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Wildfire Resources and Emergency Permitting Procedures


If you are seeking information about emergency permitting related to New Mexico wildfires, you are in the right place.


A Department Of Army (DA) permit may be required if:

  •  Section 404 of the CWA provides the Corps federal authority to regulate the discharge of dredged or fill into waters of the United States, including wetlands.  As such, activities that would result in the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States (e.g., arroyos, streams, creeks, rivers, ponds, lakes, wetlands, etc.), in most cases, require Corps authorization prior to such discharge. 
  • ​Work, activities, or construction that will occur or has occurred in or adjacent to an arroyo, stream, pond, ditch, river, lake, or predominately wet land.
  • Work will occur in, over, or under the Navajo Reservoir in New Mexico and Colorado, Rio Grande in Texas, or Colorado River in Colorado.

Where to Send Requests

Please email wildfire-related emergency authorization requests to one of the following addresses:

 
Points of Contact 
 Southern New Mexico and West Texas

There are two Regulatory offices within the NM/TX Branch: the Albuquerque District Office (in Albuquerque, NM) and the Las Cruces field office. You can find specific contact information for this branch by clicking here. 

 Southern Colorado

The Southern Colorado Branch operates out of the Durango and Pueblo field offices, You can find specific contact information for this branch by clicking here. 

 Northwestern Colorado

The Northwestern Colorado Branch operates out of the Grand Junction field office, You can find specific contact information for this branch by clicking here. 

Emergency RGPs

The following regional general permits are available for wildfire- and other natural disaster-related activities in waters of the United States.

Additional Information

Emergency permitting  procedures related to other emergency situations can be accessed here.

Information Requirements for Emergency Authorizations

In order to expedite your request (e.g., within 24 hours), please submit the following information with your emergency authorization request. For your convenience, we have created an Emergency Authorization Checklist you may use to ensure all the required information is included in your request.

  1. Name, address, and telephone number of the person(s) responsible for the work, the owner of the affected lands (if different from the permittee), and the contractor(s) that will be performing the work, if applicable;
  2. NWP or RGP (e.g., RGP NM/West TX 17-01) that covers the work, if known; 
  3. A description of the proposed work including:
    1. A description of waters of the United States that may be affected by the activities;
    2. Type, composition, and quantity of material to be excavated or placed (including temporary material used for cofferdams, etc.);
    3. Length, width, and depth of fill area and/or excavation area;
    4. A discussion of the direct and indirect adverse environmental effects of the activity;
    5. Location of disposal site for excavated material;
    6. Type of equipment to be used;
    7. Identification/delineation of wetlands (if present);
    8. The receiving site for excess water (drainage projects); and
    9. Any other pertinent, supporting data;
  4. A map showing the location of the proposed work;
  5. A set of 8.5 by 11-inch drawings showing the details of the proposed work;
  6. Pre-construction photos depicting the physical setting (to be compared to post-construction site conditions from the same photo points). Photos should contain figure labels with time, date, bearing, and a general description of the site;
  7. Information on any known historic properties that may be affected by the proposed scope of work, or plans for assessing potential impacts to cultural resources (e.g., archaeological monitoring);
  8. Information regarding the evaluation of potential effects to federally-listed species or their designated critical habitat; and
  9. Information regarding any potential adverse effects to water quality from the proposed scope of work.

Activities that may not require DA Permit Authorization

Activities that would result in the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States, in most cases, require Corps authorization prior to such discharge.  Activities conducted within waters of the United States that do not result in the discharge of dredged or fill material do not require Corps authorization prior to work.  An example of these unregulated activities is Excavation Activities within Waters of the U.S. given the proposed activity fits the categories outlined there-in. 

We recommend you contact our office to confirm permitting requirements prior to starting work associated to any of the activities mentioned above.