SB1-SSA2,29,55 Chapter 295
SB1-SSA2,29,76 Subchapter III
7 ferrous metallic mining
SB1-SSA2,29,8 8295.40 Legislative findings. The legislature finds all of the following:
SB1-SSA2,29,10 9(1) That attracting and aiding new mining enterprises and expanding the
10mining industry in Wisconsin is part of Wisconsin public policy.
SB1-SSA2,29,13 11(2) That mining for nonferrous metallic minerals is different from mining for
12ferrous minerals because in mining for nonferrous metallic minerals, sulfide
13minerals react, when exposed to air and water, to form acid drainage.
SB1-SSA2,29,17 14(3) That if the mineral products and waste materials associated with
15nonferrous metallic sulfide mining operations are not properly managed and
16controlled, they can cause significant damage to the environment, affect human
17health, and degrade the quality of life of the affected community.
SB1-SSA2,29,20 18(4) That the special concerns surrounding nonferrous metallic mining warrant
19more stringent regulatory measures than those warranted for ferrous mineral
20mining operations.
SB1-SSA2,29,23 21(5) That the provisions in ch. 293, 2011 stats., are a deterrent to ferrous mineral
22mining in this state and are not necessary to ensure that ferrous mineral mining will
23be conducted in an environmentally sound manner.
SB1-SSA2,30,2 24(6) That simplifying and shortening the permitting process for ferrous mineral
25mining when compared to nonferrous metallic mineral mining, as Minnesota and

1Michigan have done, will encourage ferrous mineral mining in Wisconsin and create
2jobs and generate resources for the state.
SB1-SSA2,30,8 3(7) That because of the fixed location of ferrous mineral deposits in the state,
4it is probable that mining those deposits will result in adverse impacts to wetlands
5and that, therefore, the use of wetlands for bulk sampling and mining activities,
6including the disposal or storage of mining wastes or materials, or the use of other
7lands for mining activities that would have a significant adverse impact on wetlands,
8is presumed to be necessary.
SB1-SSA2,30,9 9295.41 Definitions. In this subchapter:
SB1-SSA2,30,12 10(1) "Air pollution" means the presence in the atmosphere of one or more air
11contaminants in such quantities and of such duration as is injurious to human health
12or welfare, animal or plant life, or property.
SB1-SSA2,30,14 13(2) "Applicant" means a person who applies for, or is preparing to apply for, an
14exploration license or a mining permit or who files a bulk sampling plan.
SB1-SSA2,30,19 15(3) (a) "Approval" means, except as provided in par. (b), any permit, license,
16certification, contract, or other authorization that the department issues, or any
17other action by the department, that is required for exploration, to engage in bulk
18sampling at a bulk sampling site, or to construct or operate a mining site, including
19any action required for any of the following:
SB1-SSA2,30,2220 1. The withdrawal of land entered as county forest land under s. 28.11 and any
21modification of, or amendment to, a county forest land use plan necessitated by the
22withdrawal of the land.
SB1-SSA2,30,2323 2. The withdrawal of land entered as forest cropland under s. 77.10.
SB1-SSA2,31,3
13. The withdrawal of land designated as managed forest land under subch. VI
2of ch. 77 and any modification of, or amendment to, a managed forest land
3management plan necessitated by the withdrawal of the land.
SB1-SSA2,31,64 (b) "Approval" does not include a permit, license, certification, contract, or
5other authorization related to the construction of any new plant, equipment,
6property, or facility for the production, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of power.
SB1-SSA2,31,9 7(4) "Background water quality" means the concentration of a substance in
8groundwater as determined by monitoring at locations that will not be affected by
9a mining site.
SB1-SSA2,31,12 10(5) "Baseline water quality" means the concentration of a substance in
11groundwater or surface water as determined by monitoring before mining operations
12begin.
SB1-SSA2,31,14 13(6) "Borrow materials" means soil or rock used in construction or reclamation
14activities.
SB1-SSA2,31,19 15(7) "Bulk sampling" means excavating in a potential mining site by removing
16less than 10,000 tons of material for the purposes of obtaining site-specific data to
17assess the quality and quantity of the ferrous mineral deposits and of collecting data
18from and analyzing the excavated materials in order to prepare the application for
19a mining permit or for any other approval.
SB1-SSA2,31,21 20(8) "Closing" means the time at which a mining waste site ceases to accept
21mining wastes.
SB1-SSA2,31,23 22(9) "Closure" means the actions taken by an operator to prepare a mining waste
23site for long-term care and to make it suitable for other uses.
SB1-SSA2,31,25 24(10) "Construct" means to engage in a program of on-site construction,
25including site clearing, grading, dredging, or filling of land.
SB1-SSA2,32,1
1(11) "Department" means the department of natural resources.
SB1-SSA2,32,3 2(12) "Disposal" means the discharge, deposit, injection, dumping, or placing of
3a substance into or on any land or water.
SB1-SSA2,32,6 4(14) "Environmental impact report" means a document submitted by a person
5seeking a mining permit that discloses environmental impacts of the proposed
6mining.
SB1-SSA2,32,8 7(15) "Environmental impact statement" means a detailed statement under s.
81.11 (2) (c).
SB1-SSA2,32,11 9(16) "Environmental pollution" means contaminating or rendering unclean or
10impure the air, land, or waters of the state, or making the air, land, or waters of the
11state injurious to public health or animal or plant life.
SB1-SSA2,32,12 12(17) "Exploration license" means a license under s. 295.44.
SB1-SSA2,32,15 13(18) "Ferrous mineral" means an ore or earthen material in natural deposits
14in or on the earth that primarily exists in the form of an iron oxide, including taconite
15and hematite.
SB1-SSA2,32,17 16(19) "Fill area" means an area proposed to receive or that is receiving direct
17application of mining waste.
SB1-SSA2,32,19 18(20) "Freeboard" means the height of the top of a dam above the adjacent liquid
19surface within the impoundment.
SB1-SSA2,32,21 20(21) "Groundwater" means any of the waters of the state occurring in a
21saturated subsurface geological formation of rock or soil.
SB1-SSA2,32,23 22(22) "Groundwater quality" means the chemical, physical, biological, thermal,
23or radiological quality of groundwater at a site or within an underground aquifer.
SB1-SSA2,33,2 24(23) "Groundwater quality standards" means numerical values consisting of
25enforcement standards and preventive action limits contained in Table 1 of s. NR

1140.10, and Table 2 of s. NR 140.12, Wis. Adm. Code, and any preventive action limits
2for indicator parameters identified under s. NR 140.20 (2), Wis. Adm. Code.
SB1-SSA2,33,5 3(24) "Leachate" means water or other liquid that has been contaminated by
4dissolved or suspended materials due to contact with refuse disposed of on the
5mining site.
SB1-SSA2,33,12 6(25) "Merchantable by-product" means all waste soil, rock, mineral, liquid,
7vegetation, and other material directly resulting from or displaced by the mining,
8cleaning, or preparation of minerals, during mining operations, that are determined
9by the department to be marketable upon a showing of marketability made by the
10operator, accompanied by a verified statement by the operator of his or her intent to
11sell the material within 3 years from the time it results from or is displaced by
12mining.
SB1-SSA2,33,18 13(26) "Mining" means all or part of the process involved in the mining of a
14ferrous mineral, other than for exploration, including commercial extraction,
15agglomeration, beneficiation, construction of roads, removal of overburden, and the
16production of refuse, involving the removal of more than 15,000 tons of earth
17material a year in the regular operation of a business for the purpose of extracting
18a ferrous mineral.
SB1-SSA2,33,19 19(27) "Mining permit" means the permit under s. 295.58.
SB1-SSA2,33,22 20(28) "Mining plan" means a proposal for mining on a mining site, including a
21description of the systematic activities to be used for the purpose of extracting
22ferrous minerals.
SB1-SSA2,34,2 23(29) "Mining site" means the surface area disturbed by mining, including the
24surface area from which the ferrous minerals or refuse or both have been removed,
25the surface area covered by refuse, all lands disturbed by the construction or

1improvement of haulageways, and any surface areas in which structures,
2equipment, materials, and any other things used in the mining are situated.
SB1-SSA2,34,10 3(30) "Mining waste" means tailings, waste rock, mine overburden, waste
4treatment sludges, or other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semi-solid,
5or contained gaseous material, resulting from mining or from the cleaning or
6preparation of ferrous minerals during mining operations, except that "mining
7waste" does not include topsoil and mine overburden intended to be returned to the
8mining site or used in the reclamation process and that is placed on the mining site
9for those purposes, as provided for in the approved mining plan, and does not include
10merchantable by-products.
SB1-SSA2,34,15 11(31) "Mining waste site" means any land or appurtenances thereto used for the
12storage or disposal of mining waste or for the storage of merchantable by-products,
13but does not include land or appurtenances used in the production or transportation
14of mining waste, such as the concentrator, haul roads, or tailings pipelines, that are
15part of the mining site.
SB1-SSA2,34,18 16(32) "Nonferrous metallic mineral" means an ore or other earthen material to
17be excavated from natural deposits on or in the earth for its metallic content but not
18primarily for its iron oxide content.
SB1-SSA2,34,21 19(33) "Operator" means any person who is engaged in mining, or who holds a
20mining permit, whether individually, jointly, or through subsidiaries, agents,
21employees, or contractors.
SB1-SSA2,34,22 22(34) "Overburden" means any unconsolidated material that overlies bedrock.
SB1-SSA2,34,25 23(35) "Person" means an individual, corporation, limited liability company,
24partnership, association, local governmental agency, interstate agency, state agency,
25or federal agency.
SB1-SSA2,35,2
1(36) "Piping" means the progressive erosion of materials from an embankment
2or foundation caused by the seepage of water.
SB1-SSA2,35,4 3(37) "Principal shareholder" means any person who owns at least 10 percent
4of the beneficial ownership of an applicant or operator.
SB1-SSA2,35,7 5(38) "Reagent" means a substance or compound that is added to a system in
6order to bring about a chemical reaction or is added to see if a reaction occurs to
7confirm the presence of another substance.
SB1-SSA2,35,10 8(39) "Reclamation" means the process by which an area physically or
9environmentally affected by exploration or mining is rehabilitated to either its
10original state or to a state that provides long-term environmental stability.
SB1-SSA2,35,12 11(40) "Reclamation plan" means the proposal for the reclamation of an
12exploration site under s. 295.44 (2) (b) or a mining site under s. 295.49.
SB1-SSA2,35,14 13(41) "Refuse" means all mining waste and all waste materials deposited on or
14in the mining site from other sources, except merchantable by-products.
SB1-SSA2,35,17 15(42) "Related person" means any person that owns or operates a mining site
16in the United States and that is one of the following when an application for a mining
17permit is submitted to the department:
SB1-SSA2,35,1818 (a) The parent corporation of the applicant.
SB1-SSA2,35,2019 (b) A person that holds more than a 30 percent ownership interest in the
20applicant.
SB1-SSA2,35,2221 (c) A subsidiary or affiliate of the applicant in which the applicant holds more
22than a 30 percent ownership interest.
SB1-SSA2,36,2 23(44) "Subsidence" means lateral or vertical ground movement caused by a
24failure, initiated at the mine, of a man-made underground mine, that directly
25damages residences or commercial buildings, except that "subsidence" does not

1include lateral or vertical ground movement caused by earthquake, landslide, soil
2conditions, soil erosion, soil freezing and thawing, or roots of trees and shrubs.
SB1-SSA2,36,5 3(45) "Tailings" means waste material resulting from beneficiation of crushed
4ferrous minerals at a concentrator or from washing, concentration, or treatment of
5crushed ferrous minerals.
SB1-SSA2,36,8 6(46) "Unsuitable" means that the land proposed for mining is not suitable for
7mining because the mining activity will more probably than not destroy or
8irreparably damage any of the following:
SB1-SSA2,36,119 (a) Habitat required for survival of species of vegetation or wildlife designated
10as endangered through prior inclusion in rules adopted by the department, if the
11endangered species cannot be reestablished elsewhere.
SB1-SSA2,36,1512 (b) Unique features of the land, as determined by state or federal designation
13and incorporated in rules adopted by the department, as any of the following, which
14cannot have their unique characteristic preserved by relocation or replacement
15elsewhere:
SB1-SSA2,36,1616 1. Wilderness areas.
SB1-SSA2,36,1717 2. Wild and scenic rivers.
SB1-SSA2,36,1818 3. National or state parks.
SB1-SSA2,36,1919 4. Wildlife refuges and areas.
SB1-SSA2,36,2020 5. Listed properties, as defined in s. 44.31 (4).
SB1-SSA2,36,25 21(46m) "Wastewater and sludge storage or treatment lagoon" means a
22man-made containment structure that is constructed primarily of earthen
23materials, that is for the treatment or storage of wastewater, storm water, or sludge,
24and that is not a land disposal system, as defined in s. NR 140.05 (11), Wis. Adm.
25Code.
SB1-SSA2,37,1
1(47) "Waters of the state" has the meaning given in s. 281.01 (18).
SB1-SSA2,37,3 2(48) "Water supply" means the sources and their surroundings from which
3water is supplied for drinking or domestic purposes.
SB1-SSA2,37,4 4(49) "Wetland" has the meaning given in s. 23.32 (1).
SB1-SSA2,37,15 5295.43 Responsibilities related to mining. The department shall serve as
6the central unit of state government to ensure that the impact from mining and
7reclamation on the air, lands, waters, plants, fish, and wildlife in this state will be
8minimized and offset to the extent practicable. The administration of occupational
9health and safety laws and rules that apply to mining remain exclusively the
10responsibility of the department of safety and professional services. The powers and
11duties of the geological and natural history survey under s. 36.25 (6) remain
12exclusively the responsibility of the geological and natural history survey. Nothing
13in this section prevents the department of safety and professional services and the
14geological and natural history survey from cooperating with the department in the
15exercise of their respective powers and duties.
SB1-SSA2,37,16 16295.44 Exploration. (1) Definitions. In this section:
SB1-SSA2,37,1717 (a) "Abandonment" means the filling or sealing of a drillhole.
SB1-SSA2,37,2018 (b) "Clay slurry" means a fluid mixture of native clay formation or commercial
19clay or clay mineral products and water prepared with only the amount of water
20necessary to produce fluidity.
SB1-SSA2,37,2221 (c) "Concrete grout" means a mixture consisting of type A portland cement and
22an equal or lesser volume of dry sand combined with water.
SB1-SSA2,37,2423 (d) "Driller" means a person who performs core, rotary, percussion, or other
24drilling involved in exploration for ferrous minerals.
SB1-SSA2,38,2
1(e) "Drilling site" means the area disturbed by exploration, including the
2drillhole.
SB1-SSA2,38,43 (f) "Dump bailer" means a cylindrical container with a valve that empties the
4contents of the container at the bottom of a drillhole.
SB1-SSA2,38,65 (g) "Explorer" means any person who engages in exploration or who contracts
6for the services of drillers for the purpose of exploration.
SB1-SSA2,38,147 (h) "Exploration" means the on-site geologic examination from the surface of
8an area by core, rotary, percussion, or other drilling, where the diameter of the hole
9does not exceed 18 inches, for the purpose of searching for ferrous minerals or
10establishing the nature of a known ferrous mineral deposit, including associated
11activities such as clearing and preparing sites or constructing roads for drilling.
12"Exploration" does not include drilling for the purpose of collecting soil samples or
13for determining radioactivity by means of placement of devices that are sensitive to
14radiation.
SB1-SSA2,38,1615 (i) "License year" means the period beginning on July 1 of any year and ending
16on the following June 30.
SB1-SSA2,38,1817 (j) "Neat cement grout" means a mixture consisting of type A portland cement
18and water.
SB1-SSA2,38,2019 (k) "Termination" means the filling of drillholes and the reclamation of a
20drilling site.
SB1-SSA2,39,2 21(2) License. No person may engage in exploration, or contract for the services
22of drillers for purposes of exploration, without an annual license from the
23department. The department shall provide copies of the application for an
24exploration license to the state geologist upon issuance of the exploration license. A

1person seeking an exploration license shall file an application that includes all of the
2following:
SB1-SSA2,39,33 (a) An exploration plan that includes all of the following:
SB1-SSA2,39,54 1. A description of the site where the exploration will take place and a map of
5that area showing the locations of the exploration.
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