Northwestern Division / Missions / Civil Works / Planning

Project Planning

Planning plays a vital role in supporting the Corps of Engineers Civil Works water resources development mission. Planning is a structured, rational approach to solving problems. It is also a creative process requiring experience, analysis, intuition and inspiration. Planner’s help decision-makers identify water resources problems, conceive solutions to them and compare the importance of the inevitable conflicting values inherent in any solution. In accord with ER 25-1-8, following are the functional tasks:

  • Oversee and develop the Civil Works planning mission.
  • Develop and maintain policy doctrine.
  • Promote a capable workforce.
  • Build and maintain external relationships and coalitions.
  • Promote PCoP communication.
  • Enhance the learning organization.

Members of the planning team are professionals in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with expertise in water resources planning, including plan formulation, environmental evaluation, cultural resources evaluation, Civil Works Policy, and public involvement. Planning knowledge and skill is used to solve problems and inform decision making across Civil Works business lines and through the project development and implementation process.

For more information pertaining to policy, guidance, processes, and tools that are used every day in planning, please visit our Planning Toolbox and work with the project planning professionals in your region's District office.

 

Announcements

Public Notice: Northwestern Division Engineer’s Approval of Special Emergency Processing Procedures for Activities Subject to Executive Order 14156 (April 1, 2025)

To whom it may concern: The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) may employ emergency procedures to process requests to alter a USACE Civil Works project under 33 USC §408 (Section 408) if the request is associated with an activity that facilitates the identification, leasing, siting, production, transportation, refining, and generation of domestic energy sources as directed in Executive Order (EO) 14156.  In that EO the President declared a national energy emergency and found that expediting certain activities using emergency procedures was necessary to address an unusual and extraordinary threat to our nation’s economy, national security, and foreign policy.  Because of that threat, it may be necessary to undertake a review of a Section 408 request within a time period less than the normal time needed to process the request under standard review procedures to minimize the impact of a an immediate, unforeseen, and significant economic hardship and associated threat to national security and foreign policy.  For activities meeting the definition of an “energy” or “energy resources” project in EO 14156, the Portland, Seattle, Walla Walla, Kansas City, and Omaha Districts may employ emergency procedures to process a Section 408 request, including the procedures approved by Northwestern Division in accordance with 33 CFR § 325.2(e)(4) in appropriate circumstances.

The purpose of this notice is to announce the potential use of special emergency processing procedures to review requests for permission under Section 408 as directed by Sections 2 and 4 of EO 14156.  A determination of whether a specific Section 408 request qualifies for emergency procedures in response to the national emergency declared in EO 14156 will be made individually based upon a case-specific evaluation of each request.

If you have any questions concerning these special emergency processing procedures, please contact Ms. Carrie Bond at 503-410-1614 or Carrie.L.Bond@usace.army.mil.

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