19970093 Ver 1_Env Assessment_20090223

® North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
MEMORANDUM
TO: Melba McGee
Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs, DENR
FROM: Travis Wilson, Highway Project Coordinator
Habitat Conservation Program -?--? // ?-
DATE: February 23, 2009
SUBJECT: North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Environmental
Assessment (EA) for the proposed construction of a new location rail spur, Lenoir
County, North Carolina. TIP No. U-2928, SCH Project No. 09-0197
Staff biologists with the N. C. Wildlife Resources Commission have reviewed the subject
EA and are familiar with habitat values in the project area. The purpose of this review was to
assess project impacts to fish and wildlife resources. Our comments are provided in accordance
with certain provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.'C. 4332(2)(c)) and the
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (48 Stat. 401, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 661-667d).
NCDOT in coordination with the North Carolina Global TransPark (GTP) proposes to
construct a new location rail spur from the existing North Carolina Railroad to a point within the
GTP. Seven build alternatives were evaluated. The recommended alternative G was developed
as a "best fit" alignment to avoid and minimize impacts to a practicable extent resulting in 10,8
acres of wetland and 239 linear feet of stream impacts.
At this time we do not have any specific comments, the document contains information
requested from prior agency coordination and therefore we concur Iwith the EA for this project.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment if we can be of any further assistance please call me at
[phone].
cc: John Ellis, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Raleigh
David Wainwright, DWQ, Raleigh
Tracey Wheeler, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington
Mailing Address: Division of Inland Fisheries • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]