§ 38-18-07 — Surface damage and disruption payments

1. Unless the mineral lease, surface lease, or consent statement executed by the surface
owner provides for payments to the surface owner, the mineral developer shall
annually pay to the surface owner a sum of money equal to the amount of damages
sustained by the surface owner for loss of agricultural production caused by mining
activity, provided that it can be shown that the land disturbed or to be disturbed has
regularly been used for agricultural production. The amount of damages may be
determined by any formula mutually agreeable between the surface owner and the
mineral developer. The payments contemplated by this section only cover land actually
mined, disturbed, or to be mined during the year or years during which agricultural
production was actually interrupted and which land has not been restored to the level
of agricultural productivity required by the plan submitted pursuant to chapter 38-14.1.
The payments to be made hereunder must be made before December thirty-first of
that calendar year in which the loss occurred.
2. Unless waived by the owner of a farm building, if the coal or commercial leonardite
removal area of a surface mining operation comes within five hundred feet
[152.4 meters] of any farm building, the mineral developer shall pay to the owner of the
farm building either the fair market value of the farm building or the entire cost of
removing the farm building to a location where the coal or commercial leonardite
removal area of the mining operation will not come within five hundred feet [152.4
meters] of such building or buildings. The payments contemplated hereunder are in
addition to any payments required by the terms of any mineral lease, unless the
surface owner is a party to the lease and the lease provides for damages as
contemplated in this subsection in an amount not less than the amount which would be
recoverable under this section.
3. The rights granted to the surface owner by this section are hereby declared to be
absolute and unwaivable, except as provided in subsection 2. Any instrument which
purports to waive rights granted by this section is null and void and of no legal effect.