifically and fully set out herein. Persons conducting mining operations after January 1, 1976, under vested rights described herein, shall obtain county approval of a reclamation plan pursuant to this chapter, and be subject to all other requirements of SMARA and this chapter and other applicable state and local laws. The determination of the nature and scope of a vested right to conduct mining operations shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures described in Section 29-20.

(Ord. No. 1839, §3)

29-13 Scope

(a) The provisions of this chapter shall apply to surface mining operations and reclamation of mined lands within unincorporated areas of Solano County. The provisions of this chapter have been designed to encompass borrow pits, dredging operations, quarry operations and other surface mining operations conducted in Solano County.

(b) Exemptions. The provisions of this chapter are not applicable to:

(1) Excavations or grading conducted for farming.

(2) On-site excavation and on-site earthmoving activities that are integral and necessary for the construction of structures and that are undertaken to prepare a site for the construction of those structures, including landscaping or other land improvements associated with those structures, including related excavation, grading, compaction, or the creation of fills, road cuts, and embankments, whether or not surplus materials are exported from the site, subject to all of the following conditions:

(A) All required permits for the construction and any associated landscaping or related land improvements have been approved by a public agency in accordance with applicable provisions of state law and locally adopted plans and ordinances, including, but not limited to, the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)).

(B) The lead agency’s approval of the construction project included consideration of the on-site excavation and on-site earthmoving activities pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)).

(D) Surplus materials shall not be exported from the site unless and until actual construction work has commenced and shall cease if it is determined that construction activities have terminated, and have been indefinitely suspended, or are no longer being actively pursued.

(3) Operation of a plant site used for mineral processing, including associated on-site structures, equipment, machines, tools, or other materials, including the on-site stockpiling and on- site recovery of mined materials, subject to all of the following conditions:

(A) The plant site is located on lands designated for industrial and commercial uses in the county’s general plan.

(B) The plant site is located on lands zoned as industrial or commercial or are contained within a zoning category intended exclusively for industrial activities by the county.

(D) All reclamation work has been completed pursuant to the approved reclamation plan for any mineral extraction activities that occurred on site after 1976.

(4) Prospecting for or the extraction of minerals for commercial purposes where the removal of overburden or mineral product totals less than one thousand (1,000) cubic yards in any one (1) location and the total surface area described is less than one (1) acre.

(5) Surface mining operations that are required by federal law in order to protect a mining claim if those operations are conducted solely for that purpose.

(6) Any other surface mining operations that the State Mining and Geology Board determines to be of an infrequent nature and that involve only minor surface disturbances.

(7) Emergency excavations or grading conducted by the Department of Water Resources or the Central Valley Flood Protection Board for the purpose of averting, alleviating, repairing, or restoring damage to property due to imminent or recent floods, disasters, or other emergencies.

(8) Surface mining operations conducted on lands owned or leased, or upon which easements or rights-of-way have been obtained, by the Department of Water Resources for the purpose of the State Water Resources Development System or flood control, and surface mining operations on lands owned or leased, or upon which easements or rights-of-way have been obtained, by the Central Valley Flood Protection Board for the purpose of flood control, if the Department of Water Resources adopts, after submission to and consultation with the Division of Mine Reclamation, a reclamation plan for lands affected by these activities, and those lands are reclaimed in conformance with the standards specified in regulations of the State Mining and

Geology Board adopted pursuant to this chapter. The Department of Water Resources shall provide an annual report to the Department of Conservation by the date specified by the Department of Conservation on these surface mining operations.

(9) Nothing in this section shall require the Department of Water Resources or the Central Valley Flood Protection Board to obtain a permit or secure approval of a reclamation plan from the county in order to conduct surface mining operations specified in subsection (b)(8) of this section. Nothing in this section shall preclude the bringing of enforcement action pursuant to Section 2774.1 of SMARA, if it is determined that the operator, acting under contract with the Department of Water Resources or the Central Valley Flood Protection Board on lands other than those owned or leased, or upon which easements or rights-of-way have been obtained, by the Department of Water Resources or the central Valley Flood Protection Board, is otherwise not in compliance with this chapter.

(10) Emergency excavations or grading for the exclusive purpose of obtaining materials for roadbed construction and maintenance conducted in connection with timber operations or forest management on land owned by the same person or entity. This exemption is limited to excavation and grading that is conducted adjacent to timber operation or forest management roads and shall not apply to on-site excavation or grading that occurs within one hundred (100') feet of a class one watercourse or seventy-five (75') feet of a class two watercourse, or to excavation for materials that are, or have been, sold for commercial purposes.

(A) This exemption shall be available only if slope stability and erosion are controlled in accordance with Sections 3704(f) and 3706(d) of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations and, upon closing the site implements, where necessary, revegetation measures and post closure uses in consultation with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

(11) Excavations, grading, or other earthmoving activities in an oil or gas field that are integral to and necessary for ongoing operations for the extractions of oil and gas that comply with all of the following conditions:

(A) The operations are being conducted in accordance with Division 3 (commencing with Section 3000).

(B) The operations are consistent with the county’s general plan and zoning applicable to the site.

(D) No excavated materials are sold for commercial purposes.

(12) An exemption under this section does not automatically exempt a project or activity from the application of CEQA, the requirement of use permits, grading permits, or other permits, or the imposition of monitoring fees or excavations as may be permitted by law.

(A) The immediate excavation or grading of lands affected by a natural disaster for the purpose of restoring those lands to their prior condition.

(B) The immediate removal of material deposited by a flood onto land being farmed for the purpose of restoring those lands to their prior condition.

(Ord. No. 1839, §3)