Regulatory - U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District

/ /

COVID-19 and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Regulatory Program

During the current COVID-19 pandemic, the St. Paul District Regulatory Program continues to serve our customers throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Our primary commitment is to public health and safety, including that of our employees and their families. We will continue to comply with national, state, and local recommendations for social distancing to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Employees are primarily working from their homes. All Regulatory offices in Minnesota and Wisconsin are unoccupied. Employees may also be working variable hours, to care for themselves and family members.

Please continue to use normal business phone numbers and email addresses; employees are able to receive those calls and messages remotely. Continue to follow established procedures for submitting requests and responding to Public Notices electronically. Employees may periodically retrieve physical mail from offices, but it will not be as timely as electronic communication.

Meetings will primarily be held virtually. Those that cannot will be postponed. As field season approaches, we will adhere to social distancing protocols and maximize our use of remote tools to evaluate site conditions.

Our goal is to remain responsive to the public, while fully complying with measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

If you have questions, please call our Regulatory hotline at (651) 290-5525.

Proposal for the reissuance of 2020 nationwide permits available for public comment

On September 15, 2020, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers published in the Federal Register its proposal to reissue the 52 existing nationwide permits (NWPs) and issue five new NWPs. This public notice discusses and solicits public comment on the St. Paul District’s proposal to issue 43 nationwide permits and associated regional conditions and revoke 14 nationwide permits within Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Link to public notice

Mississippi River wetland includes lilypads

EPA and Army publish Navigable Waters Protection Rule

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule: Definition of “Waters of the United States” was published in the Federal Register. This final rule establishes the scope of federal regulatory authority under the Clean Water Act. The Navigable Waters Protection Rule includes four simple categories of jurisdictional waters and provides specific exclusions for many water features that traditionally have not been regulated. The final rule became effective on June 22, 2020.

Federal Register NoticeMore Info from EPA

Obtain a Permit

Let us help guide you through the permit application process.

Permits

Regulatory Division

Wetland Plant Book

Version 3.2 - July 2015 Steve D. Eggers and Donald M. Reed Request a copy Copies are available for your school, agency, office or personal use. Books must be picked up at the St. Paul District Office.
Pt.1	Introduction; Key to Plant Communities; Shallow, Open Water Communities
Pt.2	Deep and Shallow Marshes
Pt.3	Sedge Meadows and Fresh (wet) Meadows
Pt.4	Wet to Wet-Mesic Prairies and Calcareous Fens
Pt.5	Bogs and Shrub Swamps
Pt.6	Wooded Swamps
Pt.7	Floodplain Forests; Seasonally Flooded Basins; Appendices; Glossary; Bibliography; Index

Recent Regulatory Public Notices

2013-00984-RMG - In-Lieu Fee Program Instrument Modification
SPECIAL PUBLIC NOTICE: Interested parties are hereby notified that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) has proposed to modify the Wisconsin Wetland Conservation Trust (herein referred to as “ILF”) Instrument to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). The Corps is in the process of reviewing revisions to the Instrument. The WWCT Instrument was originally signed by WDNR, the Corps St. Paul District, and U.S. EPA Region 5 in November of 2014. The agencies are working to update the Instrument in order to better define processes and capture practices that require revision or clarification.

Date of Expiration: 12/30/2020

2020-01737-WMS (Douglas County, WI) Wasco/Sjoberg Road Project
PUBLIC NOTICE: APPLICATION FOR PERMIT TO discharge fill material below the plane of the ordinary high water mark of Beebe Creek and Catlin Creek, and into approximately 5.4 acres of wetlands. These discharges would facilitate the reconstruction of Sjoberg and Wasko Road to Wisconsin County Roadway Standards to become CTH E.

Date of Expiration: 12/09/2020

2020-02230-SJW (Douglas County, WI) Enbridge Superior Terminal Containment Pond Project
PUBLIC NOTICE: The purpose of the proposed project is to increase the total containment capacity of Pool 2 by 9,000,000 gallons. As stated in the application, Enbridge can add approximately 3,000,000 gallons of capacity in Pool 2 by raising the height of the existing berm. Therefore, an additional dam is necessary downstream of Pool 2 with the capacity of approximately 6,000,000 gallons to achieve the desired total capacity of 9,000,000 gallons.

Date of Expiration: 11/28/2020

> More Public Notices

Regulatory News

No Items.

General Permits and Water Quality Certifications

Regional General Permits and Water Quality Certification

Nationwide Permits and Water Quality Certification

About Our Regulatory & Permits Office

The mission of the Corps of Engineers' Regulatory Program is to protect the nation's aquatic resources, while allowing reasonable development through fair, flexible and balanced permit decisions. The Corps evaluates permit applications for essentially all construction activities that occur in the nation's waters, including wetlands.

The Corps' regulatory program includes Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The St. Paul District's regulatory jurisdiction covers the states of Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Under Section 10, a Corps permit is required to do any work in, over or under a 'Navigable Water of the U.S.' Waterbodies have been designated as 'Navigable Waters of the U.S.' based on their past, present or potential use for transportation for interstate commerce.

Under Section 404, a Corps permit is required for the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the U.S. Many waterbodies and wetlands in the nation are waters of the U.S. and are subject to the Corps' Section 404 regulatory authority.

Contact Information

Minnesota

USACE_Requests_MN@usace.army.mil

Field Office	Address
Bemidji	4111 Technology Drive NW, Suite 295 Bemidji, MN 56601 218-444-6381
Brainerd	10867 East Gull Lake Drive NW Brainerd, MN 56401 651-290-5767
Duluth	600 South Lake Avenue, Suite 211 Duluth, MN 55802 218-788-6408
La Crescent	1114 South Oak Street La Crescent, MN 55947 651-290-5902