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(continued) of the applicable program.

(5) Minimize, Restore or Preserve—If there is no practicable alternative to locating in or affecting the floodplain or wetlands, the Agency shall act to minimize potential harm to the floodplain or wetlands. The Agency shall also act to restore and preserve the natural and beneficial values of floodplains and wetlands as part of the analysis of all alternatives under consideration.

(6) Agency Decision—After consideration of alternative actions, as they have been modified in the preceding analysis, the Agency shall select the desired alternative. For all Agency actions proposed to be in or affecting a floodplain/wetlands, the Agency shall provide further public notice announcing this decision. This decision shall be accompanied by a Statement of Findings, not to exceed three pages. This Statement shall include: (i) The reasons why the proposed action must be located in or affect the floodplain or wetlands; (ii) a description of significant facts considered in making the decision to locate in or affect the floodplain or wetlands including alternative sites and actions; (iii) a statement indicating whether the proposed action conforms to applicable State or local floodplain protection standards; (iv) a description of the steps taken to design or modify the proposed action to minimize potential harm to or within the floodplain or wetlands; and (v) a statement indicating how the proposed action affects the natural or beneficial values of the floodplain or wetlands. If the provisions of 40 CFR part 6 apply, the Statement of Findings may be incorporated in the final EIS or in the environmental assessment. In other cases, notice should be placed in the Federal Register or other local medium and copies sent to Federal, State, and local agencies and other entities which submitted comments or are otherwise concerned with the floodplain/wetlands assessment. For floodplain actions subject to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A–95, the Agency shall send the Statement of Findings to State and areawide A–95 clearinghouse in the geographic area affected. At least 15 working days shall be allowed for public and interagency review of the Statement of Findings.

(7) Authorizations/Appropriations—Any requests for new authorizations or appropriations transmitted to OMB shall include, a floodplain/wetlands assessment and, for floodplain impacting actions, a Statement of Findings, if a proposed action will be located in a floodplain or wetlands.

b. Lead agency concept. To the maximum extent possible, the Agency shall relay on the lead agency concept to carry out the provisions set forth in section 6.a of this appendix. Therefore, when EPA and another Federal agency have related actions, EPA shall work with the other agency to identify which agency shall take the lead in satisfying these procedural requirements and thereby avoid duplication of efforts.

c. Additional floodplain management provisions relating to Federal property and facilities.

(1) Construction Activities—EPA controlled structures and facilities must be constructed in accordance with existing criteria and standards set forth under the NFIP and must include mitigation of adverse impacts wherever feasible. Deviation from these requirements may occur only to the extent NFIP standards are demonstrated as inappropriate for a given structure or facility.

(2) Flood Protection Measures—If newly constructed structures or facilities are to be located in a floodplain, accepted floodproofing and other flood protection measures shall be undertaken. To achieve flood protection, EPA shall, wherever practicable, elevate structures above the base flood level rather than filling land.

(3) Restoration and Preservation—As part of any EPA plan or action, the potential for restoring and preserving floodplains and wetlands so that their natural and beneficial values can be realized must be considered and incorporated into the plan or action wherever feasible.

(4) Property Used by Public—If property used by the public has suffered damage or is located in an identified flood hazard area, EPA shall provide on structures, and other places where appropriate, conspicuous indicators of past and probable flood height to enhance public knowledge of flood hazards.

(5) Transfer of EPA Property—When property in flood plains is proposed for lease, easement, right-of-way, or disposal to non-Federal public or private parties, EPA shall reference in the conveyance those uses that are restricted under Federal, State and local floodplain regulations and attach other restrictions to uses of the property as may be deemed appropriate. Notwithstanding, EPA shall consider withholding such properties from conveyance.

Section 7 Implementation

a. Pursuant to section 2, the EPA program offices shall amend existing regulations, procedures, and guidance, as appropriate, to incorporate the policies and procedures set forth in this Statement of Procedures. Such amendments shall be made within six months of the date of these Procedures.

b. The Office of External Affairs (OEA) is responsible for the oversight of the implementation of this Statement of Procedures and shall be given advanced opportunity to review amendments to regulations, procedures, and guidance. OEA shall coordinate efforts with the program offices to develop necessary manuals and more specialized supplementary guidance to carry out this Statement of Procedures.

[44 FR 64177, Nov. 6, 1976, as amended at 50 FR 26323, June 25, 1985]