Highlights
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has signed an agreement to delegate to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) the authority to issue wetland permits in the state under Section 404 of the federal Clean Water Act (CWA), effective on Dec. 22, 2020.
Florida joins only two other states, New Jersey and Michigan, that have assumed such authority.
The new FDEP regulations include enforceable deadlines, shorter review periods and shorter comment periods, the combination of which is expected to eventually reduce time and cost for the processing of permits. However, it is important to note that all Clean Water Act requirements (avoidance, minimization, mitigation, etc.) will remain and projects will still have to be approved by other federal agencies.
Florida Dept of Environmental Protection Takes Over Federal Wetlands Permit Process in State lexology.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from lexology.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Friday, December 18, 2020
Before yesterday only two states had received approval to administer the Clean Water Act (CWA) section 404 program (Michigan and New Jersey), and no state had received approval since 1994. Now, for the first time in over 25 years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the formal transfer of section 404 permitting authority to a third state: Florida. Once EPA’s approval is published in the Federal Register, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) will “assume” 404 permitting authority from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) in certain waters, significantly altering the 404 permitting process in Florida. EPA’s decision has broader implications for the 404 program on a national scale, as other states, including Oregon and Minnesota, consider whether to pursue assumption.