20200452 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20200423

❑ North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission ❑
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
April 23, 2020
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Bates Branch — Hoglot Branch Stream Restoration Project
Bates Branch, Hoglot Branch, and UT, Macon County
Dear Mr. Brown,
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to restore 2,900 ft of Bates Branch, an unnamed tributary (UT) to Bates Branch, and
Hoglot Branch in Macon 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 reproduction should not be impacted by project activities, and a trout moratorium is
not needed for this project. However, Bates Branch is part of the Little Tennessee (Upper)
Aquatic Habitat, a natural area rated Very High by the NC Natural Heritage Program due to the
richness of rare species it supports. In the project vicinity, Eastern Hellbender [Cryptobranchus
alleganiensis, US Federal Species of Concern (FSC), NC Special Concern (SC)], Smoky Dace
(Clinostomus sp., NC SC), Striped Shiner (Luxilus chrysocephalus, NC SC), and Little
Tennessee Crayfish (Cambarus georgiae, US FSC, NC SC) are found. Effective erosion and
sediment control are needed to minimize impacts to these species.
The project involves in -stream structures, such as log vanes, rock vanes and j-hooks, rock steps,
and constructed riffles; bank work via grading, geolifts, brush toes, and boulder toes; and
planting of riparian buffers 20-45 ft in width. Work will be done in the dry, with small areas
pumped around as in -stream work is performed. As hellbenders have been found downstream in
Bates Branch, we ask that the contractor observe the channel and capture any hellbenders
uncovered during work, placing them in a bucket with water and relocating them in the Little
Tennessee River at least 1 km away from the site. Of particular importance is the following -
before in -stream work begins in a reach, the contractor should lift any larger flat rocks at least 1
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Bates Br — Hoglot Br Restoration Page 2 April 23, 2020
Bates Br, Macon County
ft in diameter and capture any hellbenders found, and during a pump -around, watch the stream
reach as it dries up, capturing any hellbenders seen.
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to fish and wildlife resources:
1. Be vigilant with sediment and erosion control during site staging, construction, and cleanup.
The project description notes that disturbed areas will be stabilized each day; this is
important at this site.
2. Work should be done at low flows.
3. Any erosion control matting used should be free of nylon or plastic mesh, as this type of
mesh netting frequently entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade, resulting in a hazard that
may last for years.
4. The contractor should observe the work areas for hellbenders as described in these comments
and relocate any animals found. Please notify Lori Williams (lori.williams(kncwildlife.org )
if hellbenders are found.
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,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
ec: Holland Youngman, Michael Baker International
Andrew Moore, NC Division of Water Resources
Lori Williams, NCWRC