Section 182.12. Inspections.

 

(1)  Personnel or agents of the department may accompany employees of the owner on any routine inspection required by these rules, or conduct inspections of their own on the mine waste facilities licensed under this chapter at any other time which is reasonable under the circumstances involved. Personnel or agents of the department may also examine any routine inspection reports and shall be furnished copies thereof upon request.

(2)  A qualified representative of the owner of a mine waste facility licensed pursuant to this chapter shall, at least weekly except as hereinafter provided, visually inspect the following:

(a) The active sites or facilities including dams for possible damage or structural weakening;

(b) Waste handling and monitoring equipment and readings to ensure normal operation and measurements;

(c) Fences or barriers for possible damage;

(d) The buffer area around the facility for possible environmental damage related to its operation;

(3)  The observations made in each visual inspection shall be recorded in the facility's operating log as set forth in these rules.

(4)  Active dam sites shall be inspected monthly by a qualified representative of the owner. The findings on each inspection shall be recorded and filed with the department. Items to be noted on the inspections shall include, but not be limited to:

(a) Condition of vegetation on the dam and within 50 feet from the outside base;

(b) Piezometric levels within the mass of the dam;

(c) Condition of soil surfaces on top and slopes of the dam and within 50 feet from the outside base;

(d) Condition of drainage ditches near the base;

(e) Liquid surface level and amount of freeboard; and

(f) Condition of spillways, conduits and water level control structures.

(5)  Inactive dams shall be inspected quarterly by a qualified representative of the owner. The findings on each inspection shall be recorded and filed with the department. Such inspection shall include:

(a) Condition of soil surfaces on the crest, slopes and within 50 feet from the outside base;

(b) Determination of piezometric levels within the mass of the dam where such instrumentation has been determined to be necessary or required in the long-term care section of the plan of operation; and

(c) Condition of spillways, conduits and water level control structures.

(6)  When a potentially defective condition is found during an inspection, the owner shall ensure that it is recorded and corrected at the earliest practicable time. A report of the condition shall be made to the department immediately and the actions proposed and taken for its correction shall be made to the department at the earliest practicable time. The department shall notify the owner, in writing, of the title, address and telephone number of the person to whom any report under this section shall be given, which notification shall specifically refer to this section and shall specify to whom reports are made both inside and outside of normal working hours. The department may confirm correction of the condition and specify any necessary additional corrective action. Any of the following items shall be considered as indicating a condition which requires prompt investigation and may require corrective action:

(a) Seepage on the outer face of the dam accompanied by boils, sand cones or deltas.

(b) Silt accumulations, boils, deltas or cones in the drainage ditches at dam bases.

(c) Cracking of soil surface on crest or either face of the dam.

(d) Bulging of the outside face.

(e) Seepage, damp area, or boils in vicinity of or erosion around a conduit through the dam.

(f) Any shrinkage of the crest or faces.

(7)  The following conditions indicate potential defects and shall be closely checked on subsequent inspections for an active dam and necessitate an intermediate inspection of an inactive dam:

(a) Patches of overgrowth vegetation on the outside face or close to the base.

(b) Surface erosion, gullying or wave erosion on the inside of the dam.

(c) Surface erosion, gullying or damp areas on the outside of the dam, including the berm and the area within 50 feet from the outside base.

(d) Erosion below any conduit.

(e) Wet areas or soggy soil on the outside or in natural soil below dam.

History: Cr. Register, August, 1982, No. 320 , eff. 9-1-82.