N.M. Code R. § 19.8.9.909
PONDS, IMPOUNDMENTS, BANKS, DAMS AND EMBANKMENTS:
A. General. Each application shall include a general plan for each proposed sedimentation pond, water impoundment, and coal processing waste bank, dam, or embankment within the proposed permit area.
(1) Each general plan shall:
(a) be prepared by, or under the direction of, and certified by a registered professional engineer, with assistance from experts in related fields such as land surveying, reclamation or mined land rehabilitation;
(b) contain a description, map, and cross section of the structure and its location;
(c) contain preliminary hydrologic and geologic information required to assess the hydrologic impact of the structure;
(d) contain a survey describing the potential effect on the structure from subsidence of the subsurface strata resulting from past underground mining operations if underground mining has occurred; and
(e) contain a certification statement which includes a schedule setting forth the dates that any detailed design plans for structures that are not submitted with the general plan will be submitted to the director; the director shall have approved, in writing, the detailed design plan for a structure before construction of the structure begins.
(2) Each detailed design plan for a structure that meets the U.S. natural resources conservation service class B or C criteria for dams in NRCS technical release No. 60 (210-VI-TR60, Oct. 1985), "earth dams and reservoirs", or meets or exceeds the size or other criteria of the mine safety and health administration, 30 CFR 77.216(a) shall:
(a) be prepared by, or under the direction of, and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer with assistance from experts in related fields such as geology, land surveying, reclamation or mined land rehabilitation;
(b) include any geotechnical investigation, design, and construction requirements for the structure;
(c) describe the operation and maintenance requirements for each structure; and
(d) describe the timetable and plans to remove each structure, if appropriate.
(3) Each detailed design plan for a structure that does not equal or exceed the size or other criteria in Paragraph (2) of Subsection A of 19.8.9.909 NMAC shall:
(a) be prepared by, or under the direction of, and certified by a qualified registered professional engineer or registered land surveyor except that all coal processing waste dams and embankments covered by 19.8.20.2047 through 2049 NMAC shall be certified by qualified registered professional engineer;
(b) include any design and construction requirements for the structure, including any required geotechnical information;
(c) describe the operation and maintenance requirements for each structure; and
(d) describe the timetable and plans to remove each structure, if appropriate.
E. Coal processing waste dams and embankments. Coal processing waste dams and embankments shall be designed to comply with the requirements of 19.8.20.2047 through 2049 NMAC. Each plan shall be submitted to the director as a part of the permit application, and shall comply with the requirements of the mine safety and health administration, 30 CFR 77.216-1 and 77.216-2 and the state engineer and shall contain the results of a geotechnical investigation of the proposed dam or embankment foundation area, to determine the structural competence of the foundation which will support the proposed dam or embankment structure and the impounded material. The geotechnical investigation shall be planned and supervised by an engineer or engineering geologist, according to the following:
(1) the number, location, and depth of borings and test pits shall be determined using current prudent engineering practice for the size of the dam or embankment, quantity of material to be impounded, and subsurface conditions;
(2) the character of the overburden and bedrock, the proposed abutment sites, and any adverse geotechnical conditions which may affect the particular dam, embankment, or reservoir site shall be considered;
(3) all springs, seepage, and ground water flow observed or anticipated during wet periods in the area of the proposed dam or embankment shall be identified on each plan;
(4) consideration shall be given to the possibility of mudflows, rock debris falls, or other landslides into the dam, embankment, or impounded material;
(5) if the structure meets the class B or C criteria for dams in TR-60 or meets the size or other criteria of 30 CFR Sec. 77.216(a), each plan under Subsections B, C and E of 19.8.9.909 NMAC shall include a stability analysis of the structure; the stability analysis shall be performed by a registered professional engineer and shall include, but not be limited to, strength parameters, pore pressures, and long-term seepage conditions; the plan shall also contain a description of each engineering design assumption and calculation with a discussion of each alternative considered in selecting the specific design parameters and construction methods.
[11-29-97; A, 12-15-99; 19.8.9.909 NMAC - Rn, 19 NMAC 8.2.9.909, 9-29-2000]