20201103 Ver 1_Approval Letter_20201103

ROY COOPER
Governor
MICHAEL S. REGAN
Secretary
S. DANIEL SMITH
Director
NORTH CAROLINA
Environmental Quality
November 3, 2020
DWR# 20-1103
Gaston County
Mr. John Knott III
Equus Capital Partners, Ltd.
3843 West Chester Pike
Newton Square, PA 19073
Subject: APPROVAL of 401 Water Quality Certification with Additional Conditions
Equus Kings Mountain Industrial Project
Dear Mr. Knott:
You have our approval, in accordance with the General Certification and those conditions listed below,
for the purpose proposed in your application dated August 27, 2020, and received by the Division of Water
Resources (the Division) on October 6, 2020. After reviewing your application, we have determined that this
project is covered by Water Quality General Certification Number 4139 which can be viewed on our web site at
https://deq.nc.qov/about/divisions/water-resources/water-resources-permits/wastewater-branch/401-wetlands-
buffer-permits/401-401-isolated-wetlands-waters-program The General Certification allows you to use
Nationwide Permit Number 39 once it is issued to you by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE). Please
note that you should get any other federal, state or local permits before proceeding with your project, including
those required by (but not limited to) Sediment and Erosion Control, Non -Discharge, and Water Supply
Watershed regulations.
The above noted Certification will expire when the associated 404 permit expires unless otherwise
specified in the General Certification. It is advised that all conditions of the Certification are reviewed prior to
initiation of the project. In addition to the requirements of the Certification, you must also comply with the
following conditions:
This approval is only valid for the purpose and design that you described in your application. If you
change your project, you must notify us in writing, and you may be required to send us a new
application for a new Certification. If total wetland fills for this project (now or in the future) exceed one
acre, or of total impacts to streams (now or in the future) exceed 300 linear feet, compensatory
mitigation may be required. If the property is sold, the new owner must be given a copy of the
Certification and approval letter; and is thereby responsible for complying with all conditions. 15A
NCAC 02H .0506 and 15A NCAC 02H .0507
2. The Mooresville Regional Office shall be notified in writing once construction at the approved impact
areas has commenced. 15A NCAC 02H .0502 (e)
D E Q�� North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Mooresville Regional Office 1 610 East Center Avenue, Suite 301 1 Mooresville, North Carolina 28115
N(1HTH f:A�i(1!_INA �
0­O'torFWm'"malQ'A 704,663.1699

3. Approved Impacts:
Type of Impact
Amount Approved
Temporary Impact
Amount Approved
Permanent Impact
Stream
0 linear ft.
0 linear ft.
Wetland
0 acre
0.16 acre
4. Diversion Ditches and other storm water conveyances as related to the sediment and erosion control
measures shall be matted and/or stabilized to reduce sediment loss and turbidity. This includes
interior/exterior slopes of sediment basins. 15A NCAC 02H .0506 (b)(3) and (c)(3)
5. Bare/fill slopes in excess of 10 feet in height and within 30 feet of surface waters/wetlands shall be
matted. 15A NCAC 02H .0506 (b)(3) and (c)(3)
6. Please provide documentation showing that water quality from the development will not be impaired. A
storm water management plan in lieu of such documentation is acceptable if approved by a delegated
or state authority. 15A NCAC 02H .1000
7. Mitigation [15A NCAC 02H .0500(h)] must be provided for the proposed impacts as specified in the table
below. The Division has received notification/acceptance from the Division of Mitigation Services (DMS)
to meet this mitigation requirement. Until the DMS receives and clears your payment, and proof of
payment has been provided to this Office, no impacts specified in this Authorization Certificate shall
occur. For accounting purposes, this Certification authorizes payment to meet the following
compensatory mitigation requirement:
Compensatory Mitigation
River and Sub -basin Number
Required
Wetland
0.16 (acre)
Catawba (03050101)
1:1 ratio
8. All fill slopes located in jurisdictional wetlands shall be placed at slopes no flatter than 3:1, unless
otherwise authorized by this Certification. 15A NCAC 02H.0506(b)(2)
9. The permittee shall report to the Mooresville Regional Office any noncompliance with this certification,
any violation of stream or wetland standards [including but not limited to sediment impacts, and any
violation of state regulated riparian buffer rules. Information shall be provided orally within 24 hours (or
the next business day if a weekend or holiday) from the time the applicant became aware of the
circumstances. A written submission shall also be provided within 5 business days of the time the
applicant becomes aware of the circumstances. The written submission shall contain a description of
the noncompliance, and its causes; the period of noncompliance, including exact dates and times, if the
noncompliance has not been corrected, the anticipated time compliance is expected to continue; and
steps taken or planned to reduce, eliminate, and prevent reoccurrence of the noncompliance. The
Division may waive the written submission requirement on a case -by -case basis. 15A NCAC 02B .0200
This Certification can be contested as provided in Articles 3 and 4 of the General Statute 150B by filing
a written petition for an administrative hearing to the Office of the Administrative Hearings (hereby
known as OAH). A petition form may be obtained from the OAH at http://www.ncoah.com/or by calling
the OAH Clerk's Office at [phone].

Within sixty (60) calendar days of receipt of this notice, a petition must be filed with the OAH. A petition
is considered filed when the original and one (1) copy along with any applicable OAH filing fee is received in
the OAH during normal office hours (Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, excluding state holidays).
The petitions may be faxed to the OAH at [phone], provided the original and one (1) copy of the
petition along with any applicable OAH filing fee is received by the OAH within five (5) business days following
the faxed transmission. Mailing address for the OAH:
If sending via US Postal Service:
Office of Administrative Hearings
6714 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-6714
If sending via delivery service (UPS, FedEx, etc.)
Office of Administrative Hearings
1711 New Hope Church Rd.
Raleigh, NC 27609-6285
One (1) copy of the petition must also be served on DEQ as follows:
Mr. Bill Lane, General Counsel
Department of Environmental Quality
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
This letter completes the review by the Division under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. If you have
any questions, please telephone Mr. Alan Johnson in the Mooresville Regional Office at 704-663-1699.
Sincerely,
EA
DocuSigned by:
#-.� H P44-ft
F161F969AMUAI.. for
Corey Basinger, Regional Supervisor
Water Quality Regional Operations Section
Mooresville Regional Office, DEQ
Attachments
cc: Krysta Stygar, Army Corps of Engineers, Charlotte, email
Brandon Fulton, ECS Limited, email
Kelly Williams, DMS, email
DWR 401 & Buffer Permitting Branch file
MRO, Land Quality

20-1103
NORTH CAROLINA-DIVISON OF WATER RESOURCES
401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION
SUMMARY OF PERMITTED IMPACTS AND MITIGATION REQUIREMENTS
In accordance with 15A NCAC 02H .0500, Equus Capital Partners, Ltd., Inc. has permission as outlined
below to impact 0.16 acre of wetland in order to proceed with the facility in Gaston County, North Carolina. All
activities associated with these authorized impacts must be conducted with the conditions listed in the attached
certification. THIS CERTIFICATION IS NOT VALID WITHOUT THE ATTACHMENTS.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION REQUIREMENT: Division of Mitigation Services (DMS)
LOCATION:
COUNTY:
BASIN/SUBBASIN
Impacts:
0.16-acre wetland
Woodlake Parkway
Gaston
Catawba (03050101)
As required by 15A NCAC 02H .0506, and the conditions of this certification, you are required to compensate
for the above impacts through the restoration, creation, enhancement or preservation of wetlands as outlined
below prior to conducting any activities that impact or degrade the waters of the state.
Note: Linear foot requirements proposed to be mitigated through the DMS must be rounded to the nearest foot
and acreage requirements must be rounded to one -quarter acre increments according
to 15A NCAC 02R .0503(b).
Mitigation:
0.16-acre wetland (1:1)
Mitigation:
0.16 acre of wetland mitigation by the DMS is required for the 401 Water Quality Certification. In
correspondence dated August 26, 2020, the DMS indicated that up to 0.16 acre of riparian buffer mitigation
would be conducted by DMS if available within the cataloging unit. More may be required if mitigation is
required outside the unit.
One of the options you have available to satisfy the compensatory mitigation requirements is through the
payment of a fee to the DMS per 15A NCAC 02R .0503. If you choose this option, please sign this form and
mail it to the Ecosystem Enhancement Fund at the address listed below. An invoice for the appropriate
amount of payment will be sent to you upon receipt of this form. PLEASE NOTE, THE ABOVE IMPACTS ARE
NOT AUTHORIZED UNTIL YOU RECEIVE NOTIFICATION THAT YOUR PAYMENT HAS BEEN
PROCESSED BY THE DMS.
Signature
Date
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
DIVISION OF MITIGATION SERVICES
1652 Mail Service Center
RALEIGH, N.C. 27669-1652

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION
NCDWR Project No.:
Applicant:
Project Name:
Date of Issuance of 401 Water Quality Certification:
County:
Certificate of Completion
Upon completion of all work approved within the 401 Water Quality Certification or applicable Buffer Rules, and any
subsequent modifications, the applicant is required to return this certificate to the 401 Wetland & Buffer Permitting
Unit, North Carolina Division of Water Resources, 1617 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC, 27699-1617. This form may be
returned to NCDWR by the applicant, the applicant's authorized agent, or the project engineer. It is not necessary to
send certificates from all of these.
Applicant's Certification
I, , hereby state that, to the best of my abilities, due care and diligence was
used in the observation of the construction such that the construction was observed to be built within substantial
compliance and intent of the 401 Water Quality Certification and Buffer Rules, the approved plans and specifications,
and other supporting materials.
Signature:
Agent's Certification
Date:
I, , hereby state that, to the best of my abilities, due care and diligence was
used in the observation of the construction such that the construction was observed to be built within substantial
compliance and intent of the 401 Water Quality Certification and Buffer Rules, the approved plans and specifications,
and other supporting materials.
Signature:
Engineer's Certification
Partial Final
Date:
I, , as a duly registered Professional Engineer in the State of North
Carolina, having been authorized to observe (periodically, weekly, full time) the construction of the project for the
Permittee hereby state that, to the best of my abilities, due care and diligence was used in the observation of the
construction such that the construction was observed to be built within substantial compliance and intent of the 401
Water Quality Certification and Buffer Rules, the approved plans and specifications, and other supporting materials.
Signature Registration No. Date