62-660.804. General Permit for Sand and Limestone Mines

(1) General Requirements. This rule authorizes a general permit for any person operating a sand or limestone mine designed and operated in accordance with this rule, provided that all of the conditions of this rule are met.

(2) Applicability and Coverage.

(a) Coverage under this general permit applies to existing sand and limestone mines which have coverage under this rule as of February 3, 2015.

(b) Coverage under this general permit will apply to sand and limestone (including shell and coquina) mines that do not hold a current Environmental Resource Permit (ERP) issued under Part IV of Chapter 373, F.S. Facilities which have coverage under a current Environmental Resource Permit issued under Part IV of Chapter 373, F.S. do not need to renew this general permit.

(3) General Provision.

(a) Coverage under this general permit shall be subject to the general conditions of Rule 62-4.540, F.A.C.

(b) An applicant for a sand or limestone mine general permit shall complete and submit to the Department DEP Form 62-660.900(6), Notification Form to Use the General Permit for Sand and Limestone Mines, effective February 3, 2015, which is adopted and incorporated herein by reference. This form may be obtained by contacting the appropriate district office, by writing the Department of Environmental Protection, Industrial Wastewater Program, Mail Station #3545, 2600 Blair Stone Road, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2400, from the Department’s website or from http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-04888. The general permit will become effective 30 days after Department receipt of the notification form, unless the Department notifies the permittee that the project does not qualify for a general permit.

(c) This general permit does not relieve the permittee of the responsibility for obtaining any other permits required by the Department or any other federal, state, or local agency. This general permit is not a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.

(d) Coverage under this general permit is limited to a term not to exceed five years from the effective date of coverage.

(e) The permittee may request continued coverage under this general permit in accordance with the requirements contained in paragraph 62-660.804(3)(b), F.A.C., above. Request for continued coverage shall be made at least 30 days before expiration of the current coverage.

(f) The permittee is responsible for advising the Department within 30 days of any change in ownership, operator or contact information for the facility.

(4) Definitions. For the purpose of this permit, the following terms shall, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, have the following meanings:

(a) “Heavy Minerals” shall be as defined in Section 378.403(7), F.S.

(b) “Limestone mine” means any mining operation in which the primary resource mined is composed principally of calcium or magnesium carbonate, which includes shell and coquina, along with the associated processing facility, water control system, and settling ponds.

(c) “Pollution” shall be as defined in Section 403.031, F.S.

(d) “Sand mine” means an area of land from which sand (excluding heavy minerals) is being mined, along with the associated processing facility, water control system, and settling ponds.

(5) Information Requirements.

(a) The permittee shall submit the information as outlined in Department DEP Form 62-660.900(6), Notification Form to Use the General Permit for Sand and Limestone Mines, effective, February 3, 2015.

(b) A Best Management Practices (BMP) Plan shall be developed and implemented for the facility. The BMP Plan shall include elements designed to prevent or minimize the potential for the release of pollution to waters of the state from ancillary activities. Ancillary activities may include material storage areas, plant site runoff, in-plant transfer, process and material handling areas, and loading and unloading operations through plant site runoff, spillage or leaks, or drainage from raw material storage. The BMP Plan shall be subject to the following requirements:

1. The applicant shall maintain the BMP Plan at the facility and shall make the plan available to the Department upon request.

2. The BMP Plan shall be maintained in written form, and shall include any necessary site plans, drawings, or maps. The BMP Plan shall be prepared and certified by a professional engineer registered in the State of Florida and shall be reviewed by the facility staff.

3. The BMP Plan shall identify areas, systems or components of the facility that have a potential for causing a release of pollution to waters of the state, due to equipment failure, improper operation, or natural phenomena such as extreme rain or winds.

4. The plan shall include a prediction of the direction, rate of flow, and total quantity of pollution which could be discharged from the facility as a result of equipment failure, improper operation, or natural phenomena such as extreme rain or winds.

5. The BMP Plan shall establish specific preventive and remedial procedures to prevent pollution from reaching waters of the state in amounts which will cause a violation of water quality standards.

6. The BMP Plan shall be revised as necessary whenever there is a change at the facility which increases the potential for the release of pollution to waters of the state.

7. The facility shall be reasonably maintained to prevent entry of unauthorized personnel.

8. The facility is not required to prepare a separate BMP if all of the requirements of the BMP Plan are addressed within a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) prepared under subsection 62-621.300(5), F.A.C.

(6) Design Requirements. A professional engineer registered in the State of Florida shall certify the following:

(a) All earthen dams storing process wastewater and runoff above grade shall be constructed and maintained in accordance with good engineering practices.

(b) The sand or limestone mine is designed to recycle process wastewater and contain process wastewater and runoff from storm events up to a 25-year, 24-hour storm or equivalent event.

(7) Operational Requirements.

(a) There shall be no discharge from storage ponds except as a result of storms exceeding a 25-year, 24-hour storm or equivalent event.

(b) No chemicals, except water conditioners, pH adjusters and chemicals which have been demonstrated as to not adversely affect human health or aquatic life shall be added to the process water used for transporting, washing or processing of the sand or limestone. Records of all chemicals used (including dosage rates) by the facility must be kept and made available for inspection to the Department upon request.

Rulemaking Authority 403.051, 403.814 FS. Law Implemented 120.55, 403.051, 403.061, 403.087, 403.814 FS. History–New 1-2-91, Amended 4-22-93, Formerly 17-660.804, Amended 12-24-96, 2-3-15.