20201609 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20201215

® North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
Cameron Ingram, Executive Director
December 15, 2020
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: The Cottages at Hayes Mill
UT to McDowell Creek and wetland, Henderson County
Dear Mr. Brown:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to permanently impact 0.032 acre of wetland for a commercial building and
temporarily impact 40 ft of wetland and permanently impact 50 ft of an unnamed tributary (UT)
to McDowell Creek to enlarge a culvert 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 reproduction should not be impacted by project activities and a trout moratorium is
not needed.
Project impacts are associated with a residential development. An existing culvert is proposed to
be replaced and lengthened. Wetland impacts are proposed for the construction of a commercial
building in the 100-year floodplain. The NCWRC does not support commercial or residential
development within the 100-year floodplain. The filling of floodplains increases the potential for
flooding and degrades in -stream habitats for fish and other aquatic organisms.
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to fish and wildlife:
In -channel 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 should be seeded, mulched and/or matted as soon as possible, preferably at the end of
each workday.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Cottages at Hayes Mill Page 2 December 15, 2020
UT McDowell Cr & wetland, Henderson Co
2. Any erosion control matting used should be free of plastic or nylon mesh, as this type of
mesh frequently entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade, resulting in a hazard that may last
for years.
3. Culvert material is not specified in the application. We recommend against using high
density polyethylene or reinforced concrete pipe material, as these smooth materials are less
likely to hold stream substrate and provide for movement of aquatic organisms like fish and
salamanders.
4. As noted above, NCWRC does not support construction or filling in the 100-year floodplain,
and we recommend siting the commercial building out of this area. In addition, it appears
that the commercial building and parking footprint can be adjusted to avoid wetland impacts.
We recommend that the applicant reevaluate design options to avoid wetland and floodplain
impacts all together.
Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this project. Please contact meat
[phone] if you have any questions about these comments.
Sincerely,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
ec: Jennifer Robertson, Atlas Environmental
Kaylie Yankura, NC Division of Water Resources