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405 Kar 18:230. Roads


Published: 2015

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      405 KAR 18:230.

Roads.

 

      RELATES TO: KRS

350.020, 350.028, 350.085, 350.151, 350.465

      STATUTORY

AUTHORITY: KRS 350.020, 350.028, 350.151, 350.465

      NECESSITY,

FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS Chapter 350 in pertinent part requires the

cabinet to promulgate rules and administrative regulations establishing

performance standards for protection of people and property, land, water and

other natural resources, and aesthetic values, during underground mining

activities and for restoration and reclamation of surface areas affected by

underground mining activities. This administrative regulation sets forth

requirements for the location, design, construction, maintenance, and removal

or permanent retention of roads and associated drainage structures.

 

      Section 1.

General. (1) Each permittee shall design, construct, utilize, and maintain

roads and restore the area to meet the requirements of this administrative

regulation and to control or minimize erosion and siltation, air and water

pollution, and damage to public or private property.

      (2) To the

extent possible using the best technology currently available, roads shall not

cause damage to fish, wildlife and related environmental values and shall not

cause additional contributions of suspended solids to stream flow or to run off

outside the permit area. Any such contributions shall not be in excess of

limitations of state or federal law.

      (3) The design

and construction of roads shall be certified by a qualified registered

professional engineer as being in accordance with Sections 2 through 5 of this

administrative regulation, except to the extent that alternative specifications

are used. Alternative specifications may be used only after approval by the

cabinet upon a demonstration by a qualified registered professional engineer

that they will result in performance, with regard to safety, stability and

environmental protection, equal to or better than that resulting from roads

complying with the specifications of this administrative regulation.

      (4) All roads

shall be removed and the affected land regraded and revegetated in accordance

with the requirements of Section 7 of this administrative regulation unless:

      (a) Retention of

the road is approved as part of the approved postmining land use or as being

necessary to control erosion adequately;

      (b) The

necessary maintenance is assured; and

      (c) All drainage

is controlled according to Section 4 of this administrative regulation.

 

      Section 2.

Location. (1) Roads shall be located, insofar as possible, on ridges or on the

most stable available slopes to minimize erosion.

      (2) No part of

any road shall be located in the channel of an intermittent or perennial stream

unless specifically approved by the cabinet.

      (3) Stream fords

are prohibited unless they are specifically approved by the cabinet as

temporary routes during periods of construction. The fords shall not adversely

affect stream sedimentation or fish, wildlife, and related environmental

values. All other stream crossings shall be made using bridges, culverts, or

other structures designed, constructed, and maintained to meet the requirements

of Section 4 of this administrative regulation.

 

      Section 3.

Design and Construction. Roads shall be designed and constructed in compliance

with the following standards in order to control subsequent erosion and

disturbance of the hydrologic balance.

      (1) The roadway

width shall be appropriate for the anticipated volume of traffic and the size,

weight, and speed of vehicles to be used.

      (2) Vertical

alinement. Except where lesser grades are necessary to control site-specific

conditions, maximum road grades shall be as follows:

      (a) The maximum

grade shall not exceed lv:6.5h (fifteen (15) percent).

      (b) There shall

be not more than 300 feet of grade exceeding ten (10) percent within any consecutive

1,000 feet of road.

      (3) Horizontal

alinement. Roads shall have horizontal alinement as consistent with the

existing topography as possible, and shall provide the alinement required to

meet the performance standards of this administrative regulation. The alinement

shall be determined in accordance with the anticipated volume of traffic and

weight and speed of vehicles to be used. Horizontal and vertical alinement

shall be coordinated to ensure that one will not adversely affect the other and

to ensure that the road will not cause environmental damage.

      (4) Temporary

erosion control measures shall be implemented during construction to minimize

sedimentation and erosion until permanent control measures can be established.

      (5) Excess or

unsuitable material from excavations shall be disposed of in accordance with

405 KAR 18:060, Section 4; 405 KAR 18:140, Section 1; 405 KAR 18:190, Section

3.

      (6) Vegetation

shall not be cleared for more than the width necessary for road and associated

ditch construction, to serve traffic needs and for utilities.

      (7) Road cuts.

      (a) Cut slopes

shall not be steeper than specifically authorized by the cabinet, and shall not

be steeper than lv:1.5h in unconsolidated materials or lv:0.25h in rock, except

that steeper slopes may be specifically authorized by the cabinet if

geotechnical analysis demonstrates that a minimum safety factor of one and

five-tenths (1.5) can be maintained.

      (b) All cut

slopes except solid rock cut slopes shall be revegetated as soon as possible to

minimize erosion.

      (8) Road

embankments. Embankment sections shall be constructed in accordance with the

following provisions:

      (a) All

vegetative material and topsoil shall be removed from the embankment foundation

during construction to increase stability, and no vegetative material or

topsoil shall be placed beneath or in any road embankment.

      (b) Where an

embankment is to be placed on side slopes exceeding lv:5h (twenty (20)

percent), the existing ground shall be plowed, stepped, or, if in bedrock, keyed

in a manner which increases the stability of the fill. The keyway shall be a

minimum of ten (10) feet in width and shall extend a minimum of two (2) feet

below the toe of the fill.

      (c) Embankment

shall be placed in horizontal layers and shall be compacted as necessary to

ensure that the embankment is adequate to support the anticipated volume of

traffic and weight and speed of vehicles to be used. In selecting the method to

be used for placing embankment material, consideration shall be given in the

design to such factors as the foundation, geological structure, soils, type of

construction, and equipment to be used.

      (d) Embankment

slopes shall not be steeper than lv:2h, except that where the embankment

material is a minimum of eighty-five (85) percent rock, slopes shall not be

steeper than lv:1.35h if it has been demonstrated to the cabinet that

embankment stability will result.

      (e) The minimum

safety factor for all embankments shall be 1.25, or such higher factor as the

cabinet may specify.

      (f) The road

surface shall be sloped to prevent ponding of water on the surface.

      (g) All material

used in embankments shall be reasonably free of organic material, coal or coal

blossom, frozen or excessively wet materials, peat material, natural soils

containing organic matter, or any other material considered unsuitable by the

cabinet for use in embankment construction.

      (h)

Acid-producing materials shall be permitted for constructing embankments for

only those roads constructed on coal processing waste banks and only if it has

been demonstrated to the cabinet that no additional acid will leave the

confines of the coal processing waste bank. In no case shall acid-bearing

refuse material be used outside the confines of the coal processing waste bank.

Restoration of the road shall be in accordance with the requirements of 405 KAR

18:190, Sections 3 and 4; and 405 KAR 18:200.

      (i) All

embankment slopes shall be revegetated as soon as possible to minimize erosion.

 

      Section 4.

Drainage. (1) General. Each road shall be designed, constructed, and maintained

to have adequate drainage, using structures such as, but not limited to,

ditches, cross drains, and ditch relief drains. The water-control system shall

be designed to safely pass, at a minimum, the peak run-off from a ten (10)

year, twenty-four (24) hour precipitation event or a greater event if required

by the cabinet.

      (2) Natural

drainage. Natural channel drainageways shall not be altered or relocated for

road construction without the prior approval of the cabinet in accordance with

405 KAR 18:080. The cabinet may approve alterations and relocations only if the

natural channel drainage is not blocked and there is no adverse impact on

adjoining landowners.

      (3) Stream

crossings. Drainage structures are required for stream channel crossings.

Drainage structures shall not adversely affect fish migration and aquatic

habitat or related environmental values, and shall not adversely affect the

normal flow or gradient of the stream or cause increased flow depths which

would adversely affect upstream properties outside the permit area.

      (4) Ditches.

      (a) Drainage

ditches shall be placed at the toe of all cut slopes. A ditch shall be provided

on both sides of a through-cut and on the inside shoulder of a cut-and-fill

section, with ditch relief cross drains spaced according to grade. Water shall

be intercepted before reaching a switchback or large fill and drained safely

away in accordance with this section. Water from a fill or switchback shall be

released below the fill, through conduits or in riprapped channels, and shall

not be discharged onto the fill.

      (b) Trash racks

and debris basins shall be installed in drainage ditches wherever debris from

the drainage area is likely to impair the functions of drainage and sediment

control structures.

      (5) Culverts and

bridges.

      (a)1. Culverts

shall pass the ten (10) year, twenty-four (24) hour precipitation event without

causing overtopping of the road and without causing adverse effects upon

upstream properties outside the permit area. Bridges and approach fills shall

pass the 100 year flood event or where appropriate the 100 year, twenty-four

(24) hour precipitation event, or a larger event as specified by the cabinet,

without causing increases in flow depths which would adversely affect upstream

properties outside the permit area.

      2. Drainage

pipes and culverts shall be constructed to avoid plugging or collapse and

erosion at inlets and outlets.

      3. All culverts

shall be covered by compacted fill to a minimum depth of one (1) foot.

      4. Culverts

shall be designed, constructed, and maintained to sustain the structural load

from the fill and the weight of vehicles to be used.

      (b) Culverts for

road-surface drainage only shall be constructed in accordance with the

following:

      1. Unless

otherwise authorized or required under subparagraphs 2 or 3 of this paragraph,

culverts shall be spaced as follows: spacing shall not exceed 1,000 feet on

grades of zero to three (3) percent; spacing shall not exceed 800 feet on

grades of three (3) to six (6) percent; spacing shall not exceed 500 feet on

grades of six (6) to ten (10) percent; spacing shall not exceed 300 feet on

grades of ten (10) percent or greater.

      2. Culverts at

closer intervals than the maximum in subparagraph 1 of this paragraph shall be

installed if required by the cabinet as appropriate for the erosive properties

of the soil or to accommodate flow from small intersecting drainages.

      3. Culverts may

be constructed at greater intervals than the maximum indicated in subparagraph

1 of this paragraph if authorized by the cabinet upon a finding that greater

spacing will not increase erosion.

      4. The inlet end

shall be protected by a rock headwall or other protection approved by the

cabinet as adequate protection against erosion at the inlet. The water shall be

discharged below the toe of the fill through conduits or in riprapped channels

and shall not be discharged onto the fill.

 

      Section 5.

Surfacing. (1) Roads shall be surfaced with rock, crushed gravel, asphalt, or

other material approved by the cabinet as sufficiently durable for the

anticipated volume of traffic and weight and speed of vehicles to be used.

      (2) Acid- or

toxic-forming substances shall not be used in road surfacing.

 

      Section 6.

Maintenance. (1) Roads shall be maintained in such a manner that the required

or approved design standards are met throughout the life of the road.

      (2) Road

maintenance shall include repairs to the road surface such as grading, filling

of potholes, and replacement of surfacing. It shall include revegetating of cut

and fill slopes, watering for dust control, and minor reconstruction as

necessary.

      (3) Roads

damaged by events such as floods or landslides, or by structural failures such

as sliding or slumping of the embankment, shall be repaired as soon as practicable

after the damage has occurred.

 

      Section 7.

Restoration. (1) As soon as practicable after a road is no longer needed for

mining and reclamation operations or monitoring, unless the cabinet approves

retention of a road as suitable for the approved postmining land use:

      (a) The road

shall be closed to vehicular traffic;

      (b) The

natural-drainage patterns shall be restored;

      (c) All bridges

and culverts shall be removed;

      (d) Roadbeds

shall be ripped, plowed, and scarified;

      (e) Fill slopes

shall be rounded or reduced and shaped to conform the site to adjacent terrain

and to meet natural-drainage restoration standards;

      (f) Cut slopes

shall be shaped to blend with the natural contour;

      (g) Cross

drains, dikes, and water bars shall be constructed to minimize erosion;

      (h) Terraces

shall be constructed as necessary to prevent excessive erosion and to provide

long-term stability in cut-and-fill slopes; and

      (i) Road

surfaces shall be topsoiled in accordance with 405 KAR 18:050, Section 4(2) and

revegetated in accordance with 405 KAR 18:200, Sections 1 through 6.

      (2) Unless

otherwise authorized by the cabinet, all road surfacing materials shall be

removed and disposed of under 405 KAR 18:150, Section 1. (8 Ky.R. 1584; Am. 9

Ky.R. 718; eff. 1-6-83.)