(a)

In cases where land is used for such purposes as landfills, dumps, or junk yards or other such uses where the physical characteristics of the land are substantially changed as a result of the operation, a proposed plan of functional reuse of the land is required at the time of the application for special use. The plan shall show future locations of residential, commercial, industrial, public, semipublic, and other land uses, if any, and the principal elements of a future traffic circulation system to service the area. Furthermore, sufficient information shall be provided to determine the general characteristics of proposed development such as population density ranges, types of commercial or industrial usage, and kinds of public areas.

(b)

All land fills shall be approved by the state environmental protection agency.

(c)

All or part of the darkened surface soil, (as defined in the state surface coal mining land conservation and reclamation act, 220 ILCS 720/1.01 et seq.), commonly called top soil, being part of the affected land of the mineral extraction site, shall be segregated during the stripping process and replaced as a final cover as a last step in the required reclamation process.

(1)

When available in such depth, at least 18 inches of the darkened surface soil shall be segregated and replaced. When less than 18 inches of the darkened surface soil exists, all such lesser amounts shall be segregated and replaced. In no case shall less than the top eight inches of surface soil, darkened or not, be segregated and replaced.

(2)

This segregation and replacement requirement may be altered by the department of mines and minerals or the board of appeals only if it is determined upon the advice of a competent soil scientist that other material available in the cast of the overburden would be suitable in meeting the reclamation requirements. On all lands to be reclaimed, the operators shall not be required to create a soil condition better than that which existed prior to surface mining.

(d)

The same volume of overburden removed from the natural deposits of minerals during a surface mining operation shall be used in the reclamation of the mineral extraction site of which said overburden was removed. This overburden replacement requirement may be altered by the board of appeals if the mineral extraction site operator can present an effective reclamation plan that does not require the replacement of the entire volume of overburden.

(e)

For mineral extraction operations that are administrated by the rules and regulations of the county, the reclamation of each mineral extraction site phase is to be completed by the operator prior to the expiration of three years from the date on the surety bond or from the date of proof of security being deposited, to be held by the county for that specific mineral extraction site phase. When the extension of the reclamation period is necessary to allow for continued mining operations, otherwise permitted by the zoning rules and regulations of the county, or to accommodate acceptable reclamation, such request for extension shall be justified in writing to the zoning board of appeals. It shall be within the discretion of the zoning board of appeals to grant such an extension consistent with the zoning rules and regulations of the county. If the lands are not satisfactorily reclaimed and if the zoning board of appeals shall deny request for an extension for the reclamation period, the county board may declare forfeiture of the surety bond on such land not satisfactorily reclaimed.

(Ord. of 12-4-1973, § 20.1)