A.
The mining operation shall not commence until such time as the licensee has posted with the Township Clerk a performance bond in an amount determined by the Township Board, following recommendation of its experts, to be reasonably necessary to ensure reclamation. No less than 25% of the total bond shall be in the form of cash or an irrevocable letter of credit issued by a banking or savings and loan institution licensed to do business in the state, making the Township the beneficiary thereof. All of the rest and balance of the bond shall be a corporate surety bond issued by a company licensed for such purposes in the state. The conditions of such bonds shall be that, if the licensee has satisfactorily reclaimed the property being the subject of the permit in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, the performance bond shall be returned to the licensee; otherwise, the Township shall have a right to use the cash or proceeds of the irrevocable letter of credit to the extent necessary to reclaim the property and to cover the costs of enforcing and bringing about compliance with this chapter, including reasonable attorney's fees, and the corporate surety bond shall serve to guarantee payment for all such reclamation and enforcement and compliance requirements, as aforementioned.
B.
The cash or irrevocable letter of credit shall remain with the Township until the parcel or parcels have been reclaimed, and all equipment, machinery, materials, buildings and other operation related improvements removed as required by this chapter and/or by the terms of the permit.
C.
In the establishment of the amount of the performance bond, the Township Board shall take into account the size and scope of the proposed operation, the current and projected costs of reclamation in the event of default by the operator at such time as it is likely to be most costly, and other such conditions and factors as might be relevant in determining a sum reasonable in light of all the facts and circumstances. The Township Board, in considering any application to renew the permit, may in its discretion, increase or decrease the amount of the performance bond, based upon increased costs, new information, or partial reclamation.