1.    Upon petition pursuant to section 38-14.1-06, the commission shall designate an area as unsuitable for all or certain types of surface coal mining operations if the commission determines, after hearings conducted in accordance with this chapter, that reclamation pursuant to the requirements of this chapter is not technologically and economically feasible.

2. Upon petition pursuant to section 38-14.1-06, and after hearings conducted in accordance with this chapter, the commission may designate an area as unsuitable for certain types of surface coal mining operations if such operations will:

a.    Be incompatible with existing state or local land use plans or programs; b.    Affect fragile or historic lands in which such operations could result in significant damage to important historic, cultural, scientific, and aesthetic values and natural systems; c. Affect renewable resource lands in which such operations could result in a substantial loss or reduction of productivity of long-range water supply or food or fiber products, and such lands include aquifers and aquifer recharge areas; or

d.    Affect natural hazard lands in which such operations could substantially endanger life and property, and such lands include areas subject to frequent flooding and areas of unstable geology.

3.    Prior to designating any land area as unsuitable for surface coal mining operations, the commission shall prepare a detailed statement on:

a.    The potential coal or commercial leonardite resources of the area; b.    The demand for coal or commercial leonardite resources; and

c.    The impact of such designation on the environment, the economy, and the supply of coal or commercial leonardite.