PART VISURVEYORS AND PLANS
Appointment of surveyors
27.—(1) No mine shall be worked unless the owner has appointed a suitably qualified and competent person to be the surveyor for the mine.
(2) Where the post of surveyor becomes vacant the mine may be worked without a surveyor for a period up to 28 days or for such longer period as the Executive may approve.
Duties of the surveyor
28. It shall be the duty of the surveyor for the mine to ensure so far as is practicable–
(a)that the plans, sections and working papers of the mine which are required under the relevant statutory provisions (whether prepared by him or not) are suitable, complete and accurate;
(b)before ceasing to be the surveyor for the mine–
(i)that those plans and sections and the working papers referred to in regulation 29 are transferred to the owner of the mine unless they are already kept at the office of the mine or at some other place approved by the Executive; and
(ii)that a report in writing is prepared and sent to the owner of the condition of those plans and sections.
Working plans, ventilation plans and geological map
29.—(1) There shall be suitable, complete and accurate plans of all the workings in a mine and of its boundaries and as far as practicable of any other workings which may affect the safety of the mine (whether or not the workings are discontinued or have been abandoned) and accurate sections of the seams or vein-systems currently being worked in the mine and of the surrounding strata.
(2) The plans and sections referred to in paragraph (1) shall be–
(a)kept at the office of the mine or at some other place approved for this purpose by the Executive;
(b)prepared and revised at suitable intervals by the surveyor or a suitably qualified and competent person working under his supervision;
(c)prepared in such form and in such quantity as is requisite to enable the mine to be worked safely;
(d)prepared on such scale and marked with such features as are requisite for–
(i)the provision of accurate information relevant to the safe working of the mine; and
(ii)the provision of accurate information on the position and conditions of existing workings and as far as practicable workings that have been discontinued or abandoned;
(e)marked with the date on which the plan or section was commenced, prepared and revised; and
(f)permanently and clearly drawn or printed on suitable and durable material and maintained in good condition.
(3) The surveyor shall ensure that all working papers relating to the plans and sections referred to in paragraph (1) are signed and dated by the person who prepared them and are retained.
(4) The owner of a mine shall make the plans of that mine required by paragraph (1) and the working papers referred to in paragraph (3) available to the owner of, or the surveyor for, a neighbouring mine, if those plans are needed to assist in the preparation for compliance with any of the relevant statutory provisions of the plans for that neighbouring mine.
(5) There shall be kept at the office of the mine or some other place approved for that purpose by the Executive a plan showing the system of ventilation at the mine and, in particular, the general direction of the flow of ventilation, the points at which the quantity of air passing is assessed and the location of the principal devices for regulating the flow of ventilation.
(6) There shall be kept at the office of the mine or some other place approved for this purpose by the Executive a suitable geological map of the district in which the mine is situated showing the boundaries of superficial and drift deposits.
Facilities and information to be given to the surveyor
30. The owner and the manager shall provide the surveyor for the mine with all plans, drawings and other relevant documents and information which are requisite for preparing the plans and sections required under regulation 29(1) and (5) and so far as is practicable the manager shall give the surveyor access to all the workings of the mine (including those which have been discontinued) for the purposes of preparing or revising those plans and sections.
Plans relating to abandoned mines or discontinued seams and vein-systems
31.—(1) In the event of–
(a)the abandonment of a mine; or
(b)the working of a seam or vein-system in a mine being discontinued for a period of more than twelve months,
it shall be the duty of the person who was the owner at the time of the event to send to the Executive within three months of that date, or within such longer time as the Executive may approve, the plans and sections referred to in regulation 29(1) of, and the working papers referred to in regulation 29(3) relating to, the abandoned mine or of the discontinued seam or vein or, in either case, accurate copies thereof.
(2) The plans and sections required to be sent to the Executive in accordance with paragraph (1) shall be accompanied by–
(a)a certificate given by the surveyor, or by some other suitably qualified and competent person authorised to act on behalf of the owner, who can so certify and report from his own knowledge that to the best of his knowledge and belief the plan or section is accurate; and
(b)a certificate given by the manager, or by some other suitably qualified and competent person authorised to act on behalf of the owner who can so certify and report from his own knowledge that no further work, for the purpose of getting minerals, has taken place after a stated date which would affect the accuracy of the plan or section.
Retention and availability of plans etc.
32.—(1) Where, in pursuance of regulation 31, plans and other documents have been sent to the Executive they shall be retained by the Executive or in accordance with arrangements approved by the Executive.
(2) Where plans and other documents or copies thereof have been sent to the Executive in pursuance of regulation 31, and subsequently it is proposed to resume working at any mine, seam or vein-system to which those documents relate, on reasonable notice being given, the Executive shall send those plans and documents (or the copies thereof) to the owner of the mine to which they relate.
Faulty plans
33. Section 19 of the 1954 Act (which relates to the powers of the Executive in relation to faulty plans) shall apply to plans and sections prepared under regulation 29(1) of these Regulations as it applied to plans and sections prepared for the purposes of that Act.