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Baldwin Contracting Company, Inc. agrees to restore damaged wetlands

Release Date: 06/05/2007
Contact Information: Margot Perez-Sullivan, [email protected] Desk/415.947.4149/Cell 415.760.9161

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Baldwin Contracting Company, Inc., an operator of a sand and gravel mining site, signed a consent order to provide mitigation for discharging gravel and other fill material into Stony Creek and adjacent wetlands, without the federally required permits.

Baldwin Contracting Company, Inc., located near Orland, Calif. agreed to stop discharging fill material into Stony Creek and adjacent wetlands. The company has also agreed to take on comprehensive wetlands restoration efforts and submit within 60 days a plan for creating 3.5 acres of wetlands. The plan will also include a 5-year monitoring schedule for the created wetlands that will include criteria to establish clear goals and ensure goals are met.

“This order will benefit Stony Creek and the Sacramento River by restoring an area that serves as a habitat for many animals and plants” said Alexis Strauss, director of the EPA’s Water Division for the Pacific Southwest. “When working in wetland areas, it is vital that all companies obtain proper permits well in advance of their activities.”

In addition to creating wetlands, the Baldwin Contracting Company, Inc. has also agreed to fund invasive species removal work in the Stony Creek watershed, and conduct gravel augmentation work in Stony Creek to improve fish habitat downstream. The EPA will review and approve mitigation plans and oversee all of the company’s mitigation activities.

The Clean Water Act prohibits the placement of dredged or fill materials into wetlands, rivers, streams and other waters of the United States without a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. For more information on the EPA’s permit program, visit: https://www.epa.gov/region09/water/wetlands/index.html