[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 971 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 971

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to exempt the conduct 
     of silvicultural activities from national pollutant discharge 
              elimination system permitting requirements.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 16, 2013

     Mr. Wyden (for himself, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Baucus, and Mr. Risch) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
               Committee on Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to exempt the conduct 
     of silvicultural activities from national pollutant discharge 
              elimination system permitting requirements.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Silviculture Regulatory Consistency 
Act''.

SEC. 2. SILVICULTURAL ACTIVITIES.

    Section 402(l) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1342(l)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Silvicultural activities.--
                    ``(A) NPDES permit requirements for silvicultural 
                activities.--The Administrator shall not require a 
                permit or otherwise promulgate regulations under this 
                section or directly or indirectly require any State to 
                require a permit under this section for a discharge of 
                stormwater runoff resulting from the conduct of the 
                following silvicultural activities: nursery operations, 
                site preparation, reforestation and subsequent cultural 
                treatment, thinning, prescribed burning, pest and fire 
                control, harvesting operations, surface drainage, and 
                road use, construction, and maintenance.
                    ``(B) Permits for dredged or fill material.--
                Nothing in this paragraph exempts a silvicultural 
                activity resulting in the discharge of dredged or fill 
                material from any permitting requirement under section 
                404.''.
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