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PNWA Joins Request to Rescind 2018 Guidance and NOAA-Corps Memorandum
PNWA along with the Family Farm Alliance, Idaho Water Users Association, National Hydropower Association, National Water Resources Association, Oregon Water Resources Congress, Skagit Drainage and Irrigation Districts Consortium LLC, and Washington State Water Resources Association recently sent a joint letter to the NOAA Office of Fisheries Policy and to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Department. The letter asks for the two agencies to rescind the January 6, 2022 Joint Resolution Memorandum for Evaluating the Effects of Projects Involving Existing Structures in Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 7 Consultations (Memorandum) and the April 18, 2018 NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region’s Guidance on Assessing the Effects of Structures in Endangered Species Act Section 7 Consultation (“2018 WCR Guidance”) documents.
As you may recall, the challenges in our region with being able to obtain maintenance permits began in 2018 with the distribution of the 2018 WCR Guidance document. This internal NOAA Fisheries guidance was the impetus for NOAA Fisheries to require formal consultation on even the most basic maintenance projects. It also changed the NOAA Fisheries Section 7 consultation effects analysis to treat the future effects from an existing structure as a consequence of the maintenance action rather than evaluating the effects of the maintenance action alone as required under the ESA. As a result of the change to the environmental baseline, ports and others in our region started to see massive cost increases from the delays as formal consultations take more time, hiring more consultants, doing more studies, and NOAA Fisheries levying more mitigation costs for maintenance projects.
For almost three years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) balked at this new interpretation of NOAA Fisheries and the Corps did not believe it had the authority to require mitigation for maintenance projects. With the appointment of Michael Connor as the Assistant Secretary for the Army for Civil Works, NOAA entered into a Memorandum of Resolution to resolve the dispute. The Memorandum allows for Corps Civil Works projects to be exempted from NOAA Fisheries’ new effects analysis interpretation as those projects are Congressionally mandated and required to be maintained, so the Corps’ has “no discretion.” However, the Corps has discretion over whether to issue permits and as a result, the Memorandum between the two agencies agreed to nationally apply the new interpretation for ESA Section 7 effects analysis to the regulated public.
Representative Cliff Bentz (R, OR-2) questioned NOAA Fisheries at a budget hearing for NOAA’s funding about the Memorandum. The Congressman requested a formal legal opinion from NOAA’s Counsel as to how the Memorandum did not constitute Administrative Rulemaking which is against the law. To our knowledge, the Congressman did not receive a response and a month later, NOAA Fisheries and U.S. Fish & Wildlife put out a notice of formal rulemaking. The two agencies denied requests for extension of the public comment period as the Congressional Review Act timeline was approaching and could interfere with implementation of the rule change.
PNWA was pleased to see the Department of Interior has ordered all Assistant Secretaries to quickly develop action plans “to suspend, revise, or rescind documents, including but not limited to, the following regulations, Secretary’s Orders (SO), Solicitor’s Opinions, Instruction Memoranda (IM), and Departmental Manuals (DM).” Included in the list of regulations is the 2024 ESA Section 7 consultation change in environmental baseline interpretation and increased mitigation entitled “Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Regulations for Interagency Cooperation”, (89 Fed. Reg. 24268). NOAA and the Corps are both awaiting Senate confirmation of their leadership. It is hoped that NOAA will rescind the 2024 rulemaking as well. In addition, PNWA signed onto the joint letter to request NOAA and the Corps to rescind the documents that started us down this path including the 2022 Memorandum and the 2018 WCR Guidance.
To read the full text of the letter, click here.
To read the 2022 NOAA-Corps Memorandum, click here.
To read the 2018 WCR Guidance, click here.
To read the Department of Interior Secretary’s Order, click here.
Corps Preparing to Reissue Nationwide Permits
Approximately every five years, the Corps reissues and/or modifies their suite of Nationwide Permits (NWPs). These NWPs “authorize categories of activities under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 that have no more than minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects”. The Corps is also proposing to modify the NWP General Conditions too. The last NWP reissuance was completed in 2021.
According to the draft notice, for 2026, the “Corps is proposing to reissue its existing NWPs and associated general conditions and definitions, with some modifications. The Corps is proposing to issue one new NWP. The proposed new NWP would authorize activities to improve the passage of fish and other aquatic organisms through aquatic ecosystems. In addition, the Corps is proposing to modify some other NWPs to simplify and clarify those NWPs. The proposed modifications to the NWPs general conditions, and definitions are intended to reduce burdens on the regulated public and continue to comply with the statutory requirement that NWPs authorize only activities with no more than minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects. The Corps is proposing to modify two of the 2021 NWPs (i.e., NWP 48 for commercial shellfish mariculture activities and NWP 56 for finfish mariculture activities) to address litigation on those NWPs. The Corps is requesting comment on all aspects of these proposed NWPs.”
The full list of NWPs and General Conditions is noted in the Federal Register notice. Comments are due by July 18, 2025. To comment, send email to 2026nationwidepermits@usace.army.mil and include docket number COE-2025-0002 in the subject line of the message. You can also use the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov to locate docket number COE-2025-0002 and follow instructions to submit comments. It is suggested to avoid putting any confidential information in your comments to avoid publication of identifying or private information. Finally, you can mail comments to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: CECW-CO-R, 441 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20314-1000. For any additional information, the point of contact at the Corps is Ms. Katherine McCafferty, who can be reached at 513-310-4196.
If you have comments you intend to submit, please copy Dena Horton.
To read the Federal Register notice for the 2026 Nationwide Permits Proposed Rule, click here.
To view the summary chart, click here.
To view the individual NWP documents, click here.
PNWA 2025 Summer Conference - a Huge Success!
We are so grateful to everyone who joined us in Bellingham for the PNWA 2025 Summer Conference. Your energy, ideas, and enthusiasm made this event truly special.
From the beautiful setting at Hotel Bellwether to the insightful presentations—like Western Washington University’s “Stories Behind the Statistics” and our engaging panel “The Good, the Bad, and the Tech-y”—your participation helped make every session meaningful. We also appreciated the timely updates on mitigation banking, NFIP-ESA integration, environmental lawsuits, and federal policy discussions that sparked great conversations and connections. Many thanks to our port members, new members, and consultants who provided overviews of their organizations and valuable information!
Thank you to our outstanding speakers and to each of you for your continued support. It’s your presence and engagement that make our PNWA community so vibrant.
PNWA 2025 Annual Convention - Registration is Open!
As our most popular event of the year, the PNWA Annual Convention offers a prime opportunity to connect with key regional and federal partners, along with over 200 PNWA colleagues from the Northwest. This is the ideal time to touch base as the calendar year winds down and we kick-off preparations for the coming year’s vital advocacy efforts.
You’ll have the chance to interact with and learn from experts in our region’s working waterways, transportation corridors, economic development industries, and regulatory community. Beyond networking with your colleagues, our goal is to provide you with the most timely and relevant information. Learn more here.
WSDOT Lower Snake River Dams Transportation Study
The Technical Advisory Committee held its 7th meeting on May 28. The meeting reviewed results of the first set of alternative future scenarios and discussed the second set of alternative scenarios. We received the slides from this meeting here. We have also learned of three upcoming open houses for WSDOT to hear from the community on the ongoing study. We highly encourage you to attend if you are able. Each open house is from 5:00 to 8:00 pm and on the following dates and locations below:
- June 23 – Whitman County Library, Colfax
- June 24 – Mid-Columbia Library, Pasco
- June 25 – Clarkston High School Library, Clarkston
Please know we are expressing our support for rescinding Corps funding that goes to the state to support this study. We prefer the Corps repurpose any funding slated for the project ($460k in FY25 work plan) to be repurposed for actual on the ground activity to support salmon restoration.
No longer funding the study would align the Corps with the Administration’s memorandum from June 12 revoking the Biden Administration’s memorandum from September 27, 2023, on Restoring Healthy and Abundant Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin.
IPNG & PNWA Applauds President's Executive action to rescind MOU
The Inland Ports & Navigation Group (IPNG) supports President Trump’s executive action today to rescind the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the six sovereigns regarding the management of the Columbia Snake River system.
“The MOU put our region on a path toward breaching the 4 lower Snake River dams, failing to consider the devastating economic impact such action would have on the region and the vital role that the river system plays in supporting the Pacific Northwest and national economy”, said IPNG Co-Chair, Leslie Druffel of the McGregor Company. “We’d like to thank our congressional advocates, including Representatives Baumgartner (5th-WA), Bentz (2nd-OR), Newhouse (4th-WA), and Fulcher (1st-ID) as well as Senators Crapo (ID) and Risch (ID) for the continuous support for reliable and efficient navigation on the river system.”
President Trump’s decision to rescind the MOU is a significant step towards ensuring the continued prosperity of the Pacific Northwest. The Columbia Snake River system is a critical transportation route for the region, as well as for agriculture producers in the upper Midwest, supporting tens of thousands of jobs and contributing billions of dollars to the economy each year. It is the largest wheat export gateway in the U.S.
“Dams and salmon can co-exist,” said IPNG Co-Chair Patrick Harbison, of the Port of Kalama (WA). “In fact, salmon runs have actually increased since the construction of the dams due to state-of-the-art bypass systems and fish ladders that were installed at each of the dams on the system.”
Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (of which IPNG is a part) Executive Director Neil Maunu stated, “The divisive issue of dam breaching has prevented the type of partnerships necessary to work together on productive strategies and actions to improve salmon populations for the benefit of all Pacific Northwest residents.” IPNG supports a comprehensive approach to salmon recovery in the region that focuses on projects that truly benefit salmon, such as reintroduction above Grand Coulee, habitat access and restoration, predator abatement, toxics reduction, and hatchery improvements. “We can have salmon and a robust economy at the same time”, said Maunu.
For reference, the Official Presidential Memo
White House: What They Are Saying