{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-350.445","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 350.445","heading":"Steep -slope strip mining -- Performance standards -- Conditions for","body":"disturbing land above highwall for road construction.\nThe following performance standards shall be applicable to steep -slope strip mining and\nshall be in addition to those general per formance standards required by KRS 350.405 to\n350.435; provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not apply to those\nsituations in which a permittee or operator is mining on flat or gently rolling terrain, on\nwhich an occasional steep slo pe is encountered through which the mining operation is to\nproceed, leaving a plain or predominantly flat area, or where a permittee or operator is in\ncompliance with the provisions of KRS 350.450(2):\n(1) The permittee or operator shall insure that when pe rforming strip mining on steep\nslopes, debris, abandoned or disabled equipment, spoil material, or waste mineral\nmatter not be placed on the downslope below the bench or mining cut; provided,\nthat spoil material in excess of that required for the reconstru ction of the\napproximate original contour under the provisions of KRS 350.410 or 350.445(2)\nshall be permanently stored pursuant to KRS 350.440.\n(2) The permittee or operator shall complete backfilling with spoil material and shall be\nrequired to cover com pletely the highwall and return the site to the approximate\noriginal contour, which material will maintain stability following mining and\nreclamation.\n(3) The permittee or operator may not disturb land above the top of the highwall unless\nthe cabinet finds  that the disturbance will facilitate compliance with the\nenvironmental protection standards of this subsection; provided, however, that the\nland disturbed above the highwall shall be limited to that amount necessary to\nfacilitate compliance. The land abov e the highwall may be disturbed for\nconstruction of a permanent road only where the applicant affirmatively\ndemonstrates, and the cabinet makes a detailed and written determination, that the\nproposed disturbance facilitates compliance with this chapter and  provided that the\nland disturbed shall be limited to that amount necessary to facilitate such\ncompliance. The cabinet shall make this determination upon a demonstration by the\npermittee that:\n(a) The permittee will completely eliminate the production high wall and backfill\nthe mined areas to approximate original contour with no road remaining on\nthe bench;\n(b) The road will be placed on a solid base rather than on fill material and\ndrainage will be diverted from the mining area;\n(c) The road will comply wit h all applicable design criteria, including a drainage\nplan for avoiding seepage or uncontrolled discharge of water into the\nbackfilled areas;\n(d) The spoil calculations and spoil disposal plans include the road cut material\nand the extent, if any, that ro ad cut material will be used to eliminate a\nproduction highwall;\n(e) The road will connect to another road or roads and is necessary in order to\nsupport the approved postmining land uses;\n(f) Where practical and feasible, an undisturbed barrier will be lef t between the\nproduction highwall and the road itself. When an undisturbed barrier is not\nfeasible, witness monuments will be left at a minimum of two (2) locations\nabove the production highwall;\n(g) The road will be constructed to a size and design approp riate to the proposed\npost-mining land use;\n(h) The proposed mine plan and sequencing of the road construction in relation to\nthe mining activity will minimize placement of spoil material into valley or\nhollow fills and will maximize permanent retention of  mined spoil on the\nmine bench;\n(i) There will be no coal removal from the construction of the permanent road\nexcept for incidental nonmerchantable coal that is disposed of in an approved\nmanner; and\n(j) All other performance standards of the chapter are met.\n(4) For the purposes of this section, the term \"steep slope\" is any slope above twenty\n(20) degrees or such lesser slope as may be defined by the cabinet, by regulation,\nafter consideration of soil, climate, and other characteristics of the region.","path":["KRS Chapter 350"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=32849","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:58:36Z","sha256":"f24e95ee519eda0dd80a3897e936df6f3ff486ef6252bdc8c5881d53d60bd2f9","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-350.440","next":"us-ky/krs-350.450"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}