Authority to protect wetlands and streams and administer Virginia Water Protection (VWP) permit regulations is given by §62.1-44.15:20 of the Code of Virginia. The over-arching regulation for the VWP permit program is found in 9VAC25-210.
Certain activities that are considered to have minimal impacts to human health and the environment may be covered under one of these VWP general permit regulations:
- VWP General Permit WP1 for Impacts Less than One-Half of Acre, 9VAC 25-660
- VWP General Permit WP2 for Facilities and Activities of Utility and Public Service Companies Regulated by the Federal Energy Commission or the State Corporation Commission and Other Utility Line Activities, 9VAC 25-670
- VWP General Permit WP3 for Linear Transportation Projects, 9VAC 25-680
- VWP General Permit WP4 for Impacts from Development and Certain Mining Activities, 9VAC 25-690
For more information on how regulations are developed, please visit DEQ's Regulatory Guide that describes the Administrative Process Act (APA). New regulations or revisions to existing regulations are posted in the Virginia Register. Public meetings, public notices, and regulatory actions may also be posted on the Virginia Town Hall. Some regulatory actions, such as the development and revision of general permit regulations are exempt from certain steps in the APA.
Additional State and Federal Regulations
In 2000, the General Assembly removed the dependence of the state nontidal wetlands program on the issuance of a federal permit, thus authorizing the Virginia Water Protection (VWP) Permit Program to regulate activities in wetlands such as certain types of excavation in wetlands and fill in isolated wetlands (which may not be under Federal jurisdiction).
The U.S Army Corps of Engineer (USACE) issues nationwide permits (NWPs) and Regional Permits (RPs) to authorize certain activities that require Department of the Army permits under Section 404 of the clean Water Act and/or Section 10 of the River and Harbor Act of 1899. Section 404(e) of the Clean Water Act states that NWPs and other general permits may only authorize activities that "will cause only minimal adverse environmental effects when performed separately, and will have only minimal cumulative adverse effects on the environment". NWPs and RPs can be issued for a maximum five-year period, and must be renewed before they expire.
DEQ and the Corps also work collaboratively on issuance of the State Program General Permits (SPGP). In Virginia, the SPGPs typically cover development and transportation activities.
As the certifying authority, DEQ provides a Section 401 Water Quality Certification (WQC) decision for USACE Nationwide permits, Regional permits and SPGPs. DEQ can also provide a WQC decision by issuing a VWP permit (§ 62.1-44.15:20.D).
2022 401 WQ Certification for the 22-SPGP-RCIR and 22-WPGP-LT
2023 401 WQ Certification for 23-SPGP-PASDO
Other DEQ WQC of USACE Nationwide and Regional permits:
The enactment of the Tidal Wetlands Act of 1972 gave the Virginia Marine Resources Commission the responsibility for issuing tidal wetlands permits under Chapters 12 and 13 of Title 28.2 of the Code of Virginia.
EPA’s Proposed Rulemaking
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed rulemaking regarding the definition of waters of the U.S. (or WOTUS) which may affect federal permitting under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, such as permits issued through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ permit program.
In Virginia, this proposed federal rulemaking will not replace or supersede the authority given to DEQ under the Code of Virginia and the Virginia State Water Control Law for permitting impacts to state waters (see Title 62.1).
