20141097 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20141113

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 0
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
November 6, 2014
Ms. Tasha Alexander
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801 -5006
SUBJECT: Dugger Creek Trout Habitat Enhancement
Wilkes County
Dear Ms. Alexander:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission ( NCWRC) reviewed an
application to enhance habitat along 3,450 ft of Dugger Creek in Wilkes County. Our comments
on this application are offered for your consideration under provisions of the Clean Water Act of
1977 (33 U.S.C. 466 et. seq.) and Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (48 Stat. 401, as amended;
16 U.S.C. 661- 667d).
This project should not affect trout and the activities do not need to be avoided during the trout
spawning moratorium. Although Dugger Creek upstream of the project reach hosts a healthy
population of wild Brook Trout, the project reach is downstream of a set of falls that serve as a
barrier. The project reach is more typical of a coolwater system, containing Smallmouth Bass; it
does contain a few Brown Trout, but they are very few in number and likely not reproducing.
Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this project. Please contact me at
(828) 296 -4720 if you have any questions about these comments or need further assistance.
Sincerely,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
Ec: Sue Homewood, NC Division of Water Resources
John Vilas, McGill Associates
Kevin Hining, NCWRC
Mailing Address: Division of Inland Fisheries • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699 -1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]