Clean Water Branch

NOTICE OF SECTION 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION APPLICATION AND

CLEAN WATER BRANCH TENTATIVE DETERMINATION FOR

USCG BASE HONOLULU BERTH G EXTENSION PROJECT

HONOLULU, ISLAND OF OAHU, HAWAII

FILE NO. WQC1101 / FEDERAL FILE NO. POH-2022-00187

DOCKET NO. WQC1101

PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD

MARCH 25, 2026 – APRIL 24, 2026

The Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH), Clean Water Branch (CWB) tentatively recommends to the Director of Health to issue a Section 401 Water Quality Certification (WQC) to regulate and impose water pollution control requirements on the modification of Berth G at the United States Coast Guard Base Honolulu located within Honolulu Harbor in Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii.  The project will be subject to compliance with applicable requirements authorized under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, and Section 103 of Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuary Act.

The Applicant’s information is as follows:

Applicant: United States Coast Guard (USCG), Facilities Design & Construction Center

Contact: Captain Neal Armstrong, P.E., Commanding Officer

Phone: (571) 608-9243

E-mail: [email protected]

The USCG proposes to modify the existing Berth G located within Honolulu Harbor, a highly developed and active commercial hub.  Berth G will be modified by removing an existing floating pier and constructing a fixed, pile-supported pier extending approximately one hundred and ten feet (110 ft.) eastward from the southeast end.  The extended Berth G will have adequate moorage options equipped with fenders and hardware, and also, provide services for the USCG 225-foot seagoing buoy tenders.  USCG has selected Duwamish-Pacific Joint Venture as the design-build contractor of the project.

Modification of Berth G will involve in-water work including demolition, pile augering, pile installation, and pile infill.  Construction activities will be conducted above and below the mean higher high water (MHHW) level.  Activities conducted below MHHW will have the potential to directly impact water quality at the project site.  Activities above MHHW will occur on land at various areas that will be one (1) or more acre in total size.  National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) general permit coverage will be obtained for discharges of stormwater associated with construction activities from the on-land project site including laydown and storage areas.

The receiving State water, Honolulu Harbor, is classified by DOH as “Class A, Embayment.”  According to the April 8, 2024, Final “2024 State of Hawaii Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report,” water quality criteria for Enterococci, Total Nitrogen, Total Nitrate and Nitrite, Total Phosphorus, Turbidity, Pathogens, Metals, and Total Suspended Solids are listed as impaired.

Based on an evaluation of the Section 401 WQC application and the supporting information, there is a reasonable assurance that, when a Section 401 WQC with applicable requirements specified in Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), Chapter 342D; Hawaii Administrative Rules (HAR), Chapters 11-53 and 11-54 will be fully complied with, the discharges resulting from the proposed construction activities will be conducted in a manner which will not violate the applicable water quality requirements, and will comply with the applicable provisions of CWA, Sections 301, 302, 303, 306, and 307.

Persons wishing to comment on or object to the Section 401 WQC application or the CWB tentative determination, or to request a public hearing, should submit their comments or requests in writing no later than thirty (30) calendar days after the date of this notice, either by e-mail at [email protected] or by mail at Clean Water Branch, 2827 Waimano Home Road, Room 225, Pearl City, Hawaii 96782.

Please access the following links to view the Section 401 WQC application and all supporting information for the USCG Base Honolulu Berth G Extension project.

• Section 401 WQC application
• Section 401 WQC application – enclosures

Copies of the Section 401 WQC application and all supporting information are also available for public inspection, Monday through Friday (excluding holidays) from 7:45 AM until 4:15 PM, at the CWB Office located at 2827 Waimano Home Road, Room 225, Pearl City, Hawaii 96782.

If you need an auxiliary aid/service or other accommodations due to disability, please contact Mr. Reef Migita, Supervisor of the CWB Engineering Section, at [email protected] or 808‑586-4309 as soon as possible before the end of the comment period.  If you use a TTY/TDD, please call through Sprint Relay Hawaii, at 1-711 or 1-877-447-5991.  If a request for assistance is made after the end of the comment period, the CWB will try to fulfill the request.  However, fulfillment prior to a final determination cannot be guaranteed.  Requests submitted as early as possible are more likely to be fulfilled.

All written comments and requests received no later than 4:30 PM on April 24, 2026, will be considered.  If the DOH determines that there is significant public interest, a public hearing may be held after at least 30 calendar days of public notice.

If the CWB tentative determination is substantially unchanged, after considering all timely written comments and all oral comments at any public hearing that may be held, then DOH will issue the Section 401 WQC, as appropriate, and this action will be final.

Please notify anyone you know who would be interested in this matter.

DARRYL LUM, P.E., Clean Water Branch Chief