20080737 All Versions_Other Agency Comments_20080818

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United States Department of the Interior
FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE
Raleigh Field Office
Post Office Box 33726
Raleigh, North Carolina 27636-3726
August 14, 2008
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Richard Spencer
U S Army Corps of Engineers
P O Box 1890
Wilmington, NC 28402-1890
Dear Mr Spencer
This letter is in response to your request for comments on Public Notice (PN) ID No 2008-
01413, dated August 8, 2008 The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has
applied for a Department of the Army permit to discharge dredged or fill material into waters of
the United States in order to construct the Fayetteville Outer Loop from I-95 south of
Fayetteville to NC 24/87 (TIP No X-0002B and U-2519) in Cumberland and Robeson Counties,
North Carolina These comments are provided in accordance with provisions of the Fish and
Wildlife Coordination Act (16 U S C 661-667d) and section 7 of the Endangered Species Act
(ESA) of 1973, as amended (16 U S C 1531-1543)
The U S Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has been actively involved in the development of
this project through the combined Section 404/NEPA Merger Process Accordingly, many of
our previous comments have been incorporated or otherwise addressed during project
development
The proposed project will have 34 84 acres of nverme wetland impacts, 13 59 acres of non-
nverme wetland impacts, and 13,232 linear feet of stream impacts NCDOT has proposed to
utilize the Privateer Wetland and Stream Mitigation Site to compensate for these impacts The
Service agrees that the Privateer Mitigation Site is appropriate for providing the necessary
compensatory mitigation, however we do not agree with NCDOT's proposed ratio of 1 5 1
While the site is well established and successful, the site is located ou si e e 8-digit hydrologic
units where the impacts occur While it may be appropriate to allow some credit for the
successfulness and temporal advantage of the Privateer Site, the proposed 15 1 ratio is too low
We recommend a 2 1 ratio as a minimum
With regard to section 7 of the ESA, Table 2 of the PN inaccurately states that the biological
conclusion for the red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW)(Picoides borealis) is may affect, not likely
to adversely affect In reality, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) rendered a
biological conclusion of may affect, likely to adversely affect the RCW, thus prompting a formal
consultation The Service submitted a Biological Opinion dated April 28, 2005 which states that
the Fayetteville Outer Loop, as proposed, is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of
the RCW The Service has authorized incidental take which includes the removal of 144 3 acres
of suitable and potentially suitable foraging habitat from nine active RCW territories, and the
take of one group of RCWs (FB 65) as a result of cavity tree removals and impacts to foraging
habitat within a 1/2-mile radius of the cluster To account for the direct loss of cluster FB 65,
NCDOT has debited one "project credit" from the Calaway Tract RCW conservation bank In
order to minimize the Neighborhood Level impacts to the RCW, NCDOT has also purchased the
Marsh Banks property (112 61 acres) to help establish the Northern Connector to encourage
RCW movement between the Northeast Area and Overhills Tract on Fort Bragg To the best of
our knowledge, NCDOT has implemented the Reasonable and Prudent Measures specified in the
Biological Opinion
With regard to all other federally threatened and endangered species, the Service concurred with
a biological conclusion of no effect for all other species in a letter dated March 28, 2005
Based on the Service's prior involvement with the planning for this project, and based on the
available information, the Service does not oppose the issuance of a permit for this project,
provided that a more acceptable wetland and stream mitigation ratio is used to compensate for
impacts
We appreciate the opportunity to review this project If you have any questions regarding our
response, please contact Mr Gary Jordan at [phone], ext 32
Sincerely,
Pete Benjamin
Field Supervisor
cc Chris Militscher, USEPA, Raleigh, NC
Travis Wilson, NCWRC, Creedmoor, NC
John Sullivan, FHWA, Raleigh, NC
Rob Ridings, NCDWQ, Raleigh, NC