20090969 Ver 4_WRC Comments_20091119

09-0969 Vy
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0 North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 0
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
MEMORANDUM
TO: Monte Matthews, Raleigh Regulatory Field Office
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
FROM: Shari L. Bryant, Piedmont Region Coordinator die
Habitat Conservation Program
DATE: 19 November 2009
SUBJECT: Public Notice for Cedar Fork Creek Mitigation Site, City of Raleigh Umbrella Mitigation
Bank, Wake County, North Carolina. Corps Action ID: SAW-2009-01917
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) have reviewed the
subject public notice and we are familiar with the habitat values of the area. Our comments are provided in
accordance with provisions of the Clean Water Act of 1`977 (as amended), Fish and Wildlife Coordination
Act (48 Stat. 401, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 661-667d), and North Carolina General Statutes (G.S. 113-131 et
seq.).
The City of Raleigh proposes to include the Cedar Fork Creek Mitigation Site in its umbrella
mitigation bank. According to the Mitigation Plan, the site includes 24 parcels and is approximately 205
acres. There are 110 acres of wetlands and 9,550 linear feet of Cedar Fork Creek and its tributaries located
on the site. The applicant proposes preservation of 9,100 linear feet of stream channel and 110 acres of
wetlands, and restoration of 450 linear feet of stream channel. Also, a 100-foot riparian buffer adjacent to
Cedar Fork Creek and a 50-foot riparian buffer adjacent to tributaries, wetlands, and ponds will be
established. A permanent conservation easement, to be conveyed to an appropriate land trust organization,
will include all mitigation activities. The proposed mitigation ratio is 5:1 for both stream and wetland
preservation, and 1:1 for stream restoration. Up to 2,270 stream credits and 22 wetland credits will be
available. The goal is to remove a threat and prevent decline of aquatic resources on a watershed scale by
protecting water quality, maintaining a forested buffer, promoting flood attenuation, and improving aquatic
and terrestrial wildlife habitat.
Cedar Fork Creek and eight unnamed tributaries to Cedar Fork Creek flow through the mitigation
site. Cedar Fork Creek is a tributary to Little River in the Neusc River basin. There are records for the
federal and state endangered dwarf wedgemussel (Xasmidonta heterodon), the federal species of concern
and state endangered Atlantic pigtoe (Fusconaia mdsoni) and green floater (Lasmigona subvirdis), the state
threatened least brook lamprey (Lampetra aepyptera), and the state special concern Neuse River waterdog
(Necturus lewisi) in Little River. The mitigation site includes hardwood forest, agriculture, pasture, and
residential. Forested wetlands, emergent wetlands, And ;open water are found in the floodplain. The site is
located immediately adjacent to and upstream of the proposed reservoir.
Mailing Address: Division of Inland Fisheries • 1721 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]
Page 2
19 November 2009
Cedar Fork Creek Mitigation Site
Corps Action ID: SAW-2009-01917
Although we have no objections to the inclusion of this site into the umbrella mitigation bank, we
offer the following comments.
The Mitigation Plan (p.2) states "...due to the presence of rare species in the Little River, this
watershed should be targeted for land acquisition to protect the riparian area beyond the 50-foot
required buffer." We agree that protecting additional riparian buffer areas will provide benefits
to aquatic and terrestrial wildlife resources. However, if the reservoir is constructed, protection
of riparian areas upstream of the proposed reservoir will have limited, if any, benefits to rare
species in Little River. We continue to encourage the City of Raleigh to look for and include
sites in the umbrella mitigation bank downstream of the proposed reservoir to provide
additional protection for rare and sensitive species.
2. At this time, we feel the Cedar Fork Creek Mitigation Site would be suitable mitigation for the
proposed Little River Reservoir project. However, as additional sites are evaluated and
anticipated to be used as mitigation for the proposed Little River Reservoir project, attention
needs to be paid to ensuring the mitigation is comparable to the streams and wetlands that will
be impacted by construction of the reservoir (e.g., first order stream impacts mitigated with first
order stream restoration, enhancement and/or preservation).
Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this mitigation site. If we can be of further
assistance, please contact our office at [phone].
cc: John Ellis, USFWS
Becky Fox, USEPA
Eric Kulz, DWQ
Vann Stancil, WRC