{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-45-45-757","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 45, § 45-757","heading":"Prime farmland - Soil restoration - Exemptions","body":"If the area proposed to be mined contains prime farmland, the\n\nDepartment shall, after consultation with the United States\n\nSecretary of Agriculture, and pursuant to regulations issued by the\n\nUnited States Secretary of the Interior with the concurrence of the\n\nUnited States Secretary of Agriculture, grant a permit to mine on\n\nprime farmland if the Department finds in writing that the operator\n\nhas the technological capability to restore such mined area, within\n\na reasonable time, to equivalent or higher levels of yield as non-\n\nmined prime farmland in the surrounding area under equivalent levels\n\nof management and can meet the soil reconstruction standards. The\n\nrequirements of this section shall apply to all permits issued after\n\nAugust 3, 1977.\n\nNothing in this section shall apply to any permit issued prior\n\nto August 3, 1977, or to any revisions or renewals thereof, or to\n\nany existing surface mining operations for which a permit was issued\n\nprior to August 3, 1977.\n\n1. The operator shall be required to segregate the A horizon of\n\nthe natural soil, except where it can be shown that other available\n\nsoil materials will create a final soil having a greater productive\n\ncapacity; and if not utilized immediately, stockpile this material\n\nseparately from other spoil, and provide needed protection from wind\n\nand water erosion or contamination by other acid or toxic material;\n\n2. Segregate the B horizon of the natural soil, or underlying C\n\nhorizons or other strata, or a combination of such horizons or other\n\nstrata that are shown to be both texturally and chemically suitable\n\nfor plant growth and that can be shown to be equally or more\n\nfavorable for plant growth than the B horizon, in sufficient\n\nquantities to create in the regraded final soil a root zone of\n\ncomparable depth and quality to that which existed in the natural\n\nsoil; and if not utilized immediately, stockpile this material\n\nseparately from other spoil, and provide needed protection from wind\n\nand water erosion or contamination by other acid or toxic material;\n\n3. Replace and regrade the root zone material described in\n\nparagraph 2 above with proper compaction and uniform depth over the\n\nregraded spoil material; and\n\n4. Redistribute and grade in a uniform manner the surface soil\n\nhorizon described in paragraph 1 of this section.","path":["OK Code","Title 45"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os45.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"fa4f4dc14e27b742b34624f25fb81a36f22f2a786a81739eb18a1b74441742c1","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-45-45-756","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-45-45-760"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}