Field Report

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DIVISION OF COASTAL MANAGEMENT
FIELD INVESTIGATION REPORT
APPLICANT'S NAME: North Carolina Department of Transportation
LOCATION OF PROJECT SITE: The project is located at Bridge No. 14 over Beard Creek on SR 1005
(Meuse Road) in Pamlico County (T.I.P. No. 17BP.2.PE.94 — formerly B-4595).
Latitude: 35'02' 17" N Longitude: 76°51'58" W
INVESTIGATION TYPE: CAMA and D&F
INVESTIGATIVE PROCEDURE: Date of Site Visit — February 3, 2023
Was Applicant Present — No
PROCESSING PROCEDURE: Application Received Complete: March 15, 2023
Office — Morehead City
6. SITE DESCRIPTION:
(A)
Local Land Use Plan — Pamlico County
Land Classification From LUP — Conservation
(B)
AEC(s) Involved: PTA, CS, CW
(C)
Water Dependent: Yes
(D)
Intended Use: Public
(E)
Wastewater Treatment: Existing — N/A
(F)
Type of Structures: Existing — Bridge for public use
(G)
Estimated Annual Rate of Erosion: N/A
Source — N/A
7. HABITAT DESCRIPTION: [AREA]
EXCAVATED FILLED
Planned — N/A
Planned — Bridge for public use
OTHER
Open Water
Exist mgShadm
Additional Sham '980 sf
B Shallow Water Bottom
81 sf
Temp. Impacted 871 sf
(C) Coastal Wetlands
1,947 sf
Mech. clearing 4,792 sf
Hand clearing 3,485 sf
(D) Buffer Impacts
Impacted 3,168 sf
(E) High Ground
Disturbed by project 47,898 sf
(D) Total Area Disturbed: 65,302 sq. ft.
(E) Primary Nursery Area: No
(F) Water Classification: SC; NSW, Sw Open: No
8. PROJECT SUMMARY: The applicant proposes to replace the existing 90' long bridge on
SR 1005 over Beard Creek with a new 130' long concrete bridge
and associated infrastructure on the existing alignment. An off -site
detour route will be utilized during construction.

FIELD INVESTIGATION REPORT:
N.C.D.O.T. — PAMLICO BRIDGE NO. 14 OVER BEARD CREEK
PAGE #2
9. NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION:
Project Setting
Bridge No. 14 is located over Beard Creek on SR 1005 (Meuse Road) approximately 0.8 miles
east of SR 1101 (Kennels Beach Road) in southwestern Pamlico County. Typical elevations in the
project area range from 0 to 9 feet above the normal water level of Beard Creek. The western area
of the project has a 60' wide x 300' long causeway leading from natural high ground through Coastal
Wetlands to the bridge. The land along the sides of the causeway are dominated by sod grass, with
Spartina cynosuroides and Juncus roemerianus at the lower elevations outside of the causeway
areas. At the east end of the bridge, the property on the north side of the road is developed and
maintained with an uninhabited residential dwelling on it and adjacent field, while the property on
the south side of the road is dominated by headwater forest.
There are no historical or archaeological resources considered eligible for listing in the National
Register present within the proj ect's area of potential effects. However, the location has been the site
of previous bridges as indicated by historical maps and by the remnant structures of the previous
crossings remaining at the site. Among these is a turntable used in a previous swing -span bridge
located underneath the center span of the current bridge.
The existing bridge was constructed in 1964 and is 90' long by 26' wide. The bridge has 24' of
clear roadway width, including two 10' wide travel lanes. The bridge consists of three fixed spans,
with a maximum horizontal navigational clearance limited to 24' due to the presence of the previous
bridge's turntable. The vertical clearance underneath the bridge is 4.9'. The superstructure consists
of a concrete deck and girders overlain with asphalt, while the bridge is supported with reinforced
concrete caps on timber piles. The Pamlico County Water Department has an existing water line that
runs parallel with the north side of the bridge and crosses under Beard Creek. CenturyLink has
underground fiber optic and telephone lines paralleling the north side of the roadway and bridge as
well. Tideland EMC has overhead power lines that also parallel the north side of the roadway and
bridge.
The bridge received a 30 out of a possible 100 points during its last sufficiency rating. The
bridge is located on a route that is part of a designated NC Bicycling Highway, NC Bicycle Route 7
(Ocracoke Option). The annual average daily volume of traffic over the bridge was estimated to be
800 vehicles per day in 2019 and projected to be 1,600 vehicles per day by 2040.
Beard Creek is classified SC; NSW, Sw in the area of the proposed construction by the
Environmental Management Commission. Beard Creek is located within the Neuse River Basin, as
such, projects within or adjacent to the creek are subject to the Neuse River Basin Riparian Buffer
Rules. The creek has been designated as Inland Waters in the vicinity of the bridge, however, it has
not been identified as a Primary Nursery Area. The waters are closed to shellfishing by the Shellfish
Sanitation Section of the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF). The creek is approximately 90' wide
and has a maximum water depth of -8' below the normal water level at the project site. The DMF
GIS data layer shows Beard Creek as containing submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), however,
there was no SAV or shellfish beds observed in the project area during the site visit.
Project Proposal
NCDOT proposes to replace the existing Bridge No. 14 over Beard Creek. The project involves
the replacement of the existing bridge and related approaches with a pre -stressed concrete cored slab
bridge and new approaches on the existing location. To initiate the project, the existing bridge

FIELD INVESTIGATION REPORT:
N.C.D.O.T. - BRIDGE NO. 14 OVER BEARD CREEK
PAGE #3
would be closed and traffic re-routed to an off -site detour route including NC 306 South, SR 1100,
and SR 1005, approximately 12 miles in total length.
The existing bridge would be demolished and removed from the project site utilizing NCDOT
approved Best Management Practices. The Pamlico County Historical Association has requested
that the remnant turntable from a previous bridge be preserved in -place and the NCDOT has
committed to preserve the turntable in -place.
The new bridge as proposed would be 130' in length and 36' in width, which would be 40' longer
and 10' wider than the existing bridge. A 20' long x 50' wide area of roadway fill would be
excavated from beneath each end of the existing bridge. The areas would then be graded down to —
1.3' of elevation. A 2' thick layer of Class II riprap would be placed over the area to a final
elevation of 0.7' to match the surrounding areas. The new bridge would consist of three spans, with
the two outside spans at 35' long each and the center span at 60' long. It would include two bents
located within the creek. The new bridge would have two 12' wide travel lanes, with a 4'9" paved
shoulderibicycle lane and bicycle safe railings on each side.
NCDOT has committed to build the bridge with no deck drains over surface waters. The
stormwater from the bridge would be conveyed via the bridge shoulders to grated drop inlets located
on the east end of the bridge. Fifteen -inch collector pipes would convey the stormwater to riprap
dissipator pads that would be located outside of the Neuse River Riparian Buffer Zones.
The applicant has requested to raise the approach structures to the bridge. The grades would be
raised by up to 1.5' to the east and west of the bridge. As depicted on the permit drawings, to reduce
the amount of fill in Coastal Wetlands, the slopes would be armored with Class II riprap and sloped
at a 1.5:1 ratio instead of the normal 3:1 slope from STA. 20+73 to STA. 22+75 on the north and
south sides of the western causeway. The riprap would extend up to 8' out into the Coastal Wetlands
along these areas. The applicant has proposed mechanized clearing up to 15' beyond the rock
plating to allow room for construction of the plating. The bases of the new bridge are proposed to be
stabilized utilizing Class II riprap. The riprap as proposed would be up to approximately 125' in
length and 28' in width around each base.
The road would then be replaced from STA. 19+25 to STA. 22+86 and from STA. 24+18 to
STA. 28+00 with two 12' wide travel lanes with four -foot paved shoulders. New guardrails would
also be constructed along the approaches to the bridge for 213' from the west end of the bridge and
75' from the east end of the bridge. The paved shoulders would be widened to six feet in the sections
with guardrail. The wider bridge and roadway would necessitate relocating the existing ditches out
further from the roadway on the east end of the project. The ditches would be relocated between
STA. 24+00 to STA. 28+50 and would include rock plating them from STA. 24+00 to STA. 25+00.
The outlet for the ditch in the northeast quadrant would require a 9' x 9' dissipator pad along the
edge of the creek to prevent erosion of the stream bank.
The existing telephone and fiber optic lines currently on the north side of the bridge would be
relocated further from the new bridge to approximately 30' north of the centerline of the new bridge.
This would be accomplished by boring under Beard Creek with a directional drill from high ground
to high ground beginning at STA. 18+75 and ending at STA. 29+15. The existing 6" water line on
the north side of the bridge is also in conflict with the proposed bridge and would be relocated as
well. The communication lines and water line would each be placed a minimum of 15' and 10'
below the creek bottom, respectively. The water line would be relocated to approximately 50' north
of the centerline of the new bridge with 8" HDPE pipe by directional bore from high ground to high

FIELD INVESTIGATION REPORT:
N.C.D.O.T. - BRIDGE NO. 14 OVER BEARD CREEK
PAGE #4
ground for approximately 486'. An additional 133' of 6" PVC water line would be installed to tie
the new section of water line into the existing water system. A water meter and 47 linear feet of
water service line would be required to be relocated in the northeast quadrant of the project.
The existing overhead powerline would be relocated between STA. 21+35 and STA. 29+95. It
would be relocated to approximately 40' north of the centerline of the new bridge. The proposed
powerline would cross over Beard Creek aerially at approximately the same elevation as the existing
line (27' above the creek).
Anticipated Impacts
The proposed bridge would permanently shade 3,060 sq. ft. of Public Trust Waters, which would
be 980 sq. ft. more than currently exists. The bridge would maintain the existing 24' of navigational
horizontal clearance under the bridge, while the navigable vertical clearance under the bridge would
be increased by up to 0.3'.
The proposed riprap embankment/energy dissipator pad associated with the ditch relocations
would permanently fill in 81 sq. ft. of the shallow bottom of Beards Creek. The riprap along the
sides of the causeway would extend into the Coastal Wetlands as much as 8' from the
existing fill limits. The riprap and causeway widening would result in the permanent filling of 1,947
sq. ft. of Coastal Wetlands, as well as mechanized clearing of 4,792 sq. ft. of Coastal Wetlands and
3,485 sq. ft. of hand clearing in Coastal Wetlands.
A 5,371 sq. ft. area within the Neuse River Basin Riparian Buffer Area adjacent to Beard Creek
would be impacted by the construction of the bridge, roadway, and utility work on the project. This
includes 2,203 sq. ft. within Coastal Wetland areas, with the remaining 3,168 sq. ft. on high ground,
of which 1,860 sq. ft. would be in Zone I and 1,308 sq. ft. in Zone II.
The causeway removal under the ends of the bridge would restore approximately 2,000 sq. ft. of
previously filled area to floodplain elevations. The NCDOT has committed to mitigate for the 0.16
acres of permanent Coastal Wetland impacts at a 2:1 ratio by debiting 0.32 acres of successful
brackish marsh restoration from the Lengyel Mitigation Site in Craven County.
The project would result in a total of 47,898 sq. ft. of high ground disturbance, including the
removal of the causeway areas under the existing bridge, grading and paving of the new approaches
to the bridge, and the relocation of the ditches. Although there are no impacts expected from the
project to any historical or archaeological resources considered eligible for listing in the National
Register, the project would preserve in place the relic bridge turntable as requested by the Pamlico
County Historical Association. There are also no adverse impacts expected to any threatened or
endangered species. The applicant has committed to follow an in -water work moratorium for
anadromous fish from February 15 to June 30.
No additional closures of shellfishing waters or impacts to any SAVs are expected in association
with the proposed project. A localized increase in turbidity can be expected during the in -water
demolition and construction phases of the supporting structures for the old and new bridges. The
public is expected to benefit upon completion of the project by the increase in the safety of the new
structure and the addition of wider roadway.
Submitted by: Stephen Lane —Morehead City District — April 3, 2023