Take Action: Army Corps of Engineers Seeks Public Comments on Proposal to Renew, Revise Nationwide Permits
If your projects Use These Permits, Be sure to Take a Look at the Proposed Changes
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) recently published a proposal to reissue and modify the nationwide permits (NWPs). The Corps issues NWPs to authorize a variety of construction operations in “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) that have minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects. AGC invites members to provide their feedback on the proposed permits to the Association as soon as possible, using AGC’s NWP Discussion Document (MS Office Word document download).
NWPs are general permits issued by the Corps under Clean Water Act Section 404 and are intended to allow certain activities to proceed with little delay or paperwork. They authorize (on a nationwide basis) discharges of dredged or fill material into WOTUS, including activities associated with road crossings, utility lines, stormwater management, wetland and stream restoration, coal mining and renewable energy generation. Based on recent data, the Corps authorizes roughly 30,000 projects through the NWP program each year.
How AGC Members Can Take Action
- Take a moment to review AGC’s NWP Discussion Document, which highlights notable changes to the NWPs, general conditions, and definitions that may impact commercial construction work performed by AGC members. The Corps is proposing to reissue 50 NWPs, as well as the general conditions and definitions. The Corps also is proposing to issue two new NWPs and one new general condition. A complete summary of the proposed modifications are tabulated in the Corps’ summary table for the proposal.
- Let AGC know how specific proposed changes would impact your company’s operations. Enter that information into the “member feedback” column in the discussion document and send to AGC by Friday, July 8, 2016. AGC will incorporate member feedback into the Association’s comment letter to the Corps.
- Consider submitting your own individual public comment letter to the Corps by August 1. You may submit your own/company comments directly to the Corps via e-mail at: NWP2017@usace.army.mil or through the Federal eRulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov (Docket ID No. COE-2015-0017).
For More Information
Visit the Corps’ Nationwide Permits or the Corp’s Regulatory Programs and Permits Web pages for more information. Also, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maintains a Web page that provides a chronology of NWPs issued to date and related materials.
If you have additional questions, please contact Leah Pilconis at pilconisl@agc.org.
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