7 Apr 2025

Special Public Notice for Special Emergency Processing Procedures under E.O. 14156 in Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming for Section 10 Rivers and Harbors Act and Section 404 Clean Water Action Permits

The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Northwestern Division has approved the use of special emergency processing procedures by the Omaha District in accordance with 33 CFR § 325.2(e)(4) for activities covered by the National Energy Emergency declared in Executive Order (EO) 14156. That EO was issued on January 20, 2025, under the President’s legal authorities, including the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. §§ 1601 et seq.) and 3 USC § 301. For the reasons stated in Section 1 of EO 14156, the President has found that insufficient energy production, transportation, refining, and generation constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to our Nation’s economy, national security, and foreign policy and declared a national emergency on the basis of those findings. The President has directed agencies to use, to the fullest extent possible and consistent with applicable law, emergency USACE permitting provisions to facilitate the Nation’s energy supply.

27 Feb 2025

NWO-2023-01976-RWY

Expiration date: 3/28/2025

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, (Corps) in coordination with Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ), Water Quality Division, is evaluating a proposal for a proposed In-Lieu Fee Compensatory Mitigation Program (ILF) referred to as “Ducks Unlimited Wyoming Aquatic Resource In-Lieu Fee Program (DU-WY-ILF)”. The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments and recommendations from the public, federal, state, and local agencies and officials, Indian tribes, and other interested parties concerning the work as described below. This notice may also be viewed at the Corps web site at: https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory-Program/Wyoming/Public-Notices/. Under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), applicants applying for the Department of the Army (DA) permits to discharge dredge or fill material into waters of the United States, including wetlands, are often required to provide compensatory mitigation for permitted unavoidable aquatic resource losses by creating, restoring, enhancing, and preserving wetlands or streams. Authorized ILF Programs provide the Corps and the regulated public with additional options for compensatory mitigation of aquatic resource losses and ease the regulatory burden associated with permitted impacts. As per the Mitigation Rule, there are three mechanisms for providing compensatory mitigation (listed in order of preference as established by the regulations): mitigation banks, in-lieu fee programs, and permittee-responsible mitigation. An in-lieu fee program allows a permit holder to pay a fee to a government agency or nonprofit organization (sponsor) instead (in-lieu) of directly mitigating environmental impacts on their property. The mitigation responsibility is transferred to the sponsor where the collected funds are used to restore and preserve aquatic areas elsewhere, effectively compensating for the environmental damage caused by the permitted project. Implicit to the Program is a watershed-scale approach considering landscape-level opportunities funded by the sale of mitigation credits. This will allow impacted watershed functions and services to be offset through ecologically significant projects.

10 Feb 2025

Version 8 of Regional General Permit 198226002 (RGP 8202-08)

Expiration date: 12/31/2029

The District Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, 1616 Capitol Avenue, Suite 9000, Omaha, Nebraska 68102-9000 has issued Version 8 of Regional General Permit 198226002 (RGP 8202-08). The permit authorizes construction of fish habitat restoration and enhancement features in creeks, streams and rivers in the State of Wyoming pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1972 (U.S.C. 1344). RGP 8202-08 was issued in accordance with the "Regulatory Programs of the Corps; Final Rule," as published in the Federal Register, Volume 51, Number 219, dated November 13, 1986. A consolidated version of the regulations updated through April 2008 is available from the Corps Headquarters web site at: http://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/CivilWorks/RegulatoryProgramandPermits/FederalRegulation.aspx Section 322.2(f) of the regulations defines "general permit" as a Department of the Army authorization that is issued on a nationwide or regional basis for a category or categories of activities when those activities are substantially similar in nature and cause only minimal individual and cumulative environmental impacts. Section 325.2(e)(2) of the regulations defines regional permits as a type of general permit issued by a division or district engineer after compliance with the other procedures of the regulations. The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ), Water Quality Division at 200 West 17th Street, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002, certified RGP 8202-08 on January 15, 2025, in accordance with provisions of Section 401 of the Clean Water Act of 1972, as amended. The WDEQ certified authorized activities located in Wyoming Class 2, 3 and 4 waters and denied certification of proposed activities in Class 1 waters pending project specific reviews. Certification was also denied where authorized activities would occur on waterbody segments placed on Wyoming’s 303(d) list of impaired waters or that have approved total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) pending project specific reviews.