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United States Army Corps of Engineers Nationwide Permits In contrast, projects that result in impacts of less than one-half acre and/or less than 300 linear feet may be authorized under one of the existing United States Army Corps of Engineers Nationwide Permits (NWPs) if they meet all of the Nationwide Permit General Conditions. If the project falls under the Nationwide Permit program and will result in greater than 0,10 acre of impacts, a Pre-construction Notification (PCN) must be submitted to the United States Army Corps of Engineers prior to discharging fill. The Nationwide Permit General Conditions require that the project include provisions for the protection of federally- or state-listed Endangered or Threatened species, water quality management; and construction practices that do not disrupt movement of aquatic life, among other requirements. Additiona! r~gio!!E!! req!!!!'cme:lts fer maintaining upland buffer areas between authorized projects and open waters or streams may be conditions for granting any United States Army Corps of Engineers permit. Therefore, activities authorized under Nationwide Permits are often those projects that have minimal impacts to wetlands, waters, and special-status species. If no federally- or state-listed Endangered or Threatened species have the potential to occur in the project area, processing of Nationwide Permits frequently takes 30 to 60 days. When listed species may be present in the project area, the review and negotiation process may take up to six months or more. Several regulatory agencies with commenting authority may provide input and specify permit conditions during the United States Army Corps of Engineers' review of an Individual or Nationwide Permit application. The agencies typically involved include the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, State Office of Historical Protection, Environmental Protection Agency, National Marine Fisheries Service (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), and the Regional Water Quality Control Board. Because of the recent Supreme Court decision in Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. US Army Corps of Engineers (SW ANCC), the United States Army Corps of Engineers no longer takes jurisdiction over "isolated" wetlands and waters. The United States Army Corps of Engineers does take jurisdiction over "adjacent wetlands," which are hydrologically connected to navigable waters or tributaries of navigable water, even if such wetlands appear to be otherwise "isolated." In response to the federal agency not taking authority over the isolated wetlands, the Regional Water Quality Control Board takes authority over "waters of the State." Therefore, the result is that all wetlands and waters in California are regulated by either the United States Army Corps of Engineers or the Regional Water Quality Control Board, or both. In creek or river systems, the Regional Water Quality Control Board takes jurisdiction similar to the California Department of Fish and Game, from top of bank to top of bank (Figure 2). Many applicants have misunderstood the SW ANCC decision, especially in the context of the State's authority and the ability of the United States Army Corps of Engineers to take jurisdiction over "adjacent wetlands." Regardless of the permits required, careful project design and efforts to avoid and minimIze impacts to special-status species and wetland resources will streamline the permitting~rocess ......J ~.b.ulL'....uJJ UJI}-H....V..... LW... 1Il'l..'-'JlIIVVU I..H la.plU PIUJt:U a~J1uval. f'\llnougn the Umte States Army Corps of Engineers is primarily concerned with biological resources associated with jurisdictional wetlands or waters, special-status upland species are frequcntly addressed in the United States Army Corps of Engineers permitting process and these species and impacts to their habitat should also be avoided during project planning. The regulatory guidelines require a Sycamore Associates LLC - Regulatory Permitting Implications 05/06/04 7