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under the federal Coastal Zone Management Act. Federally 

 regulated discharges of dredged material that may directly effect 

 a federally approved coastal zone must also be determined by the 

 state to be consistent to the maximum extent practicable with 

 those programs prior to authorization of the regulated activity. 



The Corps regulatory process includes pre-application 

 consultation, to discuss the project and regulatory requirements 

 with the intent of avoiding application evaluation delays, and 

 preparation of a public notice to describe the project and 

 solicit comments from Federal, state and local agencies and 

 groups and the public. The Corps may also conduct a public 

 hearing if the Corps requires additional information to evaluate 

 the project at issue. After information is collected, the 

 project is evaluated (letters, meetings, coordination with the 

 applicant and Federal, state and local agencies) to render public 

 interest, ocean dumping criteria compliance, or Section 404(b)(1) 

 Guidelines compliance determinations. Testing of dredged 

 material is conducted if the presence of contaminants is 

 suspected, and the results are considered, in conjunction with 

 other case-specific information, to effect decisions with regard 

 to managing the dredged material. This may include alternative 

 disposal sites (upland, inland and near coastal aquatic sites and 

 the oceans) and methods (capping or treatment of the dredged 

 material) . The Corps subsequently makes a decision to issue, 

 issue with conditions, or deny the subject application and 

 prepares the required NEPA documentation (environmental 

 assessment or environmental impact statement (EIS) , statements of 

 compliance with the Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines or the ocean 

 dumping criteria, and a statement of findings) . 



In recognition of EPA's MPRSA oversight authority, the Corps 

 is required to notify EPA of its intent to authorize dredged 

 material discharges in the oceans. The process, which has been 

 somewhat modified by Title V of the Water Resources Development 

 Act of 1992, requires EPA to make a determination to concur, 

 concur with conditions, or decline to concur with the Corps 

 decision to permit the discharge of dredged material within 45 

 days. EPA's determinations prevail under these circumstances. 

 If EPA declines to respond, or makes a determination to concur or 

 concur with conditions, the Corps may authorize the activity 

 (with EPA's conditions, if recommended). However, if EPA 

 maintains its determination to decline to concur and the Corps 

 determines if there are no economically feasible alternative 

 dredged material disposal sites or methods available, the matter 

 may be forwarded to Corps Chief of Engineers. If the Chief of 

 Engineers determines that there are no alternatives and that the 

 project is not otherwise contrary to the public interest, he may 

 request the Secretary of the Army to seek a waiver of the ocean 

 dumping criteria from the Administrator of EPA. Again, EPA's 

 determination to grant a waiver, grant a waiver with conditions, 

 or not to grant the waiver, prevails in these circumstances. It 

 is also important to realize that at any point, the Corps may 

 determine that the environmental impacts of disposal at the 



