FLOOD08883

• County: Statewide
• Basin: Statewide
• Title: Federal Register EPA Guidelines for Specification of Disposal Sites for Dredged or Fill Material
• Date: 12/24/1980
• Prepared By: EPA
• Floodplain - Doc Type: Educational/Technical/Reference Information

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Federal Register / Vol. 45. No. 249 / Wednesday. December 24. 1980 / Ru.les and Regulations 85345

,

Sec.
230.54 Parks. national and historic
monuments. national seashores,
wilderness areas, research sites and
similar preserves.

Subpart G-Evaluatlon and Testing

230.60 General evaluation oC dredged or fUl
material.
230.61 Chemical bioLogic~1. and physical
evaluation an~ testing.

Subpart H-Actlons to Minimize Adverse
Effects

230.70 Actions concerning the location oC
the discharge.
230.71 Actions concerning the material to be
discharged.
230.72 Actions controlling the material after
discharge,
230.73 Actions affecting the method of
dispersion.
230.74 Actions related to teC'hnology.
230.75 Actions affecting plant and animal
populations.
230.76 Actions aHeeting human use.
230.77 Other actions. ~

Subpart I-Planning To Shorten Permit
Processing Time

230.80 Advanced identification of disposal
areas.

Authority: This regulation is issued under
aulhority of Sections 404{b) and 501(a) of the
Clean Water Act of 1977. 33 V.S.C. ~ 1344(bJ
a;;d 9 1361{a},

Subpart A-General

~ 23.1 Purpose and policy.

(al The purpose of these Guidelines is
to restore and maintain the chemical.
ph~'sical. and biological integrity of
waters of the United States through the
control of discharges of dredged or fill
mJlerial.

(b) Congress has expressed a number
of policies in the Clean Water Act.
These Guidelines are intended to be
consistent with and to implement those
poiicies.

(r) Fund.J.mental to these Guidelines is
the precept that dredg~d or fill material
should not be dischar~ed into the
aquatic pcos:..stern. U""!ess it can be
demonstrated tha: Such a discharge will
not have an unacceptable adverse
impact either Individually or in
combination with known and/or
probable impacts of other activities
affecling the ecosystems of concern,

(d) From a national perspective. the
degradatIon or destruction of special
aquatic SItes, such as filling operations
in wetlands, is considered to be among
the mosl severe environmental impacts
covered by these Guidelines.. The
guiding principle should be that
degradation or destruction of special
sites may represent an irreversible loss
of valuable aquatic resources.

! 230.2 AppJlcablll1y.
(a) These Guidelines have been
developed by the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection ^sency in
conjunction with the Secretary of the
Army acting through the Chief of
Engineers under section 404[h)(1) of the
Clean Water Act (33 US.C.l344). The
Guidelines are applicable to the
specification of disposal sites for
discharges of dredged or fill material
into waters of the United States. Sites
may be specified through;
(1) The regulatory program of the V.S.
Army Corps of Engineers under sections
404(a) and (e) of the Act (see 33 CFR
320. 323 and 325);
(2) The civil works program of the V.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (see 33 CFR
209.145 and section 151l0f Pub. 1.. 94-587.
Water Resources Development Act of
1976);
(3) Permit programs of States
approved by the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency in
accordance with sections 404{g) and (h)
of the Act (see 40 CFR 122.123 and 124);
(4) Statewide dredged or fill material
regulatory programs with best
management practices approved under
section 208(b)(4)(B) and (e) of the Act
(see 40 CFR 35.1560);'
(5) Federal construction projects
which meet criteria specified in section
404(r) of the Act.
(b) These Guidelines will be applied
in the review of proposed discharges of
dredged or fill material into navigable
waters which lie inside the baseline
from which the territorial sea is
measured. and the discharge of fill
ma terial into the territorial sea, pursuant
to the procedures referred to in
paragraphs (a)(l) and (a)(2) above. The
discharge of dredged material into the
territorial sea is governed by the Marine
Protection. Research. and Sanctuaries
Act of 1972. Pub. 1.. 92-532. and
regulations and criteria issued pursuant
thereto (40 CFR Part 220-228).
(e) Guidance on interpreting and
implementing these Guidelines may be
prepared jointly by EPA and the Corps
al the national or regional level from
time to time. No modifications to the
basic application. meaning. or intent of
these Guidelines will be made without
rulemaking by the Administrator under
the Admic.istrative Procedure Act (5
V.S.C. 551 et seq.).

! 230.3 Deflntttonl.
For purposes of this Part. the
following terms shall have the meanings
indica ted:
fa) The term "Act" means the Clean
Water Act (also known as the Federal
Water Pollution' Control Act or FWPCAJ

Pub. L. 92-soo. as amen'ded by Pub. L.
95-217.33 U.S.C. 1251. et seq.
(bl The term "adjacent"means
bordering. contiguous, or neighborir..g.
Wetlands separated from other waters
of the United States by man-made dikes
or barriers. natural river berms. beach
dunes. and the like are "adjacent
wetlands."
(c) The terms "aquatic environment"
and "aquatic ecosystem" mean waters
of the United States. including wetlands.
that serve as habitat for interrelated and
interacting communities and populations
of plants and anlmals.
(d) The term "carrier of contaminant"
means dredged or fill material that
contains contaminants.
(e) The term "contaminant" means a
chemical or biological substance in a
form that can be incorporated into. onto
or be ingested by and that harms
aquatic organisms. consumers of aquatic
organisms. or users of the aquatic
environment. and includes but is not
limited to the subsances on the
307(a)(1Ilist of toldc pollutants
promuigated on January 31. 1978 (43 FR
.4109).
(f) IRe served]
(g) [Reserved J
(h) The term "discharge point" means
the point within the disposal site at
which the dredged or fill material is
released.
(il The term "disposal site" means
that portion of the "waters of the United
States" where specific disposal
activities are permitted and consist of a
bottom surface area and any overlying
volume of water. In the case of wetlands
on which ~urface water is not present,
the disposal site consists of the wetland
surface area.
m [Reserved)
(k) The term "ex.traction site" means
the place from which the dredged or fill
matcrial proposed for discharge is to be
removed.
(I) (Reservedl
(m) The term "mixing zone" means a
limited vohune of water serving as a
zone of initial dilution in the immediate
vicinity of a discharge point where
receiving water quality may not meet
quality standards or other requirements
otherwise applicable to the receiving
water. The mixing zone should be
considered 8S 8 place where wastes and
wa ter mix and not as a place where
effluents are treated.
(n) The term "permitting authority"
means the District Engineer of the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers or such other
individual as may be designated by the
Secretary of the Army to issue or deny
permits under ""ction 404 of the Act or
the State Director of a permit program