2020 RENEWAL OF REGIONAL GENERAL PERMIT (RGP) 31 Presenters: Lori Beckwith and Monte Matthews U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Wilmington District April 9, 2019
2 PURPOSE OF RGP 31: To authorize the discharge of dredged or fill material in waters of the United States (U.S.), including wetlands, associated with maintenance, repair, and construction projects conducted by the various Divisions of the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), including the Divisions of Highways, Rail, Bicycle/Pedestrian, etc.
3 The current version of RGP 31 will expire on April 30, 2020
4 General Permit General Permit means a Department of the Army (DA) authorization that is issued on a nationwide or regional basis for a category or categories of activities when: (1) Those activities are substantially similar in nature and cause only minimal individual and cumulative environmental impacts; OR (2) The general permit would result in avoiding unnecessary duplication of the regulatory control exercised by another Federal, state, or local agency provided it has been determined that the environmental consequences of the action are individually and cumulatively minimal.
5 Regional Permit • A Regional Permit (e.g., RGP 31) is a type of general permit that is issued by a division (Corps) or district engineer (Corps). • RGP 31 is specific to North Carolina. • RGP 31 is issued by the Wilmington District Engineer for use by NCDOT. • Conditions are included in RGP 31 to protect the public interest.
6 Discretionary Authority • When the Corps determines, on a case-by-case basis, that the concerns for the aquatic environment so indicate, he/she may exercise discretionary authority to override a regional permit (e.g., RGP 31) and require an individual application and review. • The Corps evaluates each project (case-by-case) to determine if the use of RGP 31 is appropriate. • More about discretionary authority later…
7 Some of the Proposed Changes for 2020… In the 2020 (draft) version of RGP 31: • Same activities are authorized Rearranged the list Reworded some of the activities • Interchanges and intersections are in a separate category Increased impact thresholds Wetland impact threshold depends on location • “Road widening” (“c” in the 2015 version) no longer includes (1) the word “minor” or (2) examples • Threshold reference to “open water” impacts no longer includes “non-tidal”
8 Activities Authorized by RGP 31 2015 (Current) Version 2020 Draft Version a. (1) Road widening , and/or (2) construction, a. Construction, maintenance, and repair of maintenance, and/or repair of bridges . For bridge bridges , to include work on the approaches. projects, work can include the approaches. b. Best-fit widening projects that have undergone b. (1) Improvement of interchanges or interagency review and completed the current intersections , or (2) construction of interchanges interagency Merger Process . or intersections over, or on, existing roads. c. Minor widening projects , such as paving and/or c. Best-fit widening projects that (1) have widening secondary roads, or interchange undergone interagency review and completed the improvements . interagency Merger Process and (2) would cause only minimal individual and cumulative d. Stream relocation (s) associated with projects environmental effects. identified in a-c above. Stream relocation lengths are to be evaluated independently and are not included Stream relocation activities are included in “a”, within each respective maximum limit threshold for “b”, and “c” – not as a separate item (“d”), as in the authorized actions stated above. current (2015) version.
9 2020 (Draft) Authorized Activities a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. b. (1) Improvement of interchanges or intersections, or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections over, or on, existing roads. c. Best-fit widening projects that (1) have undergone interagency review and completed the interagency Merger Process and (2) would cause only minimal individual and cumulative environmental effects.
10 2020 (Draft) Authorized Activities a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. b. (1) Improvement of interchanges or intersections, or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections over, or on, existing roads. c. Best-fit widening projects that (1) have undergone interagency review and completed the interagency Merger Process and (2) would cause only minimal individual and cumulative environmental effects.
Activities Authorized by RGP 31 11 (Rearranged for 2020) 2015 (Current) Version 2020 Draft Version a. Construction, maintenance, and repair of bridges, to include work on a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, the approaches. and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. c. Minor widening projects , such as paving and/or widening secondary roads, or interchange improvements.
Activities Authorized by RGP 31 12 (Rearranged for 2020) 2015 (Current) Version 2020 Draft Version a. Construction, maintenance, and repair of bridges, to include work on a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, the approaches. and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. c. Minor widening projects , such as paving and/or widening secondary roads, For these activities, the 2020 impact or interchange improvements. thresholds = 2015 impact thresholds.
13 2020 (Draft) Language for “a” a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. Permanent impacts that result in a loss of waters of the U.S., excluding stream relocation(s), must be less than or equal to 500 linear feet (lf) of stream and/or one (1) acre of wetland/open water for each single and complete linear project. .
14 Single and complete linear project For linear projects, the ‘‘single and complete project’’ (i.e., single and complete crossing) will apply to each crossing of a separate water of the U.S. (i.e., single waterbody) at that location; except that for linear projects crossing a single waterbody several times at separate and distant locations, each crossing is considered a single and complete project. However, individual channels in a braided stream or river, or individual arms of a large, irregularly-shaped wetland or lake, etc., are not separate waterbodies and crossing of such features cannot be considered separately.
15 Stream relocation(s) under “a” • Stream relocation(s) also authorized • Evaluated independently - not limited to the loss thresholds of 500 lf of stream and/or 1 acre of wetland/open water (i.e., stream relocations do not factor into these thresholds) for each single and complete linear project under “a”. • If the Corps determines that the proposed stream relocation(s) is of such a magnitude that it cannot be authorized by this RGP, even if the permanent losses from road widening, and/or construction, maintenance, and repair of bridges do not exceed the impact thresholds for this RGP, an Individual Permit (IP) will be required.
16 2020 (Draft) Authorized Activities a. (1) Road widening, and/or (2) construction, maintenance, and/or repair of bridges. For bridge projects, work can include the approaches. b. (1) Improvement of interchanges or intersections, or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections over, or on, existing roads. c. Best-fit widening projects that (1) have undergone interagency review and completed the interagency Merger Process and (2) would cause only minimal individual and cumulative environmental effects.
Activities Authorized by RGP 31 17 (Rearranged for 2020) 2015 (Current) Version 2020 Draft Version b. (1) Improvement of c. Minor widening projects, such interchanges or intersections, as paving and/or widening secondary or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections roads, or interchange improvements . over, or on, existing roads.
Activities Authorized by RGP 31 18 (Rearranged for 2020) 2015 (Current) Version 2020 Draft Version b. (1) Improvement of c. Minor widening projects, such interchanges or intersections, as paving and/or widening secondary or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections roads, or interchange improvements . over, or on, existing roads. Impact thresholds in 2020 version are higher than the thresholds in 2015 version. Impact threshold for wetlands depends on location.
19 2020 (Draft) Language for “b” b. (1) Improvement of interchanges or intersections, or (2) construction of interchanges or intersections, over or, on existing roads. For activities authorized under “b”, the thresholds for permanent impacts that result in a loss of waters of the U.S. (excluding stream relocation(s)) depend on the location of the impacts: • Coastal Plain of North Carolina (both inner and outer) • All other areas in North Carolina
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