Summary:

Nebraska Department of Water, Energy and Environment has submitted a Department of the Army standard permit application for the discharge of dredged or fill material under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act  to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed Perkins County Canal Project, which would be located along the South Platte River in Sedgwick County, Colorado and Deuel and Keith Counties, Nebraska. The proposed project would divert water from the South Platte River near Ovid, Colorado and return it to the South Platte River near Roscoe, Nebraska. The water would be conveyed through a system of newly constructed or modified existing canals. The proposed project would include river-gated and canal-gated structures to divert and control flows into the canals, lined and unlined canal structures, and two dams and storage reservoirs, one with a capacity of approximately 17,000 acre-feet, and the other, with approximately 77,000 acre-feet. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Omaha District Regulatory Division is the lead federal agency preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that will analyze the potential impacts of the proposed project on the human and natural environment.

Initial Press Release

Special Public Notice: Intent to Prepare EIS: Perkins County Canal Project (February 20, 2026)

Fact Sheet: Perkins County Canal Project Environmental Impact Statement

USACE has initiated a 45-day public comment period per 33 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 325.3 to gather input from the public; federal, state and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other interested parties regarding the Special Public Notice and to inform the scope of the EIS analysis per 33 CFR § 333.18(b) and related reviews under Executive Order 13175 Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, the Clean Water Act, National Historic Preservation Act Section 106, Endangered Species Act Section 7, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s Administrative Action Associated with Wetland Reserve Program Easement.

Comments may be submitted in the following ways:

• Electronically via the Regulatory Request System at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs using the search term NWO-2023-00518
• Email: PCC.EIS@usace.army.mil
• Postal mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District Regulatory Division, Attn: PCC, 1616 Capitol Avenue, Omaha, NE 68102
• Verbally or in writing at in-person public meetings, or verbally at the virtual public meeting.

Comments should be postmarked by or received on or before April 6, 2026, and should include the project name, Perkins County Canal, and permit application number NWO-2023-00518 in the subject line.

PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY: Comments and information, including the identity of the submitter, submitted in response to this public notice may be disclosed, reproduced, and distributed at the discretion of USACE. Information that is submitted in connection with this public notice cannot be maintained as confidential by USACE. Submissions should not include any information that the submitter seeks to maintain as confidential.

Public meetings will be held during the comment period to provide opportunities to learn more about the proposed Project and submit comments:

Denver: Monday, March 9, 2026, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. MDT; Welcome Remarks 6:00 p.m. MDT; Denver Airport Marriott at Gateway Park, 16455 E. 40th Circle, Aurora, CO 80011 

Julesburg: Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. MDT; Welcome Remarks 6:00 p.m. MDT; Sedgwick County Community Center Events Room, 102 W 6th St, Julesburg, CO 80737 

Kearney: Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. CDT; Welcome Remarks 6:00 p.m. CDT; Harmon Park Activity Center, 3100 5th Ave, Kearney, NE 68845 

Virtual: Wednesday, March 18, 2026, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. MDT/ 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. CDT 
(Meeting details will be posted here at a later date)

For further information, contact:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District Regulatory Division
Attention: PCC
1616 Capitol Avenue
Omaha, NE 68102
PCC.EIS@usace.army.mil
(720) 922-3851