20070291 Ver 4_Public Notice_20081008

US Army Corps PUBLIC NOTICE
Of Engineers
Wilmington District
Issue Date: October 7, 2008
Comment Deadline: November 7, 2008
Corps Action ID: SAW-2006-41503
The Wilmington District, Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received an application from
the Lower Cape Fear Water and Sewer Authority (LCFWSA) seeking Department of the
Army authorization to temporarily discharge fill material into 0.222 acres of the Cape
Fear River and 0.721 acres of adjacent wetlands for the installation of approximately
1100 feet of 60" intake pipe at the Kings Bluff Raw Water Pump Station located near
East Arcadia, Bladen County, North Carolina.
Specific plans and location information are described below and shown on the attached
plans. This Public Notice and all attached plans are also available on the Wilmington
District Web Site at www.saw.usace.armV.mil/wetlands
Applicant: Mr. Don Betz
Lower Cape Fear River Water and Sewer Authority
1107 New Pointe Boulevard, Suite 17
Leland, North Carolina 28451 p ?@? flw[ (I
AGENT (if applicable): Ms. Kim Williams 0 C T 8 2008 u
Land Management Group
Post Office Box 2522 DEW, WATER QUALITY
WETLANDS AND STORMWATER gRANCii
Wilmington, North Carolina 28402
Authority
The Corps will evaluate this application and a decide whether to issue, conditionally
issue, or deny the proposed work pursuant to applicable procedures of Section 404 of the
Clean Water Act (CWA) and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act.
Location
The project area is adjacent to the Cape Fear River and is located at the existing Kings
Bluff Pump Station site at the end of Lock Number 1 Road, upstream of Lock and Dam
Number 1, east of N.C. Highway 87, near East Arcadia, Bladen County, North Carolina.
(latitude 34.44998 and longitude -77.61025).
The wetlands on the property are adjacent to the Cape Fear River, which is a navigable
water of the U.S pursuant to the policies and criteria set forth in 33 CFR part 329.
Existing Site Conditions
The project area is approximately 6.8 acres in size and is adjacent to the Cape Fear River.
This site currently houses the existing Kings Bluff Pump Station. A nationwide permit
33/18 was utilized to permanently impact 0.07 acres of 404 wetlands for grading
associated with the expansion of a building (Action ID# 2006-41503).
The property contains a total of 5.4 acres of wetlands. These wetlands are mostly
forested and seasonally to semi-permanently inundated. These wetlands can be described
as a riverine swamp forest consisting mainly of bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) and
swamp black gum (Nyssa biflora). According to the Pender County Soil Survey, the soils
in the wetland areas are mapped as Congaree silt loam, Chastain and Chewacla soils.
The uplands on the site are currently maintained and mowed. According to the Pender
County Soil Survey, the upland areas are mapped as Dystrochrepts and Lynchburg fine
sandy loam. The entire site is located within the 100 year floodplain.
The surrounding land use currently consists of the existing Kings Bluff Pump Station and
the intake pipe right-of-way to the east, the Cape Fear River to the north, and agricultural
and forested land to the south and west of the property. The City of Wilmington's public
water supply intake is located approximately 400 feet downstream of proposed project.
Applicant's Stated Purpose
The additional pipe is part of a capacity upgrade at King's Bluff Pumping Station to
account for increased water demands resulting from recent population growth in coastal
North Carolina.
Project Description
The LCFSWA proposes to install a new 60 inch raw water intake pipe in the Cape Fear
River just upstream of Lock and Dam Number 1. The current facility consists of a 45
million gallon per day (MGD) pump station and a 48 inch intake pipe. The new 60 inch
intake pipe would be installed parallel with the existing intake pipe and supply an
additional 85 MGD for a combined capacity of 130 MGD. This raw water would be
provided to the City of Wilmington's Sweeney Water Treatment Plant, Brunswick
County's Northwest Water Treatment Plant, Invista, Praxair and the proposed Pender
County Water Treatment Plant. Invista and Praxair are private industries located on U.S.
Highway 421 in New Hanover County. The demands for water supply are expected to
reach approximately 96 MGD by year 2030.
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This project would involve the temporary discharge of fill material into 0.222 acres of the
Cape Fear River and 0.721 acres of adjacent wetlands for the installation of
approximately 1,100 feet of 60 inch pipe. The installation of the pipe would involve
excavation of the bottom of the Cape Fear River and the adjacent wetlands. The
construction corridor of the proposed work would be 40 feet wide and the permanently
maintained corridor of utility line would be 10 feet wide. The 0.18 acres of wetlands
within the maintained corridor would be permanently converted to shrub-herbaceous
wetlands. All disturbed areas would be returned to natural grade and the areas outside of
the permanent maintenance corridor would be allowed to re-vegetate naturally.
The intake pipe would be installed approximately 100 feet north of and parallel to the
existing 48 inch intake pipe. Approximately 250 feet of the pipe would be installed in the
Cape Fear River and buried approximately 3 feet below the bottom of the river. Water
would enter the intake pipe through 3 wedge-wire intake screens and conveyed to the
pump station. The intake screens would be installed 2.5 feet below the low water level of
the Cape Fear River.
To mitigate for the 10 feet wide maintenance corridor (0.18 acres of wetlands) the
applicant proposes to utilize the North Carolina Ecosystem Enhancement Program for the
restoration of 0.25 acres of riparian wetlands.
Other Required Authorizations
This notice and all applicable application materials are being forwarded to the appropriate
State agencies for review. The Corps will generally not make a final permit decision
until the North Carolina Division of Water Quality (NCDWQ) issues, denies, or waives
State certification required by Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (PL 92-500). The
receipt of the application and this public notice combined with appropriate application fee
at the North Carolina Division of Water Quality central office in Raleigh will constitute
initial receipt of an application for a 401 Water Quality Certification. A waiver will be
deemed to occur if the NCDWQ fails to act on this request for certification within sixty
days of the date of the receipt of this notice in the NCDWQ Central Office. Additional
information regarding the Clean Water Act certification may be reviewed at the NCDWQ
Central Office, 401 Oversight and Express Permits Unit, 2321 Crabtree Boulevard,
Raleigh, North Carolina 27604-2260. All persons desiring to make comments regarding
the application for certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act should do so in
writing delivered to the North Carolina Division of Water Quality (NCDWQ), 1650 Mail
Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650 Attention: Ms Cyndi Karoly by
October 31, 2008.
Essential Fish Habitat
This notice initiates the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) consultation requirements of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The Corps' initial
determination is that the proposed project will not adversely impact EFH or associated
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fisheries managed by the South Atlantic or Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Councils
or the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Cultural Resources
The Corps has consulted the latest published version of the National Register of Historic
Places and is not aware that any registered properties, or properties listed as being
eligible for inclusion therein are located within the project area or will be affected by the
proposed work. Presently, unknown archeological, scientific, prehistoric, or historical
data may be located within the project area and/or could be affected by the proposed
work.
Endangered Species
The Corps has reviewed the project area, examined all information provided by the
applicant and consulted the latest North Carolina Natural Heritage Database. Based on
available information, the Corps is not aware of the presence of species listed as
threatened or endangered or their critical habitat formally designated pursuant to the
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) within the project area. A final determination on
the effects of the proposed project will be made upon additional review of the project and
completion of any necessary biological assessment and/or consultation with the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service and/or National Marine Fisheries Service.
Evaluation
The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable
impacts, including cumulative impacts, of the proposed activity on the public interest.
That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of
important resources. The benefit which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the
proposal must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors
which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including the cumulative effects
thereof, among those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental
concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, flood plain
values (in accordance with Executive Order 11988), land use, navigation, shoreline
erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy
needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property
ownership, and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. For activities involving
the discharge of dredged or fill materials in waters of the United States, the evaluation of
the impact of the activity on the public interest will include application of the
Environmental Protection Agency's 404(b)(1) guidelines.
Commenting Information
The Corps of Engineers is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State and local
agencies and officials, including any consolidate State Viewpoint or written position of
the Governor; Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate
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the impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the
Corps of Engineers to determine whether to issue, modify, condition or deny a permit for
this proposal. To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on
endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects and
the other public interest factors listed above. Comments are used in the preparation of an
Environmental Assessment (EA) and/or an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Comments are also used to
determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the
proposed activity.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice,
that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings
shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a
public hearing shall be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues
raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.
Written comments pertinent to the proposed work, as outlined above, will be received
by the Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, until 5pm, October 7, 2008. Comments
should be submitted to Ronnie Smith at P.O. Box 1890, Wilmington, NC 28403 or
[e-mail].
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