On January 6, 2017, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) published the notice in the Federal Register announcing the reissuance of all 50 existing nationwide permits (NWPs), general conditions, and definitions with some modifications. The Corps also issued two new NWPs, one new general condition, and five new definitions. The 2017 NWPs will go into effect on March 19, 2017, and will expire on March 18, 2022.
The Sacramento District has finalized Regional Conditions for the 2017 Nationwide Permits (NWPs) for the District boundaries of California, Nevada, and Utah. The final Regional Conditions consist of three lists:
1. Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for California, excluding the Lake Tahoe Basin (Enclosure 1): This list consists of 23 consolidated Regional Conditions for projects within the Sacramento District boundaries in California, excluding the Lake Tahoe Basin.
2. Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for Nevada and the Lake Tahoe Basin in California (Enclosure 2): This list consists of 23 consolidated Regional Conditions for projects within Nevada and the Lake Tahoe Basin in California.
3. Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for Utah (Enclosure 3): This list consists of 22 consolidated Regional Conditions for activities within the State of Utah.
The Regional Conditions contain the joint Regional Conditions developed among the Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Francisco Districts. These joint Regional Conditions have been incorporated into the Sacramento District Final Regional Conditions, and are identified with an asterisk. When combined with the terms and conditions of the Nationwide Permits, the final Regional Conditions were designed to ensure no more than minor impacts occur to waters of the U.S. The final Sacramento District Regional Conditions take effect on March 19, 2017, with the effective date of the NWPs. Final Regional Conditions for activities within the Sacramento District boundaries of the State of Colorado will be published by the Albuquerque District.
Section 401 Water Quality Certifications: To date, the Sacramento District has received the following Section 401 Water Quality Certifications (WQC) decisions for California, Nevada, and Utah:
1. California:
a. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Region IX: On February 27, 2017, the USEPA, Region IX certified 51 NWPs with conditions, and denied one NWP (NWP 43) for activities on tribal lands in California and Nevada (Enclosure 4a). All of the NWPs that have been certified require the submittal of a PCN or Modified PCN to USEPA, Region IX. For NWP 43, individual Section 401 WQC is required.
b. California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB): On March 17, 2017, the SWRCB issued a Section 401 WQC certifying 14 NWPs (NWPs 1, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 20, 22, 28, 32, 36, and 54) with conditions, and denying 38 NWPs (NWPs 2, 3, 7, 8, 13-19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 29-31, 33-35, 37-46, and 48-53) (Enclosure 4b). NWPs 5, 6, 23, 33, 38, 43, 46, and 54 require notification and reporting requirements. For all NWPs that have been denied, individual Section 401 WQC is required.
2. Nevada:
a. Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Quality Planning (NDEP-BWQP): On February 28, 2017, NDEP-BWQP waived 8 NWPs (NWPs 8, 10, 21, 24, 34, 48, 49, and 50), certified 12 NWPs (NWPs 1, 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 20, 22, 28, 30, 32, and 38), and denied 32 NWPs (NWPs 2, 3, 7, 12-19, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35-37, 39, 40-46, and 51-54) from the NDEP-BWQP (Enclosure 4c). For the NWPs that have been certified, a signed 401 application is required to be submitted to the NDEP-BWQP. For all NWPs that have been denied, individual Section 401 WQC is required.
b. USEPA, Region IX: On February 27, 2017, the USEPA, Region IX certified 51 NWPs with conditions, and denied one NWP (NWP 43) for activities on tribal lands in California and Nevada (Enclosure 4d). All of the NWPs that have been certified require the submittal of a PCN or Modified PCN to USEPA, Region IX. For NWP 43, individual Section 401 WQC is required.
The Sacramento District has not received a decision on Section 401 WQCs from the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe or the Walker River Paiute Tribe.
3. Utah:
a. USEPA Region 8: On March 3, 2017, the USEPA, Region 8, certified 11 NWPs with conditions (NWPs 3, 5, 6, 11, 19, 23, 25, 28, 30, 32, and 35), and denied 41 NWPs, all NWPs granted waivers on limits, all “after-the-fact” NWPs, and all provisional NWPs (Enclosure 4e). For all NWPs that have been certified, the applicant must notify USEPA Regional 8 and the Tribal Environmental Program of the use of all NWPs prior to the commencement of the activity. For all NWPs that have been denied, individual Section 401 WQC is required.
b. Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Water Quality (DWQ): On March 9, 2017, Utah DWQ certified all NWPs with conditions (Enclosure 4f). For all activities within 500 feet of the existing water’s edge of the Great Sale Lake, Utah Lake, and Bear Lake, and for all activities proposed under NWPs 3, 17, and 37, the applicant is required to submit a notification to DWQs Director.
c. Navajo Nation: On March 6, 2017, the Navajo Nation denied Section 401 WQC for their tribal lands in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah (Enclosure 4g). Individual Section 401 WQC is required for all activities on Navajo Nation lands.
d. Ute Mountain Ute Tribe: On March 3, 2017, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe denied Section 401 WQC for their Tribal lands in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah (Enclosure 4h). Individual Section 401 WQC is required for all activities on all Ute Mountain Ute Tribe lands.
Pre-Construction Notification: In order to facilitate submittal of the information required for the submittal of a complete Pre-Construction Notification (PCN) as identified in General Condition 32 and Sacramento District Regional Condition B(1), the South Pacific Division (SPD) has prepared a PCN Checklist, and Attachment 3 for compliance with the Sacramento District Regional Conditions for California, Nevada, and Utah (Enclosure 5b). In addition, SPD has prepared Instructions for the SPD PCN Checklist (Enclosure 5a), and is providing Table 1, ORM Upload Sheet (Enclosure 5c), and Table 2, Multiple Single and Complete Projects sheet (Enclosure 5d), to assist in providing the information required by General Condition 32 and applicable Regional Conditions.
All enclosures to this Public Notice may also be found on the Sacramento District website at: http://www.spk.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Permitting/Nationwide-Permits/
Please contact Regulatory Permit Specialist Lisa M. Gibson at 1325 J Street, Suite 1350, Sacrament, California 95814-2922, by email at Lisa.M.Gibson2@usace.army.mil, or by telephone at 916-557-5288 with any questions regarding the Sacramento District Regional Conditions.
Enclosures:
Enclosure 1: Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for California, excluding the Lake Tahoe Basin
Enclosure 2: Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for Nevada and the Lake Tahoe Basin in California
Enclosure 3: Final Sacramento District Nationwide Permit Regional Conditions for Utah
Enclosure 4: Section 401 Water Quality Certifications from: USEPA Region IX for California (Enclosure 4a), SWRCB for California (Enclosure 4b), NDEP-BWQP for Nevada (Enclosure 4c), USEPA Region IX for Nevada (Enclosure 4d), USEPA Region 8 for Utah (Enclosure 4e), DWQ for Utah (Enclosure 4f), Ute Mountain Ute for Utah (Enclosure 4g), and Navajo Nation for Utah (Enclosure 4h)
Enclosure 5: Instructions for the South Pacific Division Nationwide Permit Pre-Construction Notification (PCN) (Enclosure 5a); U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, South Pacific Division, Nationwide Permit Pre-Construction Notification (PCN) with Attachment 3 (Enclosure 5b); Table 1 ORM Upload Sheet (Enclosure 5c); Table 2 Multiple Single and Complete Projects (Enclosure 5d)