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3 <br />issuing violations, setting civil penalties, issuing cease and desist orders, and determining <br />corrective actions for operators found in violation; conducting hearings regarding disputed <br />applications; hearing appeals to decisions made by the Division; and ruling on declaratory order <br />petitions. Petitioners for declaratory orders are usually individuals seeking an official <br />determination regarding whether their proposed mineral extraction activity is exempt from the <br />definition of mining. A copy of the Division’s policy on whether an activity constitutes mining is <br />also available on the Division’s Web site. <br /> <br />As established by the Colorado State Legislature, the Board has exclusive jurisdiction over <br />reclamation. Reclamation is broadly defined as the employment of procedures designed to <br />minimize disruption from a mining operation and provide for the establishment of a post-mining <br />land use through implementation of reclamation practices. These practices may include plant <br />cover, soil stabilization, protection of water resources or other measures to ensure beneficial <br />use of affected lands once the extraction of minerals is concluded. Reclamation procedures <br />may be employed during mining, as in a phased mining operation, or after the mineral extraction <br />operation is concluded. <br /> <br />There is joint agency jurisdiction over hydrologic issues and water quality impacts affected by <br />mining and reclamation operations at a mine site. As a reclamation obligation, mine operators <br />must “minimize disturbances to the prevailing hydrologic balance of the affected lands and of <br />the surrounding area and to the quality and quantity of water in surface and groundwater <br />systems.” To “minimize disturbances to the hydrologic balance” means, but is not limited to, <br />that mining and reclamation will not offend any federal or state water quality or quantity <br />standard. Other state agencies have primary authority over water quality and water quantity <br />(water rights) issues, but the Division and the Board still consider water quality and quantity <br />issues in the broader context of hydrologic balance. In other words, the Board will not <br />adjudicate water rights disputes or issue Clean Water Act violations, but it may inquire into <br />whether a proposed mining operation impacts hydrology. Relevant impacts include impacts to <br />quality and quantity of water in both surface and groundwater systems for the area due to <br />mining and reclamation operations. <br /> <br />The Board's jurisdiction does not extend to land use decisions, visual or economic impacts, <br />noise, traffic, dust1 and other nuisances, or socioeconomic issues. Local government, through <br />the local land use and planning and permitting process, handles these issues. The Board and <br />the Division do not have authority in such matters. Likewise, impacts to air quality, threatened or <br />endangered species, discharges into waters of the United States and historic resource <br />protections are regulated by agencies other than the Board. <br /> <br />If you have specific concerns with issues not within the Board's jurisdiction, the Environmental <br />Protection Specialist responsible for the application under consideration can provide you with <br />the name of a contact in the responsible agency. <br /> <br /> <br />THE ROLE OF THE DIVISION <br /> <br />The Division employs specialists in mining, geology, hydrology, agronomy, wildlife biology, <br />engineering, and other scientific disciplines, and administrative personnel charged with <br />overseeing mining and reclamation activities in the State of Colorado. <br /> <br />1 Issues related to dust caused by eroding berms or spoils piles may be within the Board’s jurisdiction.