SPIRO T. AGNEW, Governor                         203

(l) "Abandoned" means an operation where no coal has been
produced or overburden removed for a period of one year.

(m) "Degree" means the angle of slope from the horizontal.

(n) "Auger Mining" means the mechanical removal of coal from
the subsurface by augering from the outcrop.

(o) "Deep Mining" means all methods of extracting coal from
the subsurface excepting open pit mining and auger mining and
includes such methods as drift mining, shaft mining, and inclined
slope mining.

659.    Regulatory Powers.

The Bureau of Mines may make rules and regulations necessary
for preventing, minimizing, or repairing damage to the land or the
natural resources associated with the land which may result from
open pit mining operations. All rules and regulations adopted under
the provisions of this subheading shall be enforced by the Bureau
of Mines, and any operator found in violation of any such rule and
regulation is subject to the penalties provided in this subheading.
Nothing contained in this subheading shall be construed to abrogate
or supplant any of the enforcement or regulatory powers of the
State Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Department
of Water Resources or the Water Resources Commission.

660.    Land Reclamation Advisory Committee.

(a)    There is hereby created a standing advisory committee which
shall be known as the Land Reclamation Advisory Committee, to be
composed of nine members as follows: The Director of the Mary-
land Geological Survey, who shall act as Chairman; two (2) rep-
resentatives from the mining industry; two (2) Soil Conservation
District Supervisors from the Soil Conservation Districts of Al-
legany and Garrett Counties; and three (3) representatives from the
Board of Natural Resources representing the Departments of Game
and Inland Fish, Forests and Parks, and Water Resources; and one
(1) individual representing the Bureau of Mines. All members of
the Committee except the Chairman shall be appointed by the Mary-
land Geological Survey Commission for an indefinite term. Vacan-
cies shall be filled by the Com/mission as in original appointments.
The Committee members shall serve without compensation, other
than reimbursement for travel and actual expenses incurred in the
performance of their duties under this subheading. These expenses
will be provided for in the budget of the Maryland Geological Sur-
vey. The Chairman shall call the meetings, but in no case shall
meetings be held less often than twice a year.

(b)    It is the duty of the Land Reclamation Advisory Committee
to establish plans and methods of procedure as well as practical
guidelines for the prompt and adequate reclamation of all lands
disturbed by open pit mining of bituminous coal within the State
of Maryland. The Committee shall study and recommend proce-
dures for back-filling and grading, the restoration of plant cover,
the prevention of erosion, the prevention of the creation and the
release of acid waters, and any other reclamation actions which
may be necessary to restore the disturbed area to a condition con-
ducive for the conservation and best utilization of the natural re-