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Home My WebLink About20030181 Ver 7__20191025 �A e+STATEa AZ ROY COOPER - Governor MICHAEL S.REGAN Secretary @avuw® LINDA CULPEPPER NORTH CAROLINA Director Envtron rat Quattty October 25, 2019 DWR#2003-0181 v7 Individual Certification#3826 Clay and Cherokee Counties Mr. Kyle Kroeger, Co-President Northbrook Carolina Hydro II, LLC 33 South 61b Street, Suite 4646 Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402 Subject: APPROVAL OF INDIVIDUAL 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION WITH j ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS—REISSUE FOR OWNERSHIP CHANGE Mission Hydroelectric Project (FERC No. 2619) Dear Mr. Kroeger: Attached hereto is a copy of Certification #3826 issued to Northbrook Carolina Hydro II, LLC, dated October 25, 2019. This Certification replaces the Certification issued to Duke Energy Carolinas,LLC on July 30,2010. Please note that you should get any other federal, state or local permits before proceeding with the subject project,including those required by(but not limited to) Solid Waste, Sediment and Erosion Control, Stormwater, Dam Safety, Non-discharge, and Water Supply Watershed regulations. This Certification can be contested as provided in Chapter 150B of the North Carolina General Statutes by filing a Petition for a Contested Case Hearing(Petition)with the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) within sixty (60) calendar days. Requirements for filing a Petition are set forth in Chapter 150B of the North Carolina General Statutes and Title 26 of the North Carolina Administrative Code. Additional information regarding requirements for filing a Petition and Petition forms may be accessed at httn://www.ncoah.com/ or by calling the OAH Clerk's Office at(919) 431-3000. One (1) copy of the Petition must also be served to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality: Q� North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources 512 North Salisbury Street 1 1617 Mail Service Center I Raleigh,North Carolina 2 769 9-1617 r TH uw u •� r+�� /"� 919.707.9000 Page 2 of 5 DWR#2003-0181 v7 Individual Certification#3826 William F. Lane, General Counsel Department of Environmental Quality 1601 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-1601 Unless such a petition is filed,this Certification shall be fmal and binding. This certification completes the review of the Division of Water Resources under section 401 of the Clean Water Act and 15A NCAC 02H .0500.Please contact Chonticha McDaniel at(919)707- 3634 or chonticha.mcdaniel(a)ncdenr.gov if you have any questions or concerns. Sincerely, Linda Culpepper Director, Division of Water Resources cc: Kimberly D. Bose, FERC (888 First Street NE, Washington,D.C., 20426) Todd Bowers, EPA, Wetlands Regulatory Section (61 Forsyth Street SW,Atlanta, GA 30303) Steven D. Jester, Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (P.O.Box 1006, Charlotte, NC 28201-1006) Fern A. Paterson, Parker Poe Adams &Bernstein LLP (via email) Fred Tarver, DWR Basin Planning Branch (via email) Chris Goudreau,NC Wildlife Resources Commission (via email) DWR, Asheville Regional Office DWR 401 &Buffer Permitting Branch File Page 3 of 5 DWR#2003-0181 v7 Individual Certification#3826 NORTH CAROLINA 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION CERTIFICATION #3826 is issued in conformity with the requirements of Section 401, Public Laws 92-500 and 95-217 of the United States and subject to North Carolina's Regulations in 15A NCAC 02H .0500,to Northbrook Carolina Hydro II,LLC to continue the operation of hydropower dams at the Mission Hydroelectric Project in Clay and Cherokee Counties, North Carolina, pursuant to an ownership change request filed on the 10' day of September of 2019. The State of North Carolina certifies that this activity will not violate the applicable portions of Sections 301, 302, 303, 306, and 307 of the Public Laws (PL)92-500 and PL 95-217 if conducted in accordance with the application and supporting documentation approved under the previous owner, and conditions hereinafter set forth. This approval requires you to follow the conditions listed in the certification below. Conditions of Certification: 1. This approval is for the purpose and design described in previous application and as described in the Public Notice. If you change your project, you must notify DWR and you may be required to submit a new application package with the appropriate fee. If the property,project or license is sold, the new owner must be given a copy of this Certification and is responsible for complying with all conditions specified herein. Any new owner must notify DWR and request the Certification be issued in their name. [15A NCAC 02H .0501 and .0502] 2. No waste, spoil, solids,or fill of any kind shall occur in wetlands,waters,or riparian areas.All construction activities, including the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of sediment and erosion control BMPs shall be performed so that no violations of state water quality standards, statutes, or rules occur. 3. Sediment and erosion control devices shall not be placed in wetlands or waters. Exceptions to this condition require application submittal to and written approval from DWR. If placement of sediment and erosion control devices in wetlands and waters is unavoidable, the design and placement of temporary erosion control devices shall not be conducted in a manner that may result in negative impacts of wetlands, stream beds, or banks, adjacent to, or upstream and downstream of such devices/structures. All sediment and erosion control devices shall be removed and the natural grade restored within six (6) months of the date that the Division of Energy,Mineral and Land Resources(DEMLR) or locally delegated program has released the specific area within the project. Page 4 of 5 DWR#2003-0181 v7 Individual Certification#3826 4. Northbrook Carolina Hydro II, LLC shall identify and report in writing any proposed new or expanded consumptive uses of Mission Project waters to DWR within 30 days following receipt of a written request for approval of a proposed new or expanded withdrawal and before submitting any approval requests to FERC. 5. This Certification neither grants nor affirms any property rights, riparian rights, littoral rights, or water use rights. This Certification does not authorize trespass and does not authorize interference with the property rights, riparian rights, littoral rights, or water use rights of others. This Certification does not create any prescriptive right or any right of priority regarding any usage of water. This Certification shall not be interposed as a defense in any action respecting the determination of property rights, riparian rights, littoral rights or other rights to water use. No consumptive user is deemed by virtue of this Certification to possess any prescriptive or other right of priority with respect to any other consumptive user regardless of the quantity of the withdrawal of the date on which the withdrawal was initiated or expanded. F Continuing Compliance 6. Northbrook Carolina Hydro II, LLC shall conduct project operations in a manner consistent with State water quality standards(including any requirements resulting from compliance with section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act) and any other appropriate requirements of State and federal law. [15A NCAC 02B .0200] If DWR determines that such standards or laws are not being met(including the failure to sustain a designated or achieved use)or that State or federal law is being violated,or that further conditions are necessary to assure compliance, DWR may reevaluate and modify this Certification in accordance with 15A NCAC 02H .0507(d). Before modifying the Certification,DWR shall notify the licensee and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), provide public notice in accordance with 15A NCAC 02H .0503 and provide opportunity for public hearing in accordance with 15A NCAC 02H .0504. Any new or revised conditions shall be provided to the licensee in writing,shall be provided to the FERC for reference in any permit or license issued by that agency, and shall become conditions of the FERC License for the project. Other Conditions 7. All previously approved plans such as Lake Level/Flow Management, Sediment Management, Shoreline Management, The Nantahala Area Run of River Projects Maintenance and Emergency Protocol (MEP), Addenda No.1 and No.3, hereby remain and incorporated into this certification. Any modifications to the provisions in these documents require additional written approval from DWR. Page 5 of 5 DWR#2003-0181 v7 Individual Certification#3826 8. This Certification grants permission to the Director, an authorized representative of the Director,or Department of Environmental Quality(DEQ)staff,upon the presentation of proper credentials, to enter the property during normal business hours. [15A NCAC 02H .0502(e)] This approval to proceed with your proposed impacts or to conduct impacts to waters as depicted in your application shall expire upon expiration of the new FERC License and any Annual Licenses issued after the expiration of the new License. Non-compliance with or violation of the conditions herein set forth may result in revocation of this Certification and may also result in criminal and/or civil penalties. This the 25' day of October 2019 Linda Culpepper Director, Division of Water Resources 3826