US Army Corps of Engineers
Portland District

NWP-2015-479

Published Nov. 20, 2015
Expiration date: 12/21/2015

PUBLIC NOTICE for Permit Application


Issue Date: November 20, 2015

Expiration Date: December 21, 2015

US Army Corps of Engineers No: NWP-2015-479

30-Day Notice Oregon Department of State Lands No: N/A


Interested parties are hereby notified that an application has been received for a Department of the Army permit for certain work in waters of the United States, as described below and shown on the attached plan.

Comments: Comments on the described work should reference the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) number shown above and reach this office no later than the above expiration date of this Public Notice to become part of the record and be considered in the decision.  Comments should be mailed to the following address:

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Regulatory Branch
Danielle Erb (Danielle.H.Erb@usace.army.mil)
P.O. 2946
Portland, Oregon  97208-2946

Applicant: Port Warren Moorage Association
357 NE Skipanon Drive
Warrenton, OR 97146

Location: 357 NE Skipanon Drive, Warrenton, Clatsop County, OR.  Section 22, Township 8 North, Range 10 West (46.168558, -123.917497).

Waterway: Skipanon River, river mile 1.2.

Project Description: The applicant will dredge up to 1,000 cubic yards of accumulated sand and silt from below the Mean High Water (MHW) of the Skipanon River from within the Port Warren Condominiums Moorage.  The dredge prism measures approximately 0.8 acres with a depth ranging from 0.5 to 2 feet, depending on the amount of accumulation.  The leave surface elevation will be approximately - 4 feet North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) 88. Dredging will be conducted using a clam-shell bucket operating from a spud-anchor barge.    Floating silt curtains will be utilized where feasible to minimize turbidity.  The Portland Sediment Evaluation Team (PSET) determined the dredge material and leave surfaces are suitable for in-water disposal.  The dredged material will be placed downstream in the Columbia River at Tansy Point below the MHW in the flow lane.

Mitigation: If a permit is issued, the Corps will determine what appropriate and practicable compensatory mitigation is.  The amount of compensatory mitigation required shall be commensurate with the anticipated impacts of the project.

Purpose: To maintain accessibility within the Port Warren Condominiums Moorage.

Drawing(s): 6 (six) drawings are attached and labeled Corps No. NWP-2015-479.

Additional Information: Additional information may be obtained from Ms. Danielle Erb, Project Manager, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at (503) 808-4368, or E-mail 
Danielle.H.Erb@usace.army.mil.

Authority: This permit will be issued or denied under the following:

Section 10, Rivers and Harbors Act 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), for work in or affecting navigable waters of the United States.

Section 404, Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344), for discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States.

Water Quality Certification: A permit for the described work will not be issued until certification, as required under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (P.L. 95 217), has been received or is waived from the certifying state.  Attached is the state's notice advertising the request for certification.

Section 404(b)(1) Evaluation: The impact of the activity on the public interest will be evaluated in accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency guidelines pursuant to Section 404(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act.

Public Hearing: Any person may request in writing within the comment period specified in this notice that a public hearing be held to consider this application.  Requests for public hearings shall state with particularity the reasons for holding a public hearing.

Endangered Species: Preliminary determinations indicate that the described activity may affect an endangered or threatened species or its critical habitat.  Consultation under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (87 Stat. 844) will be initiated.  A permit for the proposed activity will not be issued until the consultation process is completed.

Cultural Resources: An initial evaluation of the proposed project area indicates that the described activity is not located on property registered or eligible for registration in the latest published version of the National Register of Historic Places.  The proposed work is of such limited nature and extent that little likelihood exists for the proposed project to affect an unrecorded historic property or any other type of cultural resource.

This notice has been provided to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), interested Native American Indian Tribes, and other interested parties.  If you have information pertaining to cultural resources within the permit area, please provide this information to the Corps’ project manager (identified on page 1 of this notice) to assist in a complete evaluation of potential effects.

Evaluation: The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact including cumulative impacts of the described activity on the public interest.  That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources.  The benefit, which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the described activity, must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments.  All factors, which may be relevant to the described activity will be considered including the cumulative effects thereof; among those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, consideration of property ownership and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people.

The Corps is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, state, and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed activity.  Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to issue, modify, condition or deny a permit for this proposal.  To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and the other public interest factors listed above.  Comments are used in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act.  Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.

Additional Requirements: State law requires that leases, easements, or permits be obtained for certain works or activity in the described waters.  These State requirements must be met where applicable, and a Department of the Army permit must be obtained before any work within the applicable Statutory Authority previously indicated may be accomplished.  Other local governmental agencies may also have ordinances or requirements, which must be satisfied before the work is accomplished.