If you answered “yes” to Section D, Question 1 of the Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) Environmental and Historic Preservation Questions, there are four important things to attach to your application as support documentation. Many of these items may already be included as part of your documentation in Section C of the PDM Environmental and Historic Preservation Questions. It is not necessary to provide the information again, but please reference it in the comment area of Section D.
First, attach to the application a 1:24,000 United States Geological Survey (USGS) topographic map and National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) inventory map indicating:
- the project site
- the location of construction activities
- the location of jurisdictional waters or wetlands
Second, documentation of your contact with relevant agencies, including:
- scanned and attached copies of response letters and emails;
- summaries of relevant telephone conversations; and
- the status of any outstanding correspondence.
Third, provide a narrative description of the water body and the activities that will be performed in or near the water body.
Fourth, incorporate the comments from the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) or other permitting agencies directly into the comment area of Section D of the PDM Environmental and Historic Preservation Questions. If the USACE requires general conditions for permitting, include them in your scope of work and as a line item in your cost estimate. If wetland mitigation is required, include that information in your scope of work and as a line item in your cost estimate. Be sure to include in your scope of work and cost estimate for any post-construction treatments needed to restore the site, such as seeding, mulching, or planting. Additional project costs that are necessary for permitting conditions, mitigation, and site restoration are eligible expenses under PDM if they are identified in the scope of work and in the cost estimate.
Additionally, if your project has the potential to adversely affect a wetland, you should also identify, evaluate, and document alternatives to the proposed project in the comment area of Section D of the PDM Environmental and Historic Preservation Questions, or include as an attachment. To document alternatives, write a summary of each alternative considered. Also include a statement why that alternative was dismissed. A project may not be located in a wetland if there are reasonable alternatives outside the wetland.