Interested parties are hereby notified that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Norfolk District has received an application for a Department of the Army (DA) permit pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. § 1344). The purpose of this public notice is to solicit comments from the public and information necessary to evaluate the probable impact on the public interest regarding the proposed activity as described below and as shown on the enclosed drawings.
LOCATION OF PROPOSED ACTIVITY: The proposed activity would affect waters of the United States associated with Boar Swamp. The project is located within the existing White Oak Technology Park on a parcel located southwest of the intersection of Williamsburg Road (Route 60) and Technology Boulevard, at 5140 Technology Boulevard, in Sandston, Virginia.
Permittee Responsible Mitigation Site: The permittee responsible mitigation (PRM) site, known as the QTS RIC 5 PRM Site, is located on a 10.9-acre site within a 191-acre tract of land at Latitude 37.439000 and Longitude -77.045600, in New Kent, Virginia.
PROPOSED ACTIVITY: The applicant is requesting a DA permit to expand the existing QTS RIC5 data center campus within the White Oak Technology Park by constructing Data Center Building 5 (DC-5), which will include the construction of DC-5 and its associated infrastructure including utilities, technologies, parking facilities and stormwater management facilities. The project will result in impacts to approximately 4.29-acres of palustrine forested wetlands. The applicant also proposes to construct a PRM site, known as the QTS RIC 5 PRM Site, that will be located on a 10.9-acre site and result in 8.32 wetland credits to offset unavoidable impacts.
MITIGATION: The applicant has provided the following information to explain how impacts to waters of the United States associated with the proposed activity are to be avoided, minimized, and compensated for. The layout for the DC5 building and facilities has been designed to the best extent practicable while remaining compliant with all local, state, and federal building codes. Therefore, a total of four (4) impact areas are proposed for the development of the DC5 data center building and facilities. The project was redesigned from its original submittal to further reduce wetland impacts associated with bank grading along the eastern and western boundaries of DC-5 and in the vicinity of the southern entrance to the site and adjacent to stormwater management pond. The additional avoidance and minimization resulted in a reduction of impacts to forested wetland from 4.48-acres to 4.29 acres. To offset the 4.29-acres of forested wetland impacts, the applicant proposes to construct a permittee responsible mitigation site resulting in 8.32 wetland credits at a location known as the QTS RIC 5 PRM site, and through the purchase of 0.26 acres of wetland credit from the Virginia Stream and Wetland Mitigation Program. The USACE will determine the type and amount of compensatory mitigation necessary to offset losses of waters of the United States which may result from the proposed activity in accordance with 33 CFR § 332.
A copy of the application can be found on the Virginia Marine Resources Commission’s website https://webapps.mrc.virginia.gov/public/habitat/additionaldocs.php?id=20260426.
HISTORIC PROPERTIES/CULTURAL RESOURCES: Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended (54 U.S.C. § 306108), requires Federal agencies to consult with the appropriate State and/or Tribal Historic Preservation Officers to take into account the effects of actions they undertake or permit on historic properties listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
The USACE evaluated the undertaking pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act utilizing 36 CFR § 800 and program-specific regulations and procedures found at 33 CFR § 325, Appendix C, and revised interim guidance issued in 2005 and 2007, respectively. The District Engineer consulted district files and records and the latest published version of the National Register of Historic Places and initially determines that:
Historic properties (i.e., properties listed in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places), are present within the USACE’s permit area; however, the undertaking would have no adverse effect on these historic properties. The USACE will request concurrence with this determination from the State and/or Tribal Historic Preservation Officers.
The USACE’s final eligibility and effect determination relative to historic resource impacts may be subject to additional coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer, federally recognized tribes, and other interested parties, and with full consideration given to the proposed undertaking’s potential direct and indirect effects on historic properties within the USACE-identified permit area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (16 U.S.C. § 1536) requires federal agencies to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and/or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on all actions that may affect a species listed (or proposed for listing) under the ESA as threatened or endangered or that may adversely modify designated critical habitat (or critical habitat proposed such designation).The USACE has performed an initial review of the application, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Information for Planning and Consultation (IPaC), to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, and the proposed and final designated critical habitat may occur in the vicinity of the proposed project. Based on this initial review, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the proposed project may affect a threatened or endangered species or designated critical habitat. USACE will complete the required consultation under Section 7 prior to finalizing a permit decision.
This notice serves as request to the USFWS for any additional information on whether any listed or proposed to be listed endangered or threatened species or critical habitat may be present in the area which would be affected by the proposed activity.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. The Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 401 Certification Rule (Certification Rule, 40 CFR 121), effective September 11, 2020, requires certification, or waiver, for any license or permit that authorizes an activity that may result in a discharge. The scope of a CWA Section 401 certification is limited to ensuring that a discharge from a Federally licensed or permitted activity will comply with water quality requirements. To comply with the Virginia Section 401 Water Quality Certification Program and the Certification Rule, the applicant is responsible for adhering to the procedures outlined in the Certification Rule when requesting certification from the certifying authority, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. In accordance with Certification Rule part 121.12, the Corps will notify the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator when it has received a Department of the Army (DA) permit application and the related certification. The Administrator is responsible for determining whether the discharge may affect water quality in a neighboring jurisdiction. The DA permit may not be issued pending the conclusion of the Administrator’s determination of effects on neighboring jurisdictions.
COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT: For compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended for projects located in Virginia’s Coastal Zone, the applicant must certify that federally licensed or permitted activities affecting Virginia's coastal uses or resources will be conducted in a manner consistent with the Virginia’s Coastal Zone Management Program (Virginia CZM Program), and obtain concurrence from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Office of Environmental Impact Review (OEIR). It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit a consistency certification to the OEIR at eir@deq.virginia.gov for concurrence or objection, and proof of concurrence must be submitted to the Corps prior to final permit issuance. A template federal consistency certification can be found in the Federal Consistency Manual here: https://www.deq.virginia.gov/our-programs/environmental-impact-review/federal-consistency. For more information or to obtain a list of the enforceable policies of the Virginia CZM Program, contact the DEQ-OEIR at (804) 659-1915 or e-mail: bettina.rayfield@deq.virginia.gov.
The applicant has submitted concurrence.
NATIONAL WILD AND SCENIC RIVERS: There are no designated National Wild and Scenic Rivers in the State of Virginia.
NOTE: This public notice is being issued based on information furnished by the applicant. This information has not been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with laws and regulation governing the regulatory program. The geographic extent of aquatic resources within the proposed project area that either are, or are presumed to be, within the USACE jurisdiction has been verified by USACE personnel.
EVALUATION: The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact including cumulative impacts of the proposed activity on the public interest. That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits, which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal, must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including cumulative impacts thereof; among these are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historical properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership, and in general, the needs and welfare of the people. Evaluation of the impact of the activity on the public interest will also include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act or the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.
COMMENTS: The USACE is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State, and local agencies and officials; Tribal Nations; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the USACE to determine whether to issue, modify, condition, or deny a permit for this proposed activity. To make this determination, comments are used to assess impacts to endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and the other public interest factors listed above. Comments are used in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity. Any comments or objections which are received during this period may be forwarded to the applicant for possible resolution before the determination is made whether to issue or deny the requested permit. Please note that all comments received will become part of the administrative record and are subject to public release under the Freedom of Information Act.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a public hearing will be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.
The Norfolk District will receive written comments on the proposed activity, as outlined above, until July 9, 2026. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs/public-notices. Alternatively, you may submit comments to Nicole Woodward at nicole.l.woodward@usace.army.mil or U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, Attention: Nicole Woodward, 803 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510. Please refer to “NAO-2021-02695” in your comments.