Bill > SB1080

This bill amends Section 3 of Enrolled House Bill No. 2471 of the 1st Session of the 57th Oklahoma Legislature, which relates to mining procedures. The key provisions of this bill are: 1. It defines a "subject mine" as a mine that overlies a sensitive sole source groundwater basin or subbasin, with certain exceptions. 2. It establishes a moratorium on the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) issuing permits or authorizations for the appropriation, diversion, withdrawal, or removal of water from the pit of a subject mine, as well as issuing offsets to the consumptive use of water of a subject mine based on claimed augmentation of stream flow or groundwater. 3. The moratorium will remain in effect until the OWRB, in coordination with other state agencies and universities, completes a study on the Eastern Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer and develops technical tools to accurately measure and project the impact of groundwater withdrawals on springs and streams, and promulgates final rules to integrate the use of such studies and tools into its administrative implementation. 4. The bill also requires the OWRB to promulgate rules to provide for effective interagency consultation and coordination of activities among the OWRB, the Department of Mines, and the Department of Environmental Quality on matters relating to the operation of mines at locations that overlie a sensitive sole source groundwater basin or subbasin. 5. The bill has an effective date of November 1, 2019.

http://www.oklegislature.gov/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=sb1080&Session=2000