Section 89.153. Water supply replacement: rebuttable presumption

(a) In a determination or proceeding under section 5.2 of The Bituminous Mine Subsidence and Land Conservation Act (52 P. S. § 1406.5b), it is presumed that the operator is responsible for the contamination, diminution or interruption of a water supply that is within the rebuttable presumption area.

(b) The operator may successfully rebut the presumption by affirmatively proving that the landowner denied the operator access to the property on which the water supply is located to conduct a premining survey or a postmining survey of the quality and quantity of the water supply and that the operator complied with the notification procedure in § 89.145a(a)(3) (relating to water supply replacement: performance standards).

(c) Affirmatively proving that an operator was denied access to conduct a premining or postmining survey of a water supply does not relieve the operator of liability for the contamination, diminution or interruption when the landowner, affected water use or the Department proves the operator’s underground mining activities caused the contamination, diminution or interruption.

The provisions of this § 89.153 adopted June 12, 1998, effective June 13, 1998, 28 Pa.B. 2761.