Steigers Corporation: Water and Wetlands Permitting Services

Water and Wetlands Permitting
	Federal, state, and local regulations and permitting requirements regarding drinking water quality, surface water and groundwater quality, and wastewater discharges are complex and carry significant penalties for non-compliance. In addition, the presence of wetlands on site or proposed impacts to other "waters of the U.S." can add additional permitting and compliance burdens. We obtain all necessary water quality and discharge permits for an industrial development project and assist you with compliance following issuance of the permits.
		Water permitting services: National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits Section 404 permits Section 401 certification Wetland delineations and wetland mitigation plans Underground injection permits Water quality impact analyses Design and implementation of groundwater and surface water monitoring programs
	We obtain all necessary water quality and discharge permits and assist you with compliance following issuance of the permits.

			We worked with the EPA to obtain an existing source determination for the NPDES permit for once-through cooling at the Knik Arm Power Plant. This reduced the potential need for significant investment in structural modifications..
	Water Discharge Permits
			Most water discharges from a facility will require a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. We are experienced in acquiring permits for different types of discharges including: hydrostatic test water, drilling water, process water, treated groundwater, cooling water, and wastewater. Steigers Corporation can assist you in obtaining the NPDES permit, renewing the permit, monitoring and sampling, and record keeping and reporting. We have experience in obtaining these permits from the state and from the EPA. We also facilitate Section 401 certifications for compliance with state water quality standards. The Clean Water Act also addresses stormwater discharges, including runoff and drainage from rainfall and snow melt. An industrial operation can either include provisions for stormwater runoff under the NPDES permit or adopt the state's general permit for stormwater discharges. A Stormwater Pollution and Prevention Plan is required which details the location and effectiveness of control structures, sampling techniques and frequencies, pollutants stored on site, and reporting requirements. We prepare the Stormwater Pollution and Prevention Plan and assist you in its implementation. The Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program is authorized under the Safe Drinking Water Act and is designed to protect drinking water sources from degradation as a result of underground injection activities. We have excellent UIC permitting capabilities and experience, including Class I disposal wells, Class III solution mining wells, and Class V experimental technology wells. We work closely with our client's engineers to coordinate well design details and define injection chemistry so that the operation will be more easily permitted. We can also design groundwater monitoring programs and provide ongoing compliance services, including preparing monitoring reports.
	In the NPDES permitting for the redevelopment of a power plant in Alaska, we successfully negotiated an existing source determination even though the plant that had not been in operation for nearly 15 years. This determination from the EPA precluded the need for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review, thereby eliminating a potentially lengthy delay. As an existing source, the project also avoided the more onerous structural requirements and operating conditions that can be applied to new sources. Our efforts provided substantial savings of both time and money and reduced the potential for additional mitigation requirements.



	Wetlands and 404 Permitting
			Under the Clean Water Act, activities that affect wetlands are regulated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). A Section 404 permit is required to discharge dredged or fill materials into waters of the U.S., including lakes, rivers, perennial and intermittent streams, ponds and wetlands. Section 404 permits may be issued as nationwide permits for low-impact activities or as individual permits for larger, higher-impact activities. Wetlands delineation is the first step in obtaining a 404 permit and defines the area of the jurisdictional wetland. Our wetlands specialists have extensive experience with the specific Corps protocol that must be followed for a jurisdictional delineation. Our experience ranges from delineation on project sites less than one acre to areas greater than 20 square miles.
We often negotiate to reduce the mitigation ratio, thereby reducing the costs associated with creating new wetlands.
Steigers Corporation staff successfully negotiated the unusual use of a nationwide permit to address impacts to wetlands from the construction of new surface facilities at an underground coal mine. This approach saved the mine the time and associated expense of having to go through a lengthy permitting process and public comment period.
			Mitigation requirements are determined by the amount and quality of wetlands potentially impacted by a proposed project. We assist clients in avoiding or minimizing wetland impacts, thus limiting the total mitigation required. We often negotiate the mitigation ratio of replacement wetlands to impacted wetlands, thereby reducing the costs associated with creating new wetlands. We can locate an appropriate mitigation site, design the replacement wetland, and manage construction of the wetland. The Corps usually requires that the replacement wetland be monitored following construction, and we can assist clients with any such monitoring tasks.
			Wetland crossing for a pipeline project in Colorado.
	We assisted one client in formulating a diversion pond dredging plan that precluded its regulation under both Section 404 and Section 10 (Rivers and Harbor Act) and thus avoided any associated mitigation requirements. Our efforts saved the client the time and expense of a lengthy permitting process and $200,000 to $300,000 in mitigation costs.
	Other water and wetlands permitting projects completed by Steigers staff: AAR Cadillac Manufacturing NPDES Compliance Services, Michigan Barr Lake Dike Improvement Project Section 404 Permitting, Colorado Bear Creek Diversion Wetland Delineation, Colorado Black Thunder Mine Wetland Delineation, Wyoming Boulder County Advanced Wetland Delineation and Section 404 Permit, Colorado Coast Guard Cogeneration Facility Section 404 and Section 10 Permit, Alaska Croke Canal/Van Bibber Creek Crossing Modification Section 404 Permitting, Colorado Dead River Hydroelectric Project 401 Certification, Michigan Knik Arm Power Plant Repowering Project NDPES Permit, Alaska Knik Arm Power Plant Repowering Project Wetland Delineation, Section 404 and Section 10 Permitting, Alaska NPDES Compliance Services at the West Elk Mine, Colorado Red Mountain Ranch Wetland Delineation and Section 404 Permit, Colorado Rivendel Sod Farm Expansion Wetland Delineation and Section 404 Permit, Colorado River Ranch Wetland Delineation and 404 Permit, Colorado South Platte River Bridge Replacement Wetland Delineation and Section 404 Permit, Colorado Telluride Ski Area Wetlands Litigation - Wetland Delineation and Mitigation Site Monitoring, Colorado West Elk Mine, Wetland Mitigation Site Selection and Mitigation Design, Colorado Yankee Gulch Project Class I UIC Permit for Disposal of Mining Solutions, Colorado Yankee Gulch Project Class V UIC Rule Authorization for Experimental Technology Well, Colorado Yankee Gulch Project Wetland Delineation and Section 404 Permit, Colorado Yankee Gulch Sodium Minerals Project Class III UIC Permit for Commercial Solution Mining, Colorado.

Water and Wetlands Permitting

Water Discharge Permits

Wetlands and 404 Permitting