HomeMy WebLinkAbout19981070 Ver 2_Other Agency Comments_20080904North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
September 4, 2008
Ms. Lori Beckwith
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
Ms. Cyndi Karoly
NCDENR, Division of Water Quality, 401 Unit
1628 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1628
SUBJECT: Nationwide Permit for Haywood County, Mr. Mark Shumpert
White Oak Landfill Expansion
UT Pigeon River and wetland fills
DWQ No. 98-1070v2
Dear Ms. Beckwith and Ms. Karoly:
Mr. Mark Shumpert with Haywood County requested a 404 Permit from the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (ACOE) and a 401 Certification from the Division of Water Quality. The project involves
filling 185 feet of a tributary to the Pigeon River and a 0.45 acre headwater, herbaceous wetland for a
landfill expansion. I attended the pre-application meeting for this project in April 2008. Comments from
the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (Commission) are provided under provisions of the
Clean Water Act of 1977 (33 U.S.C. 466 et. seq.) and the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (48 Stat.
401, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 661-667d).
The project should not harm trout.
The Commission agrees that the wetland is in poor condition. However, it is important to note that its
condition is largely a result of heavy sediment input (Figure 1) it has received from fill slope erosion and
the overfilled silt basin immediately upstream (Figure 2). The stream downstream of the wetland is in
poor condition because of sedimentation as well (Figure 3). Therefore, the Commission recommends that
Mailing Address: Division of Inland Fisheries • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: (919) 707-0220 • Fax: (919) 707-0028
Haywood County Page 2 September 4, 2008
there be compensatory mitigation for the wetland impact. Moreover, during and after construction,
effective erosion controls should be used and maintained to reduce the contribution the landfill has to
sedimentation in the Pigeon River.
Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this project. Pending availability of field staff,
the Commission may inspect the work site during or after construction. If there are any questions
regarding these comments, please contact me at (828) 452-2546 extension 24.
Sincerely,
;1141- .
Dave McHenry
Mountain Region Coordinator
Habitat Conservation Program
cc: Clearwater Environmental Consultants
Figure 1. Sediment in head of wetland.
Haywood County Page 3 September 4, 2008
Figure 3. Sediment in UT Pigeon River below wetland.
Figure 2. Fill slope erosion and sediment basin (foreground) at White Oak Landfill.