(1) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as affecting in any way the right of any person to enforce or protect, under applicable law, his interest in water resources affected by a surface coal mining operation or an underground coal mine.
(2) Each permittee or operator of a surface or underground coal mine shall replace the water supply of an owner of interest in real property who obtains all or part of his supply of water for domestic, agricultural, industrial, or other legitimate use from an underground or surface source where the supply has been affected by contamination, diminution, or interruption proximately resulting from the surface or underground coal mine.

Terms Used In Kentucky Statutes 350.421

  • Domestic: when applied to a corporation, partnership, business trust, or limited liability company, means all those incorporated or formed by authority of this state. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010
  • Federal: refers to the United States. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010
  • Operator: means any person, partnership, or corporation engaged in surface coal mining operations who removes or intends to remove more than twenty-five (25) tons of coal from the earth by coal mining within twelve (12) consecutive calendar months in any one (1) location. See Kentucky Statutes 350.010
  • Owner: when applied to any animal, means any person having a property interest in such animal. See Kentucky Statutes 446.010
  • Permittee: means a person holding a permit to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations. See Kentucky Statutes 350.010
  • Person: means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, society, joint stock company, firm, company, or other business organization and shall also include any agency, unit, or instrumentality of federal, state, or local government including any publicly-owned utility or publicly-owned corporation of federal, state, or local government. See Kentucky Statutes 350.010
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Secretary: means the secretary of the Energy and Environment Cabinet. See Kentucky Statutes 350.010

Effective: July 15, 1994
History: Amended 1994 Ky. Acts ch. 311, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1994. – Amended
1992 Ky. Acts ch. 429, sec. 27, effective July 14, 1992. — Created 1980 Ky. Acts ch.
62, sec. 37.
Legislative Research Commission Note. The provisions of this section became operative on May 18, 1982, when the conditional approval granted by the United States Secretary of the Interior appeared in the Federal Register.