|
In this issue
1) February 9th 2008
meeting information
2) PA
Dredging Permit Information, An over view.
February 9th 2008 meeting information
73 people at the meeting.
There will be a signup sheet for the Herkimer mine trip
that will be the first weekend in May, cost will depend on the number of
people that sign up. We are looking into getting a Van possibly for
everyone to go. Also some people will be taking there trucks to carry
the camping equipment that will be needed for the stay over at the KOA
camp ground that the group will be using.
Some members are getting together to go to the GPAA's
outing at Vein Mountain that will be on May 16th to 18th. If you want to
go you may want see Chris at the meeting to see about what the plans
are.
August 30-31 a group of members are planning on going to
Swank Claim in Ohio for there 11th annual gold rush days. Look for
updates about this as the season approaches.
Before the April meeting there will be some work parties
on the property to get it ready for the season. The dates and projects
will be stated at March 8th meeting.
Thanks Chris for the information of what happened at the
meeting.
Dredging Permits: Calvin has been talking to people in
Harrisburg on trying to get the permitting process simplified. See the
article below on what it is currently like.
PA Dredging
Permit Information, An over view.
Before we start to delve into the permitting
application, checkout the how to pages for dredging, I've start a "state
by state" list of how other states treat dredging, stating if they
have permits or not if so how much it costs, or if not allowed and so
on. Please note the dredging pages are a bit "messy" right now they will
be more organized as time goes on.
Re-cap of what is going on. In April of 2007 the
("Recreational Prospecting in the commonwealth's Waterways" Fact sheet
3930-FS-DEP4099 4/2007) was created, basically formalizing Recreational
Prospecting in PA. Says the following for "Methods and equipment not
requiring permits" are "non-motorized pans, shovels, pan or dish type
hand classifiers and picks." and "Non-motorized sluice boxes, sieves,
concentrators and mini-rocker boxes."
And "Methods and equipment Requiring permits" are
"Suction dredges with a nozzle no larger than four inches in diameter."
and "High-Bankers or suction dredge/high-banker combinations with a
water intake no larger than two and one-half inches (inside) diameter,
which are operated entirely below the ordinary high water line."
And "
If you are planning to use a suction dredge or high-banker, you must
first apply for a permit from the appropriate Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) regional office. Applicants are
encouraged to have a pre-application meeting with DEP to discuss the
nature and scope of their proposed activities before applying for this
permit. To ensure that the pre-application meeting is as productive as
possible for both parties, applicants must be prepared to discuss the
following issues:
The location of the
proposed dredging.
The type of dredging
equipment.
An estimate of the
amount of material that will be dredged.
A plan for disposing
of any excess material.
The proximity of any
public drinking water sources.
When applying for a permit, applicants should also consider:
Stocked or wild trout
streams with the following seasonal restrictions:
Stocked trout streams
March 1 June 15
Wild trout streams
Oct. 1 Dec. 31
Lake Erie tributaries
Sept. 1 April 30
The use of chemicals
or other contaminants, which is prohibited. "
On January 28th I called the Mercer County DEP
department for information on how to get a Dredging permit for that
regin. And as you saw in last months newsletter I just listed how to get
a copy of the Application and the whole "Joint Application" package was
124 pages long. Well after printing it out and marketing each section
and reading and reading and I'm still reading it I've come across the
checklist that is used to make sure that each item is done. Which is
displayed below: (Please note that I have removed the non-essential
parts of the document, and my comments are in
BLUE) This is document
3930-PM-WM0036A Rev 10/2005
|
3930-PM-WM0036A
Rev. 10/2005
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
and
DEPARTMENT OF ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS
(Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh Districts)
(Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh Districts?
They told me this was for Mercer county will have to
double check what this is all about. I may have the
wrong form!)
JOINT APPLICATION FORPENNSYLVANIA WATER OBSTRUCTION
AND ENCROACHMENT PERMIT ANDU.S.
ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS SECTION 404 PERMIT
|
|
Before completing this form, please read the
step-by-step instructions
(The
step-by-step instructions will be covered in next months
newsletter)
and Section F Application Completeness Checklist
provided with this Joint Permit package. |
|
Application ID# (Assigned by DEP)
Program
Application No.
|
RECEIVED DATE _______________ CHECK NO.
____________
REQUIRED APP. FEE ____________ AMOUNT
$_____________ |
|
|
SECTION A. APPLICATION TYPE:
STANDARD SMALL PROJECTS
(not sure what
one to pick) |
|
SECTION B. APPLICANT IDENTIFIER |
|
Applicant Name
(we
would put - Allegheny chapter of the GPAA, or if we
didn't do this as a group our individual name) |
|
SECTION C. PROJECT LOCATION DATA |
|
Name of
stream and/or body of water.
(Booth run)
|
|
Corps
District where project will occur.
Baltimore
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
(Nothing to say
Greenville, will have to see what they mean) |
|
Name of
the U.S.G.S. 7 1/2 Minute Quadrangle Map where project
is located:
(must use
official map an official map)
Indicate location of project on this map by measuring
(in inches) from the lower right corner:
North (up)
inches; West (to the left)
inches; Latitude
;
Longitude
|
|
Project type, purpose and need: (I
guess we would put here something to the effect
"Recreational Dredging for gold (Not for Profit), Need
access to water ways with an obstruction (dredge) to get
to the material") |
|
SECTION D. PROJECT STATUS |
|
HAS ANY
PORTION OF PROPOSED PROJECT BEEN COMPLETED?
yes no
date
completed
If yes,
attach description of those portions of the project that
have been completed and identify dates of completion. |
SECTION E. OTHER APPROVALS
|
|
LIST
APPROVALS, CERTIFICATIONS, DENIALS OR NOTICES OF
VIOLATION RECEIVED FROM FEDERAL, INTERSTATE, STATE OR
LOCAL AGENCIES FOR STRUCTURES, CONSTRUCTION, DISCHARGES
OR OTHER ACTIVITIES DESCRIBED IN THIS APPLICATION. |
3930-PM-WM0036A Rev. 10/2005
|
SECTION
F. APPLICATION COMPLETENESS CHECKLIST |
|
(Applicant
must place an entry - Y = Yes, N = No, N/A = Not
Applicable ‑ in each left side column space. See
Section 105.13 for additional details. If you are applying
under the Small Projects Application format, place an entry
in only those comments prefixed by an asterisk (*).
(we may not have to
do each of the items below, we would have to find out more) |
|
REQUIREMENT
|
Applicant Entry |
DEP Use
Only |
|
a. GIF
and permit application properly signed, sealed and witnessed |
* |
|
|
b.
Application Fee enclosed (see Section G.) |
* |
|
|
c.
Copies and proof of receipt - Act 14 notification - Acts
67/68/127 |
* |
|
|
d.
Cultural Resource Notice - Copy and Proof of Receipt |
* |
|
|
e.
Completed and approved Pennsylvania Natural Diversity
Inventory Form (PNDI search) |
* |
|
|
f.
Plans (site plan including cross sections and profiles for
Subsections 151, 191, 231, 261) |
* |
|
|
g.
Location map |
|
|
|
h.
Project description narrative |
* |
|
|
i.
Color photographs with map showing location taken |
* |
|
|
j.
Environmental Assessment form |
* |
|
|
k.
Erosion and Sediment Control Plan and approval letter |
|
|
|
l.
Hydrologic and hydraulic analysis |
|
|
|
m.
Stormwater Management Analysis w/consistency letter |
|
|
|
n.
Floodplain Management Analysis w/consistency letter |
|
|
|
o. Risk
Assessment |
|
|
|
p.
Professional engineers seal and certification |
|
|
|
q.
Alternative analysis |
|
|
|
r.
Mitigation plan |
|
|
|
SECTION
G. DETERMINATION OF APPLICATION FEES (DEP FEES ONLY) |
|
Types of
Water Obstructions and Encroachments |
Number
of Units |
Fee Per
Unit |
Subtotal
Amount |
|
Stream
enclosures |
|
$ 350.00 |
$ |
|
Channel
changes |
|
$ 300.00 |
$ |
|
Commercial
dredging
(Should we be doing this one? Even though we are doing
recreational, also this means that every dredge we list
would cost 300$ to process) |
|
$ 300.00 |
$ |
|
Peat
extraction |
|
$ 750.00 |
$ |
|
Fills,
levees, floodwalls |
|
$ 350.00 |
$ |
|
Bridges and
other water obstructions and encroachments |
|
$ 200.00 |
$ |
|
Small
projects ($100 fee regardless of number of units)
(I'm not doing
commercial dredging it's recreational do I do this one?) |
(Unlimited and it's still only $100) |
$ 100.00 |
$ |
|
Qualifies
for General Permit (fee waived)
(Do we qualify? Do we have to pay a fee to apply before I
can find out? ) |
|
$0.00 |
N/A |
Make Check Payable to:
Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania
TOTAL FEE
|
$ |
|
List each
type and number of water obstructions and encroachments that
are included in this application and indicate subtotal and
total fee amounts.
(This means, I guess, each dredge's "type" meaning power and
size and how much material it moves, as in what the
Recreational
Prospecting in the Commonwealth's Waterways" Fact sheet said)
FAILURE TO
PROVIDE ALL OF THE REQUESTED INFORMATION WILL DELAY THE
PROCESSING OF THE APPLICATION AND MAY RESULT IN THE
APPLICATION BEING PLACED ON HOLD WITH NO ACTION,
OR IT MAY BE CONSIDERED WITHDRAWN AND THE FILE CLOSED. |
3930-PM-WM0036A Rev. 10/2005
|
SECTION
H. ADJOINING PROPERTY OWNERS |
|
Please list
the name and address of all property owners whose land
adjoins the project property. |
NAME
|
ADDRESS |
|
|
|
|
SECTION
I. CERTIFICATION AND SIGNATURE |
|
(This section seems to be who will be
responsible for this permit if some one is caught doing
something wrong,)
If Privately Owned, all
owners (such as husband and wife) must sign. One or
more members authorized to sign on behalf of an entire
partnership must sign. For a Corporation, the president,
vice president or other responsible official is required to
sign. For Political Subdivision, signatures of the chief
officer or other responsible official empowered to sign is
required with the seal affixed and attested by the clerk.
For Commonwealth departments, boards, commissions,
receivers, trustees and authorities, a department head,
bureau director, executive director, chairman, commissioner
or other responsible official is required to sign.
Signatures other than above must be accompanied by a power
of attorney or other notarized legal documentation
indicating authorization to sign on behalf of the applicant.
Application is hereby made
for a permit to authorize the activities described herein.
I certify I am familiar with the information contained in
this application, and to the best of my knowledge and
belief, such information is true, complete and accurate. I
further certify I possess the authority to undertake the
proposed activities.
I certify that the project
proposed in this application complies with and will be
conducted in a manner that is consistent with the approved
Coastal Zone Management program of the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania. (Only portions of Erie, Bucks, Philadelphia
and Delaware Counties are in the Coastal Zone).
I grant permission to the
agencies responsible for authorization of this work, or
their duly authorized representative, to enter the project
site for inspection purposes during working hours. I will
abide by the conditions of the permit or license if issued
and will not begin work without the appropriate
authorization.
|
|
By:
(PRINT NAME)
(SIGNATURE)
(DATE)
SEAL
(TITLE)
WITNESS:
|
|
|
It looks like a daunting list to go though, but remember
I was told that everything is on a case by case basis and that some
items may not need be done.
But how can we find out what doesn't have to be done
before we put our money down? I guess this is where the
"pre-application" meeting comes in to play, that is mentioned in the "Instructions
including Sample Plans 3930-PM-WM0036"
Also there may be hope (after just a brief look over)
that a waver may be done so that a permit is not needed at all. This
hope was found in the "Instructions
including Sample Plans 3930-PM-WM0036" basically it is the "HOW TO
FILL OUT THE FORM" document. It's included in the "Joint Permit
Application Form 02 3930-PM-WM0036 Form" and is 47 pages long it has a
sample application and a list of WAIVERS in Appendix I and in Appendix
II is a list of "General Permits". I was/am hoping that Appendix I
permit waivers, Section B, #3 that says "A fill not located on navigable
lakes and navigable rivers." could be used in our case, since again each
permit is subject to a case by case examination. Will have to bring that
up with Calvin and may be I will call and see what or how requesting a
Wavier would cost or what or how do see if this waiver would work. Else
the the "General Permit" section I can only think that the BDWM-GP-3
Bank rehabilitation, bank protection and gravel bar removal" may fit
what we are doing. But I'd rather see a section saying "Recreational
Dredging"
Either way at this point we will have to see what I've
found out for the next newsletter.
If anyone has any good websites that they would like to share with
everyone, email me them
and I'll put them in the newsletter.
To receive an e-mail of when the newsletter comes out
sign up on our mailing
list.
|







 |