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Coal Blasting
Authority for regulating blasting operations at coal mines comes from the Surface Coal Mining Land Conservation and Reclamation Act (SCMLCRA), which became effective February 1, 1983. The SCMLCRA is closely patterned after the Federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The SCMLCRA has established air blast, ground vibration and fly rock standards, training, examination and certification requirements for persons supervising blasting operations, requirements for pre-blast surveys and public blasting notices, requirements for the maintenance of blasting records and enforcement provisions which give the Explosives and Aggregate Division the authority to suspend or revoke blasting certificates, issue notices of violation and/or cessation orders and assess civil penalties in instances of non-compliance. In addition to blasting, the SCMLCRA contains comprehensive environmental protection requirements such as hydrologic balance protection, soil replacement and disposal of toxic materials. All aspects of the SCMLCRA, other than blasting, are administered by the Land Reclamation Division within the Office of Mines and Minerals. For more information see Coal Blasting FAQs.