Wash. Rev. Code » Title 78 · Chapter 78.44
Revised Code of Washington

Wash. Rev. Code § 78.44.081 (2026)

Reclamation permits required—Applications

✓ current as of May 2026
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After July 1, 1993, no miner or permit holder may engage in surface mining without having first obtained a reclamation permit from the department. Operating permits issued by the department between January 1, 1971, and June 30, 1993, shall be considered reclamation permits. A separate permit shall be required for each noncontiguous surface mine. The reclamation permit shall consist of the permit forms and any exhibits attached thereto. The permit holder shall comply with the provisions of the reclamation permit unless waived and explained in writing by the department.
Prior to receiving a reclamation permit, an applicant must submit an application on forms provided by the department that shall contain the following information and shall be considered part of the reclamation permit:
(1) Name and address of the legal landowner, or purchaser of the land under a real estate contract;
(2) The name of the applicant and, if the applicants are corporations or other business entities, the names and addresses of their principal officers and resident agent for service of process;
(3) A reasonably accurate description of the minerals to be surface mined;
(4) Type of surface mining to be performed;
(5) Estimated starting date, date of completion, and date of completed reclamation of surface mining;
(6) Size and legal description of the permit area and maximum lateral and vertical extent of the disturbed area;
(7) Expected area to be disturbed by surface mining during (a) the next twelve months, and (b) the following twenty-four months;
(8) Any applicable SEPA documents; and
(9) Other pertinent data as required by the department.
The reclamation permit shall be granted for the period required to deplete essentially all minerals identified in the reclamation permit on the land covered by the reclamation plan. The reclamation permit shall be valid until the reclamation is complete unless the permit is canceled by the department.
[ 1997 c 192 s 1; 1993 c 518 s 11.]

Notes:

Captions—Severability—Effective date—1993 c 518: See notes following RCW 78.44.010.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5 cases, 2000–2010 · leading case: City of Univ. Place v. McGuire, 30 P.3d 453 (Wash. 2001).
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City of Univ. Place v. McGuire, 30 P.3d 453 (Wash. 2001). “RCW 78.44.081. While the land need not be level, steep slopes are discouraged.”
City of Univ. Place v. McGuire, 144 Wash. 2d 640 (Wash. 2001). “RCW 78.44.081. While the land need not be level, steep slopes are discouraged.”
City of Univ. Place v. McGuire, 102 Wash. App. 658 (Wash. Ct. App. 2000). “McGuire does not have a [DNR] reclamation permit for the land as required by RCW 78.44.081. The City Hearing Examiner granted McGuire’s appeal, contingent upon McGuire’s obtaining “appropriate DNR permits,” ruling, in part: 2.”
City of Univ. Place v. McGuire, 9 P.3d 918 (Wash. Ct. App. 2000). “McGuire does not have a [DNR] reclamation permit for the land as required by RCW 78.44.081. The City Hearing Examiner granted McGuire's appeal, contingent upon McGuire's obtaining "appropriate DNR permits," ruling, in part: 2.”
Friends of the East Fork, Inc. v. Thom, 688 F. Supp. 2d 1245 (W.D. Wash. 2010). “RCW 78.44.081, .091. Among other duties, the state Department of Natural Resources (“DNR”) is charged with the administration and enforcement of the SMA.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.