20191704 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20200113

❑ North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission ❑
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
January 13, 2020
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Duke Energy — Capps to Hendersonville 44 kV Line Rebuild Project
Wetlands and streams along Mud Creek, Henderson County
Dear Mr. Brown:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application for impacts to wetlands, Johnson Drainage Ditch, and unnamed tributaries to Mud
Creek and Johnson Drainage Ditch associated with the replacement of transmission wiring and
structures along a 4.2-mile maintained right-of-way in Henderson 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).
Wild trout should not be impacted by the project, and a trout moratorium is not needed.
However, Blotched Chub (Erimystax insignis, NC SR) is found in Mud Creek and Johnson
Drainage Ditch.
The project will involve permanent impacts to 0.003 acre of wetland and temporary impacts to
3.77 acre of wetland, as well as temporary impacts to 72 ft of stream, associated with equipment
access and installation of new poles. Temporary impacts to wetlands would be due to the
placement of temporary work matting; after work is complete, the matting will be removed.
Temporary impacts to streams would be due to the installation of temporary bridges.
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to fish and wildlife resources:
1. Work should be accomplished as quickly as possible and vigilance used in sediment and
erosion control during site preparation, construction, and clean up. Disturbed areas near
wetlands and streams should be seeded, mulched and matted as soon as possible, preferably
at the end of each work day.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Duke E Capps to Hendersonville 44 kV Line Page 2 January 13, 2020
Various wetlands & streams, Henderson County
2. Any erosion control matting used near streams and wetlands should be free of plastic or
nylon mesh, as this type of mesh netting frequently entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade,
resulting in a hazard that may last for years.
3. We recommend that where woody vegetation is cleared within wetlands and riparian areas, it
be hand -cleared at a height as high as possible. Shrubs and trees of even 4-8 feet in height
can provide some stream shading, bank stability, and wildlife habitat.
4. A native wetland seed mix should be planted in impacted wetland areas.
Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this project. Please contact me at
[phone] if you have any questions about these comments.
Sincerely,
zo" . J' d-
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
ec: Johanna Velasquez, HDR Inc.
Andrew Moore, NC Division of Water Resources
Byron Hamstead, US Fish and Wildlife Service