Corps of Engineers authorizes Stillwater, Minn., bridge permit

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, issued a permit to the Minnesota Department of Transportation, Friday, March 8 to complete the St. Croix River crossing project near Stillwater, Minn.

The Corps’ permit includes two authorizations under the Rivers and Harbors Act’s Section 10 and the Clean Water Act’s Section 404. Both authorizations were required due to the construction involving work within the St. Croix River, a navigable water of the United States, and wetlands. The project includes building a new four-lane highway across the river.

The St. Paul District regulates structures and work in navigable waters of the U.S. under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and the discharge of dredged or fill material in waters of the U.S. under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act for the states of Minnesota and Wisconsin. With more than 10,000 lakes in Minnesota and a like number in Wisconsin, the district’s Section 404 permit program is second in the Corps of Engineers for its physical size. The office averages around 6,000 jurisdictional determinations each year. The staff is committed to the national program goal of no net loss of aquatic resources while, at the same time, allowing reasonable development through fair and balanced permit decisions.

The nearly 700 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, employees working at more than 40 sites in five upper-Midwest states serve the American public in the areas of environmental enhancement, navigation, flood damage reduction, water and wetlands regulation, recreation sites and disaster response. Through the Corps’ Fiscal Year 2011 $175 million budget, nearly 2,800 non-Corps jobs were added to the regional economy as well as $271 million to the national economy. For more information, see www.mvp.usace.army.mil.

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