401 Certification

Clean Water Act Section 401 — Water Quality Certification

Certification, or waiver, is required for any federal license or permit that authorizes any activity which may result in any discharge from a point source into waters of the United States. The certifying authority shall evaluate whether the activity will comply with applicable water quality requirements.

Effective November 27, 2023, projects requiring water quality certification from the State of Nevada must comply with the Clean Water Act Section 401 Certification regulations U.S. Environmental Protection Agency promulgated in 2023, codified as 40 CFR 121.

Clean Water Act 33 USC 1341—Section 401(a)(1) 

“Any applicant for a federal license or permit to conduct any activity including, but not limited to, the construction or operation of facilities, which may result in any discharge into the navigable waters, shall provide the licensing or permitting agency a certification from the state in which the discharge originates or will originate […]. That any such discharge will comply with the applicable provisions of sections 301, 302, 303, 306, and 307 of this title […].”

Typical federal authorizations that require Section 401 Certification action include, but are not limited to:

• Clean Water Act Section 404 permits issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the discharge of dredge or fill material into waters of the United States including oceans, lakes, streams, wetlands, and other water bodies. Activity examples include, but are not limited to, hydromodification, sediment dredging, gravel mining, channelization, levee construction, filling wetlands for development, culvert installation, and river restoration
• Rivers and Harbors Act Section 9 or 10 authorizations for activities that have a potential to discharge into navigable waters of the United States
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) licenses for the construction and operation of non-federal hydropower projects and FERC certificates for the construction and operation of interstate natural gas pipeline projects 

Pre-Filing Meeting

Project proponents seeking water quality certification from NDEP must request a pre-filing meeting at least 30 days prior to submitting a request for certification. Pre-filing meeting requests should be directed to ndep401 [at] ndep.nv.gov and shall include:

• A statement that it is ‘‘a request for Clean Water Act Section 401 certification pre-filing meeting’’
• The name of the project proponent and appropriate point of contact
• The planned project location (including identification of waters of the United States into which any potential discharges would occur)
• A list of any other necessary licenses/permits (e.g., local, state, interstate, or other federal authorizations, etc.)
• The project type and a brief description of anticipated project construction and operation activities
• The anticipated implementation date(s)

Request for Certification

Where Nevada Division of Environmental Protection is the certifying authority, submission requirements for individual certification requests include the mandatory items identified below: 

• Complete certification request application (forms available below)
• A copy of the federal permit or license application and any readily available water quality-related materials that informed the development of the federal license or permit application
• A map or diagram of the proposed project site(s) including project boundaries in relation to waters of the United States, local streets, roads, and highways
• Descriptions of the best management practices (BMPs) to control the discharge of pollutants, a sediment and erosion control plan, and/or a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP)
• Engineered drawings submitted at the 70% design level (preferred).

All requests for certification for the issuance of a general Federal license or permit must be in writing, signed, and dated and include:

• A copy of the draft Federal license or permit; and
• Any readily available water quality-related materials that informed the development of the draft Federal license or permit.

Certification request applications are available in both .doc and .pdf file formats:

• Certification Request Application (doc format)
• Certification Request Application (pdf format)
• Certification Request Application Guidance

Applications and attachments must be submitted via email to: ndep401 [at] ndep.nv.gov

For more information contact:

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
Bureau of Water Quality Planning
901 South Stewart Street, Suite 4001
Carson City, Nevada 89701-5249
Zachary Carter, Environmental Scientist III
(775) 687-9456 | ndep401 [at] ndep.nv.gov

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Sacramento District – Reno Regulatory Office
300 Booth Street, Room 3050
Reno, Nevada 89509
(775) 784-5304 | spkregulatorymailbox [at] usace.army.mil

Quick Links:

• 2023 Certification Rule Flowchart
• EPA Clean Water Act
• Clean Water Act, Section 401 Certification
• Clean Water Act, Section 404
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Sacramento District Regulatory Program
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - 2021 Nationwide Permits
• Nevada 401 Water Quality Certification Status for Current Nationwide Permits