Nationwide Permit 24 authorizes any activity permitted by a state or Indian Tribe that has assumed the Section 404 permit program under the Clean Water Act. This permit specifically provides the necessary Federal structural authorization under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 for projects already approved by a localized 404 authority. The scope is limited to those projects that are subject to Section 10 authority but occur within the jurisdictional oversight of an EPA-approved state or tribal 404 program. It ensures that the Federal government maintains oversight of navigational safety while allowing the state or tribe to lead the primary environmental review for the discharge of dredged or fill material.
The 2026 reissuance of NWP 24 includes no substantive changes to the terms and conditions from the 2021 version. The Corps reevaluated the permit's potential impacts and determined that the current regulatory structure remains sufficient to ensure that authorized activities result in no more than minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects. While the text remains unchanged, the supporting documentation was updated with the latest environmental baseline data. This includes results from the 2022 National Lakes Assessment and the 2021 National Wetland Condition Assessment, ensuring that the permit's environmental review process is grounded in the most current available scientific data.
State agencies, Indian Tribes, and project proponents operating in states or tribal lands with EPA-approved Section 404 assumption programs need this permit. It is typically used for infrastructure or environmental projects that require simultaneous Section 404 water quality and Section 10 navigational structural authorization.
The Corps determined that reissuing NWP 24 results in 'no effect' on federally-listed endangered or threatened species or their critical habitat. This finding is based on General Condition 18, which ensures that no activity is authorized if it 'may affect' listed resources until project-specific Section 7 consultation is completed. Compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act is maintained through General Condition 20, which triggers a mandatory review if an activity has the potential to affect historic properties. For Essential Fish Habitat, district engineers retain the authority to apply regional or case-specific conditions to ensure that mooring or dredging activities do not cause more than minimal individual or cumulative adverse impacts.
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