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COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT - Water Quality Control Division <br />Rationale - Page 4 Permit No. COR-040000 <br />H BACKGROUND <br />C. Holadons/Penalties <br />Dischargers of stormwater associated with mining activity, as defined in the Regulations for the State Discharge Permit System <br />(6.1.0), which do not obtain coverage under this Colorado general permit, or under an individual CDPS permit regulating <br />industrial stormwater, will be in violation of the federal Clean Water Act and the Colorado Water Quality Control Act, 25-8-101 <br />et al. For facilities that are covered under a CDPS permit, failure to comply with CEPS permit requirements constitutes a <br />violation. Civil penalties for violations of the CDPS permit or the Act maybe up to $10, 000 per day, and criminal pollution of <br />state waters is punishable byfrnes of up to $25,000 per day. <br />LIZ STORMWATER DISCHARGESASSOCL 17ED WITH MINING OPERATIONS <br />A. Types of Sites Covered <br />The stormwater regulations require that stormwater discharges associated with certain industrial activities be covered under the <br />permitprogram. Mining operations are.specically included in the listed industrial activities. This general permit is intended to <br />cover stormwater discharges from most active and inactive metal mines. It is also intended to cover stormwater discharges from <br />mines (e.g., coal mines) which have individual CDPS permits for discharge ofprocess waters. <br />This permit is intended to authorize most new and existing discharges composed entirely of stormwater from mining operations <br />that are within Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code 10 - Metal Mining and Milling, at sites that discharge stormwater <br />only. This category includes active and inactive mining and milling operations, and remediation projects at such sites. <br />This permit is intended to cover those portions of a metal mining or milling site that are not already subject to effluent limitations <br />under 40 CFR 440. Those previously uncontrolled areas which discharge stormwater that comes in contact with overburden, <br />raw material, intermediateproducts, byproducts, frnishedproducts or wasteproducts maybe covered by this permit. <br />This permit may also be used to cover existing discharges composed entirely of stormwater from any other metal or coal mining <br />operations that are currently covered by an individual CDPS permits for discharge of process water. At the time of reissuance or <br />amendment of the individual CDPS permit, terms and limitation from both permits may be combined into a new individual <br />permit. Table 1 presents the categories of the mining industry and their CDPS Siormwater permit coverage. <br />The Division intends to continue its practice to cover only one area with each permit certification. As long as the operations or <br />inactive mines are contiguous, one permit certification is sufficient. However, if a mine-waste remediation plan.calls for removal <br />of material and disposal at a location away from the mine-waste site, separate permit coverage must be obta ined for the disposal <br />site. <br />B. Mine-Waste Remediation Proieds <br />This permit is intended to authorize most stormwater discharges from mine-waste remediation projects. This permit contains <br />additional SWMP requirements for remediation projects. These are detailed at Part L CS of the permit, and summarized in <br />Section VI.B.2 below. The Division foresees three general cases where permittees will use these provisions: <br />1. Inactive mine sites where the permittee begins a remediation project in order to terminate coverage under an existing permit. <br />In this case, the permittee will amend their SW" to address the remediation concerns as outlined in Part L C.S of the permit, <br />and proceed with remediation. Certification under this permit would be terminated when the termination criteria and other <br />conditions listed at Part IF of the permit are met. <br />2. Inactive mine sites where no previous stormwater permit coverage exists, and the owner or a third party (with permission of <br />the owner) plans to remediate the site. In this case, the SWMP would be prepared, including the items in Part I. C.5 of the <br />permit, and the owner or third party would submit the completed permit application. After the permit certification is issued, <br />stormwater discharges from the remediation project would be authorized Certification under this permit would be terminated <br />when the termination criteria and other conditions listed at Part LF of the the permit are met.