APPENDIX B: FEDERAL LEGISLATION AND PROGRAMS

Framework for Dredged Material Management

May 2004

APPENDIX B: FEDERAL LEGISLATION AND

PROGRAMS

AN OVERVIEW OF THE LEGAL AND

POLICY FRAMEWORK

A number of Federal environmental Executive orders, regulations, and Federal

statutes control dredging and disposal operations. The General Survey Act of 1824

directed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to develop and improve harbors

and navigation, and Section 10 of the River and Harbor Act of 1899 required USACE to

issue permits for any work in navigable waters. Dredging and disposal operations were

considered more fully by Congress in the major environmental statutes passed after 1969.

A brief discussion of these follows.

NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT (NEPA) OF 1969

The NEPA [(Pub. L. No. 91-190) (42 U. S. C. 4321 et seq.)] applies to major

Federal actions (e.g., proposals, permits, and legislation) that may significantly affect the

environment. USACE activities in the areas of dredging and disposal, including

regulatory actions, come under the NEPA jurisdiction. It is through the NEPA process

that the dredged material disposal alternatives including no action, open-water disposal,

or confined disposal of dredged material are evaluated, documented, and publicly

disclosed.

A flowchart illustrating the NEPA process as it is applied to dredging projects is

shown in Flowchart B-1. The components of this process have been incorporated in the

framework for determining environmental acceptability of alternatives described in

Chapter 3 of the main text.

The NEPA requires that government use all practicable means, consistent with the

act and other essential considerations of national policy, to fulfill the requirements of the

act. This requirement specifically applies to Federal agencies, their plans, regulations,

programs, and facilities. The process that has been established under the guidelines of the

NEPA helps public officials to make decisions based on an understanding of their

environmental consequences and to take actions that protect, restore, and enhance the

environment. The public disclosure document in this process is the preparation of a report

that provides information about the environmental impact of a proposed action. This

document is either an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) or an Environmental

Assessment (EA)/ Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).