Applying for approval of a special operating plan for mining

An operating plan is an instrument used in German mining law for approval and operational monitoring. In order to establish and operate a mining operation, you as an entrepreneur need an approved main operating plan.
The competent mining authority may require special operating plans for certain parts of the operation or for certain projects.
An operating plan includes comprehensive explanations and planning documents for planned mining measures, for example

• Location and extent,
• technical implementation
• time planning,
• possible effects on people and the environment,
• measures to avoid and minimize negative effects on the environment
• operational and occupational safety.

Special operating plans describe, for example, procedures that are repeated and extend over several main operating plan periods. They can also describe longer-term measures such as the construction and operation of stockpiles, shaft hoisting frames, ventilation systems, etc. The measures described in the special operating plan no longer need to be described in the main operating plan; reference can be made to the special operating plan.

Such measures may also include

• Handling of substances hazardous to water,
• utilization of foreign materials,
• landslides on embankments,
• the construction of a gas drying plant,
• the construction of treatment plants or exploration facilities,
• geophysical work,
• seismic exploration work,
• carrying out deep drilling,
• measures for the recultivation of former mining areas or
• the construction of roads and access roads, the construction of filling stations and weighbridges
• Construction of power generation facilities ("mine power plant")
• Monitoring

Special operating plans, like general and main operating plans, must be approved by the mining authority of the federal state in which your exploration, extraction or processing operation is located.

Requirements

In order for you to obtain approval for your special operating plan, certain requirements must be met, although these may already have been examined in the procedure for approval of the main operating plan:

• Your project must not conflict with any overriding public interests.
• You must be able to prove that you have the officially issued authorization for the exploration or extraction of non-mining mineral resources or the rights to mining mineral resources.
• You must be able to prove that your company and your managerial staff or representatives have the necessary reliability as well as the required expertise and physical fitness.
• You must take all necessary safety measures to prevent risks to life and health and to protect property, employees and third parties in the company
• Your work must not impair other natural resources whose protection is in the public interest.
• The ground surface must be protected in the interests of personal safety and public traffic.
• The waste produced must be properly reused or disposed of.
• You must take precautions to ensure that
  
  • the surfaces can subsequently be made usable again to the extent required by the circumstances,
  • the safety of other mining operations is not jeopardized,
  • the exploration or extraction of mineral resources does not result in any harmful consequences for the general public and, in the case of mining operations on the continental shelf or in coastal waters:
    
    • shipping facilities and signs are not impaired and
    • shipping and shipping lanes, airspace, fishing and flora and fauna are not unreasonably impaired
    • underwater cables and pipelines as well as oceanographic or other scientific research are not impaired more than is unavoidable under the circumstances and
    • the damaging effects on the sea are kept to a minimum
• You may be required to provide the competent authority with evidence of a security with an appropriate sum insured, a bank guarantee, letter of comfort or similar covering the above risks.