Nationwide Permit 21 authorizes discharges of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States associated with surface coal mining activities. To qualify, these activities must already be authorized by the Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) or by states with approved programs under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 . The permit’s scope includes the construction of various mining facilities but is strictly limited to activities that result in no more than minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects. It specifically prohibits the discharge of fill material into the watershed of any stream to create a valley fill or head-of-hollow fill. Projects authorized under this permit cannot result in the loss of more than 1/2-acre of non-tidal waters of the United States.
The 2026 reissuance of NWP 21 does not include any substantive changes to the terms and conditions from the 2021 version. The Corps reevaluated the permit's quantitative limits, such as the 1/2-acre threshold and the mandatory pre-construction notification, and determined they remain effective at ensuring authorized activities cause only minimal adverse environmental impacts . Administrative updates were performed on the supporting decision document to incorporate current environmental baseline data from the 2022 National Lakes Assessment and the 2021 National Wetland Condition Assessment. The Corps maintained the prohibition on valley fills and the requirement for concurrent OSMRE or state mining program authorization.
Environmental compliance managers and project engineers in the coal mining industry typically use this permit. It is designed for mining companies that have secured Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) authorization and need a streamlined Section 404 permit for minor impacts to jurisdictional waters.
The Corps determined that reissuing NWP 21 results in 'no effect' on federally-listed endangered or threatened species or their critical habitat. This determination is supported by General Condition 18, which requires that no activity 'may affect' listed resources unless project-specific ESA Section 7 consultation has been completed. District engineers also verify Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) compliance through mandatory PCN reviews, applying regional or case-specific conditions as necessary to minimize impacts . Compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) is managed through General Condition 20. Since NWP 21 requires a mandatory pre-construction notification for all activities, the district engineer reviews every project for potential effects on historic properties and ensures the NHPA review process is completed before granting authorization.
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