Clean Water Act Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines review
This prepared complaint letter identifies the responsible public authorities, controlling official sources, evidence limits, and the factual questions that require agency review.
The draft requests investigation and documentary findings. It does not assert that every cited legal element or violation has already been proven.
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CalendarAlbuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority board meeting · Thursday, September 24 at 9:00 a.m.KOB 4AMAFCA finishes maintenance work at retention basin home to animalsAudubon SouthwestExtended Drying of The Rio Grande Affects BosqueDead beaver found near Paseo and CoorsABQ JournalCity workers remove dozens of animals from trash catch amid AMAFCA maintenance
CalendarAlbuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority board meeting · Thursday, September 24 at 9:00 a.m.KOB 4AMAFCA finishes maintenance work at retention basin home to animalsAudubon SouthwestExtended Drying of The Rio Grande Affects BosqueDead beaver found near Paseo and CoorsABQ JournalCity workers remove dozens of animals from trash catch amid AMAFCA maintenance
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Section 404 permit-review criteria for aquatic impacts — Clean Water Act §404(b)(1)
Potential permit-review issue: if a Section 404 permit is required, the permitting authority must evaluate less damaging alternatives, mitigation, and restoration under 40 C.F.R. Part 230. The Guidelines do not independently establish a violation by a private party.
Subject
Formal request: review Clean Water Act §404(b)(1) permit criteria for aquatic-habitat impacts
Prepared for United States Army Corps of Engineers; United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6; New Mexico Environment Department; Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority; New Mexico Environmental Law Center
Dear United States Army Corps of Engineers; United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6; New Mexico Environment Department; Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority; New Mexico Environmental Law Center, I am a resident and member of the public requesting a prompt, documented investigation and coordinated response concerning the drainage or retention area near 6440 Coors Boulevard Northwest, directly east of Sagebrush Church–Riverside Campus, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87120. POTENTIAL LEGAL ISSUE AND REQUIRED CAVEAT Section 404 permit-review criteria for aquatic impacts — Clean Water Act §404(b)(1) Potential permit-review issue: if a Section 404 permit is required, the permitting authority must evaluate less damaging alternatives, mitigation, and restoration under 40 C.F.R. Part 230. The Guidelines do not independently establish a violation by a private party. FULL LEGAL CITATION AND ELEMENTS TO REVIEW Review the §404(b)(1) Guidelines in 40 C.F.R. Part 230 if §404 authorization is required or being evaluated. The Guidelines direct the permitting authority to consider significant degradation, practicable less-damaging alternatives, avoidance, minimization, and compensation for unavoidable impacts. They are permit-review standards, not an independent private-party offense. The analysis should address aquatic functions, special aquatic sites, cumulative and secondary effects, sediment, wildlife, and less damaging alternatives. OFFICIAL CONTROLLING SOURCES 1. 40 C.F.R. Part 230 — complete electronic Code of Federal Regulations text https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-40/chapter-I/subchapter-J/part-230 ISSUE-SPECIFIC EVIDENCE STATUS CURRENT FACTUAL BASELINE (reviewed August 29, 2026) Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority identifies the site as the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority-owned La Orilla Outlet Water Quality Structure. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority authorized the on-site work at the La Orilla Outlet Water Quality Structure; that agency authorization does not by itself establish that every required permit or regulatory approval was satisfied. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority reported that approximately 8–10 turtles, primarily red-eared sliders, and several bullfrogs had been captured or relocated as of August 26, 2026; wildlife professionals were involved, work was paused after wildlife concerns, relocation was not complete, and no dead or injured wildlife had been found at that point. The supplied photograph directly depicts one beaver, and witness material records direct observation of at least two beavers and one beaver den; Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority stated that it had not independently confirmed the beaver observation as of its August 26, 2026 public statement. A supplied photograph depicts an animal appearing to be a deceased beaver beside a roadway. In a public Facebook post, Brittany Walters says Jenn Wilson photographed the animal near Paseo and Coors and identifies it as the same beaver the community had been trying to save based on matching tail notches; the identity and the cause, timing, and circumstances of death have not been independently verified. Supplied text-message screenshots report more than 40 turtles identified in the account as snapping, western painted, red-eared slider, and spiny softshell turtles, plus one unidentified snake, many bullfrogs, and a possible alligator; the counts and species identifications require qualified official verification. Historical federal scientific records document Rio Grande silvery minnows at a La Orilla Middle Rio Grande study location; that historical evidence does not establish that silvery minnows were present inside the specific Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority La Orilla Outlet Water Quality Structure during the August 2026 operation. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority stated that water was pumped downstream along the structure’s normal drainage path toward the Rio Grande and that water-quality samples were collected; laboratory results were pending at the time of its August 26, 2026 statement. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority stated that permanent drainage modifications were under consideration. The reviewed public record does not establish the full permit history, precise regulatory jurisdiction, specific discharge authorization, detailed laboratory results, all relocation destinations, complete injury or mortality records, or final permanent-design effects. Fresh soil is visible near the channel, soil appears to be unloaded beside it, and floating debris is visible at the surface. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority identifies the site as its La Orilla Outlet Water Quality Structure and stated that water was pumped downstream along the normal drainage path toward the Rio Grande and that water-quality samples were collected. Laboratory results were pending at the time of its statement. The precise outlet, volume, sample locations and results, sediment effects, regulatory authorization, and downstream monitoring remain under review. Proximity to the Rio Grande alone does not establish waters-of-the-United-States jurisdiction. ISSUE-SPECIFIC RECORDS AND FACTUAL QUESTIONS Request the alternatives analysis, project-purpose statement, aquatic-resource delineation, impact calculation, avoidance and minimization record, mitigation plan, and any determination that the channel was not a special aquatic site or valuable wildlife habitat. WHY PROMPT ACTION IS WARRANTED Further filling, pumping, dewatering, grading, vegetation removal, cleanup, or animal handling could alter site conditions, make water-quality or wildlife effects harder to detect, destroy evidence, and foreclose less damaging corrective options. The available record warrants inspection and preservation now even though jurisdiction, permit status, causation, species, injury, and the elements of any violation remain to be established. COORDINATED REQUEST BY RECIPIENT ROLE United States Army Corps of Engineers — Primary enforcement or regulator Require a complete §404(b)(1) review before authorizing more work; protect remaining water and habitat; and require mitigation, restoration, or permit enforcement for avoidable or unauthorized impacts. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6 — Federal oversight, enforcement, and referral Please review the cited Clean Water Act fill issue under the Environmental Protection Agency’s federal oversight and enforcement authority, coordinate with the United States Army Corps of Engineers as the Section 404 permitting authority, preserve and obtain relevant records, and determine whether federal information-gathering, enforcement, Section 404(c), or referral action is warranted. This request does not ask the Environmental Protection Agency to issue a Corps permit. New Mexico Environment Department — Records, coordination, and referral Please preserve the records in your custody, identify any known owner, operator, project, drainage, or state water-quality responsibility, inspect or coordinate inspection where authorized, share any applicable state or local records, and refer the issue to the regulator with permitting or enforcement jurisdiction. This is a records, coordination, and referral request—not a conclusion that your office administers the cited federal permit program or has enforcement jurisdiction. Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority — Records, coordination, and referral Please preserve the records in your custody, identify any known owner, operator, project, drainage, or state water-quality responsibility, inspect or coordinate inspection where authorized, share any applicable state or local records, and refer the issue to the regulator with permitting or enforcement jurisdiction. This is a records, coordination, and referral request—not a conclusion that your office administers the cited federal permit program or has enforcement jurisdiction. New Mexico Environmental Law Center — Legal-support referral The New Mexico Environmental Law Center can assess water-quality, fill, public-record, and wildlife-law referral options. Please review possible water-quality, fill, public-record, and wildlife-law issues and advise on legal referral options. This is a technical, legal-information, conservation, or animal-care request—not a request for statutory enforcement by the organization. RECORDS AND EVIDENCE PRESERVATION Preserve records from January 1, 2026 through the present, including native electronic files and available metadata. The request covers engineering and hydrology analyses; ownership, easement, and as-built records; contracts, bids, invoices, work orders, schedules, and contractor instructions; permit applications, jurisdictional determinations, exemption claims, notices of intent, pollution-prevention plans, inspections, sampling, discharge and dewatering records; wildlife surveys, capture and relocation records, veterinary or mortality records, destination approvals, and chain of custody; alternatives, mitigation, restoration, and long-term maintenance analyses; photographs, drone imagery, video, geographic data, complaints, public statements, and internal, contractor, and interagency communications. Please suspend routine deletion, preserve originals, produce records electronically on a rolling basis, identify withheld categories and the legal basis, give advance notice before fees exceed $25, and forward this request to the proper custodian if your office does not hold a record. CONTACT INFORMATION AND DELIVERY PATHS United States Army Corps of Engineers — Albuquerque Regulatory Office Role: Primary enforcement or regulator What this recipient can do: Determine jurisdiction, review Section 404 permits and exemptions, and review authorized restoration or enforcement. Email: SPA-RD-NM@usace.army.mil Phone: 505-342-3280 Mailing address: 4101 Jefferson Plaza NE Albuquerque, NM 87109-3435 Official web form: https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs/ United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6 — National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Reporting Role: Federal oversight, enforcement, and referral What this recipient can do: Review federal discharges and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System requirements and refer or enforce where authorized. Email: R6_NPDES_Reporting@epa.gov Phone: 214-665-2200 Mailing address: United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6 1201 Elm Street, Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75270-2102 New Mexico Environment Department — Surface Water Quality Bureau Role: Records, coordination, and referral What this recipient can do: Review state water-quality issues, monitoring, sampling, and state-law compliance; coordinate with federal authorities. Phone: 505-827-0187 Mailing address: P.O. Box 5469 Santa Fe, NM 87502-5469 Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority Role: Records, coordination, and referral What this recipient can do: Confirm ownership, preserve records, explain maintenance decisions, inspect work, and disclose sampling and design information. Email: public@amafca.org Phone: 505-884-2215 Mailing address: 2600 Prospect Avenue NE Albuquerque, NM 87107 New Mexico Environmental Law Center Role: Legal-support referral What this recipient can do: Review possible legal issues, provide information, and refer to public authorities; not statutory enforcement. Email: info@nmelc.org Phone: 505-266-2838 SUPPORTING RECORD ORIGINAL SOURCE Facebook post documenting the reported conditions: https://www.facebook.com/100068501006128/posts/pfbid02duMr7XFMQ6pFVAXeDzamX9QgrrFpnfgyJapV1ioL3fddTNKUcvXybWNxtL3CVMANl/?mibextid=wwXIfr Legal memorandum and photo descriptions: https://laorilla.org/La_Orilla_Legal_Complaint_2026-08-26_v1.pdf Please acknowledge receipt, provide a tracking number or referral contact, identify the deciding agency, and explain the findings, evidence reviewed, protective measures, corrective or enforcement action, unresolved questions, and schedule for the next public update. LEGAL DISCLAIMER AND LIMITS The reported capture and removal of wildlife, together with the absence of an identified completed pre-work species or habitat survey in the public record, do not by themselves prove that the cited authority applies, that any animal was injured or died, or that a violation or crime occurred. The report's accuracy, permit status, and legal significance require official verification and determination. This letter requests investigation, preservation, and role-appropriate assistance. The responsible authorities must establish each factual, jurisdictional, causation, intent, permit, and exception element. Respectfully, [Your name] [City], [State] [ZIP] [Your email]