Wetlands Permitting Forms

MassDEP Guidance on Expiration of the 2018 USACE GP and WQC

The 2018 US Army Corps of Engineers MA General Permit and the associated 2018 Water Quality Certification (and Individual WQCs certifying 2018 MA GP Projects) expire on April 5, 2023. This Guidance describes procedures to extend or reauthorize affected projects.

MassDEP will review WQC applications for hydroelectric projects to determine whether they include all the information and documentation required by the application form. If all required information and documentation is included in or with the application submitted, MassDEP will issue a Notice of Administrative Completeness to the applicant and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The Notice will confirm the date on which the complete application was submitted to MassDEP for the purpose of commencing the one-year time limit for MassDEP to act on the application, as required by FERC regulations at 18 CFR § 4.34(b)(5)(iii) and 18 CFR § 5.23(b)(2). If MassDEP determines the applicant did not submit all information and documentation required by the application, MassDEP will notify the applicant and FERC and specify what is missing. Upon submission of the missing information and documentation, MassDEP will issue a Notice of Administrative Completeness to the applicant and FERC specifying the date on which the application requirements were fulfilled for purposes of commencing the one-year time limit for MassDEP to act on the application.