PUBLIC LAW 95-87—AUG. 3, 1977
91 STAT. 517
and reclamation operations on lands within a State in accordance with the requirements of this Act; (7) "fund" means the Abandoned Mine Keclamation Fund established pursuant to section 401; _ Ante, p. 456. (8) "imminent danger to the health and safety of the public" means the existence of any condition or practice, or any violation > ',.-' of a permit or other requirement of this Act in a surface coal mining and reclamation operation, which condition, practice, or violation could reasonably be expected to cause substantial physical harm to persons outside the permit area before such condition, practice, or violation can be abated. A reasonable expectation of death or serious injury before abatement exists if a rational person, subjected to the same conditions or practices giving rise to the peril, would not expose himself or herself to the danger during the time necessary for abatement; (9) "Indian lands" means all lands, including mineral interests, within the exterior boundaries of any Federal Indian reservation, notwithstanding the issuance of any patent, and including rightsof-way, and all lands including mineral interests held in trust for or supervised by an Indian tribe; (10) "Indian tribe" means any Indian tribe, band, group, or community having a governing body recognized by the Secretary; (11) "lands within any State" or "lands within such State" means all lands within a State other than Federal lands and Indian lands; (12) "Office" means the Office of Surface Mining Eeclamation and Enforcement established pursuant to title II; ^"^^' P- ^^• (13) "operator" means any person, partnership, or corporation engaged in coal mining who removes or intends to remove more than two hundred and fifty tons of coal from the earth by coal mining within twelve consecutive calendar months in any one location; (14) "other minerals" means clay, stone, sand, gravel, metalliferous and nonmetalliferous ores, and any other solid material or substances of commercial value excavated in solid form from natural deposits on or in the earth, exclusive of coal and those minerals which occur naturally in liquid or gaseous form; (15) "permit" means a permit to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations issued by the State regulatory authority pursuant to a State program or by the Secretary pursuant to a Federal program; (16) "permit applicant" or "applicant" means a person applying for a permit; (17) "permit area" means the area of land indicated on the approved map submitted by the operator with his application, which area of land shall be covered by the operator's bond as required by section 509 of this Act and shall be readily identifiable Ante, p. 479. by appropriate markers on the site; (18) "permittee" means a person holding a permit; (19) "person" means an individual, partnership, association, society, joint stock company, firm, company, corporation, or other business organization; (20) the term "prime farmland" shall have the same meaning as that previously prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture on the basis of such factors as moisture availability, temperature regime, chemical balance, permeability, surface layer composition, susceptibility to flooding, and erosion characteristics, and
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