20171041 Ver 1_USACE Approval Letter_20200303

October 30, 2018

Regulatory Division

Re: NCIRT Review and USACE Approval of the Little Sebastian Draft Mitigation Plan; SAW-
2017-01507; DMS Project #100027

Mr. Tim Baumgartner
North Carolina Division of Mitigation Services
1652 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1652

Dear Mr. Baumgartner:

The purpose of this letter is to provide the North Carolina Division of Mitigation Services
(NCDMS) with all comments generated by the North Carolina Interagency Review Team (NCIRT)
during the 30-day review for the Little Sebastian Draft Mitigation Plan, which closed on July 27,
2018. Please note the comment period was extended to allow the provider to respond to project
concerns. These comments are attached for your review.

Based on our review of these comments and the provider’s response to comments, we have
determined that no major concerns have been identified with the Draft Mitigation Plan, which is
considered approved with this correspondence. However, the provider’s proposed changes to the
Draft Mitigation Plan, in response to issues identified in the memo, must be addressed in the Final
Mitigation Plan.

The Final Mitigation Plan is to be submitted with the Preconstruction Notification (PCN)
Application for Nationwide permit approval of the project along with a copy of this letter. All
changes made to the Final Mitigation Plan should be summarized in an errata sheet included at the
beginning of the document. If it is determined that the project does not require a Department of
the Army permit, you must still provide a copy of the Final Mitigation Plan, along with a copy of
this letter, to the appropriate USACE field office at least 30 days in advance of beginning
construction on the project site. Please note that this approval does not preclude the inclusion of
permit conditions in the permit authorization for the project, particularly if issues referenced above
are not satisfactorily addressed. Additionally, this letter provides initial approval for the Mitigation
Plan, but this does not guarantee that the project will generate the requested amount of mitigation
credit. As you are aware, unforeseen issues may arise during construction or monitoring of the
project that may require maintenance or reconstruction that may lead to reduced credit.

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS
69 DARLINGTON AVENUE
WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA 28403-1343

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter, and if you have any questions regarding
this letter, the mitigation plan review process, or the requirements of the Mitigation Rule, please
contact Andrea Hughes at [phone] extension 59.

Sincerely,

for Henry M. Wicker
Deputy Chief, Wilmington District

Enclosures

Electronic Copies Furnished:
NCIRT Distribution List
Paul Wiesner, NCDMS