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1' <br />~~ <br />• • <br />Page 1 <br />34-32-101 <br />34-32-101. Short title. This article shall be known and may be cited <br />as the "Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Act". <br />34-32-102. Legislative declaration. (1) It is declared to be the <br />policy of this state that the extraction of minerals and the <br />reclamation of land affected by such extraction are both necessary and <br />proper activities. It is further declared to be the policy of this <br />state that both such activities should be and are compatible. It is <br />the intent of the general assembly by the enactment of this article to <br />foster and encourage the development of an economically sound and <br />stable mining and minerals industry and to encourage the orderly <br />development of the state's natural resources, while requiring those <br />persons involved in mining operations to reclaim land affected by such <br />operations so that the affected land may be put to a use beneficial to <br />the people of this state. It is the further intent of the general <br />assembly by the enactment of this article to conserve natural <br />resources, to aid in the protection of wildlife and aquatic resources, <br />to establish agricultural, recreational, residential, and industrial <br />sites, and to protect and promote the health, safety, and general <br />welfare of the people of this state. <br />(2) The general assembly further declares that it is the intent of <br />this article to require the development of a mined land reclamation <br />regulatory program in which the economic costs of reclamation measures <br />utilized bear a reasonable relationship to the environmental benefits <br />derived from such measures. The mined land reclamation board or the <br />office, when considering the requirements of reclamation measures, <br />shall evaluate the benefits expected to result from the use of such <br />measures. It is also the intent of the general assembly that <br />consideration be given to the economic reasonableness of the action of <br />the mined land reclamation board or the office. In considering <br />economic reasonableness, the financial condition of an operator shall <br />not be a factor. <br />(3) The general assembly further finds, determines, and declares that: <br />(a) It is the policy of this state to recognize that mining <br />operations are conducted by government and private entities; <br />(b) All people of the state benefit from the reclamation of mined <br />land; <br />(c) The funding to ensure that reclamation is achieved should be <br />borne equitably by both the public and private sectors; <br />(d) The funding for enforcement and other activity that is conducted <br />for the benefit of the general putilic should be supported by the <br />general fund. <br />