HomeMy WebLinkAbout20040895 Ver 1_Other Agency Comments_20110706
IN REPLY REFER TO
Regulatory Division
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS
Washington Regulatory Field Office
Post Office Box 1000
Washington, North Carolina 27889-1000
June 30, 2011
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Action ID SAW-2003-10795 / Nahunta Swamp Wetland and Stream Mitigation Site
Mr. Norton Webster
Envirormental Banc and Exchange, LLC
909 Capability Drive, Suite 3100
Raleigh, North Carolina 27606
Dear Mr. Webster:
. This correspondence is in reference to the Neu-Con Umbrella Wetland Mitigation and Stream
Restoration Bank (Bank) and specifically the associated Nahunta Swamp Wetland and Stream
Mitigation Site (Nahunta) that Environmental Banc & Exchange (EBB, LLC, is developing off
of Big Daddy's Road, adjacent to Nahunta Swamp, east of Pikeville, in Wayne County, North
Carolina. The purpose of this correspondence is to address outstanding issues associated with
the close out of the Nahunta project. This correspondence also confirms our telephone
conversation on June 29, 2011. Also in attendance were Mr. William Wescott of my staff, and
Mr. Daniel Ingram of WK Dickson.
Pursuant to the Mitigation Banking Instrument (MBI) governing the Bank and the Nahunta
project, at the end of the five year monitoring period, seventy-five percent (75%) of the Bank's
total restoration credits would be available for sale upon the documentation of acceptable
survival and growth of planted vegetation and attainment of acceptable wetland/stream
hydrology. The final twenty-five percent (25%) of the Bank's restoration credits would be
available for sale only upon a determination that the site meets the overall objectives and success
criteria as set forth in the site specific mitigation plan for Nahunta.
Pursuant to your written request of May 31, 2007, the North Carolina Interagency Review
Team (NCIRT) is considering the release of the following percentage of credits from the
Nahunta project: a) 75% of the projected wetland restoration credits, b) 75% of the projected
stream restoration credits, and c) 100% of the confirmed wetland preservation credits. This will
provide the Bank with salable credits while the NCIRT works with you to determine the final
credit structure of the Nahunta project. Official correspondence releasing these credits will be
provided to you upon your submission and NCIRT review of a) The Year 5 monitoring report
for the Nahunta project, and b.) Accurate acreage figures and appropriate wetland determination
data forms for the Nahunta preservation area.
This correspondence also confirms my May 25, 2011, onsite meeting with you, Mr. Ingram,
and Mr. Ely Perry of EBX to evaluate hydrology issues associated with the Tapp and Gonder
tracts of the Nahunta project. On June 1, 2009, the Corps received from you the document
entitled, Nahunta Mitigation Project, Wayne County, North Carolina, Hydrology Assessment
Report, May 2009, intended to justify the establishment of a boundary between successful and
unsuccessful hydrology monitoring wells at Tapp and Gonder. At our May 25 meeting, you
provided me with another document entitled Nahunta Mitigation Project, Wayne County, North
Carolina, Hydrology Assessment Report, May 2010, (Updated May 2011), that included
additional monitoring well data from the years 2007, 2010 and the first part of 2011.
As discussed, you must submit the following information before the NCIRT can move
for-wardwith close out of the Nahunta project:
1. Submit the appropriate wetland determination data forms and accurate acreage figures for
the Nahunta Preservation area.
2. Submit the Year 5 monitoring report (two hard copies and one electronic copy). I will
immediately disseminate the report to the NCIRT for review and comment.
3. Via email dated May 25, 2011, you stated that you would provide the following
information to me: a) "Credit release letter for 75% send to David Lekson and copy William
Wescott (EBX) "; b) "State IRT Agenda request for August 9th meeting (EBB'; c) "All raw data
files and field notes related to the Nahunta Hydrology Boundary - Tech Memo-05-17-2011 "
(EBX/WK Dickson); and d) "Dates, attendee list, and any notes relating to all meetings and/or
field visits by IRT members (EBA) ". To date, I have only received items a. and b. As discussed,
please submit the remaining information as promised.
4. First and foremost, the success of any mitigation project is based in part on consideration
of monitoring well data analyzed in the context of the prescribed hydrology success criteria
(12.5% in this case). Toward that end, you collected and have submitted four years of
monitoring data and are to submit the Year 5 report as requested above. Review of the 2010
Hydrology Assessment Report revealed that in an attempt to fine-tune the wetland restoration
boundary between successful and unsuccessful monitoring wells on Tapp and Gonder, you
installed seven (7) additional groundwater monitoring wells (three at Tapp and four at Gonder,
respectively). This is problematic in that you are relying on only one or two years of well data to
justify such an important decision. Adding to NCIRT concerns is that one of the wells
malfunctioned providing no data to assist with this critical analysis and the success boundary was
adjusted even though some of the additional well data was inconclusive and/or clearly did not
meet the success criteria. Furthermore, you did not coordinate the placement of these wells with
the NCIRT and these additional wells were not installed pursuant to approved standards in effect
since 2005 (ERDC Technical Note 05-02, Technical Standard for Water-Table Monitoring of
Potential Wetland Sites) rendering data collected from these wells suspect at best.
As discussed, if you wish to utilize these seven additional wells to assist with demarcating the
successfiFunsuccessful boundary, you must ensure that they remain functional and continue
collecting data from all of the wells across the Tapp and Gonder tracts, submitting yearly reports
to the NCIRT until such time that enough reliable information collected during periods of normal
precipitation has been presented such that a final decision can be rendered. All analyses
associated with any continued well monitoring on Tapp and Gonder will be based on the 12.5%
hydrology success criteria.
5. Submit the soil profile information collected at the seven new monitoring well locations on
the Tapp and Gonder tracts. Analysis of this information will reveal whether or not the wells
should be reinstalled pursuant to ERDC Technical Note 05-02. Should you decide to reinstall
these wells (or add any more) you must coordinate with the NCIRT to ensure that they are
appropriately placed.
6. Submit the hydrographs and raw gauge data collected during the year 2010 for all
monitoring wells presented in Table 1 of the 2010 Hydrology Assessment Report.
7. Submit the most up to date hydrographs and raw gauge data collected during the year 2011
for all monitoring wells presented in Table 1 of the 2010 Hydrology Assessment Report.
8. As discussed, the Kriging methodology has been determined by the NCIRT to be an
acceptable tool to assist with evaluating the boundary between successful and unsuccessful
hydrology monitoring wells. However, you have provided no specific data supporting your
calculations used to demarcate the proposed boundary on the Tapp and Gonder tracts.
Additionally, the assessments and maps you presented in both the 2009 and 2010 Hydrology
Assessment Reports are based primarily on 7% hydrology.
As discussed, you must re-calculate the boundary based solely on the 12.5% hydrology
success criteria as stipulated in the final mitigation plan. You must undertake and submit two (2)
separate Kriging calculations: a) the first based on the data collected from the originally installed
monitoring wells (before the seven additional wells were installed), and b) the second based on
the data collected from the originally installed monitoring wells plus the new wells. You must
also submit a narrative description of the type of Kriging methodology used, including the
specific formula(s), all input data, and any other pertinent information utilized to re-draw the
successf Wunsuccessful boundary line. You must then prepare and submit a draft map of the
Tapp and Gonder tracts depicting the successful/unsuccessful boundaries based on this 12.5%
hydrology analysis. The NCIRT will review this information and notify you as to its
acceptability in assisting with the evaluation of these boundaries on Tapp and Gonder, or if any
additional information or analysis is needed.
9. Once the above information has been reviewed and the final successful/unsuccessful
boundary approved by the NCIRT, you will then take that information and generate final acreage
figures by mitigation type (i.e., restoration, enhancement, preservation) for all Nahunta
properties protected by conservation easement. The NCIRT will review this information and
provide you with official correspondence documenting the final credit base for the Nahunta
project.
As we discussed in detail, it is very important to clarify that even though the North Carolina
Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and the North Carolina Ecosystem Enhancement
Program (NCEEP) are associated with this project, the Nahunta Swamp Wetland and Stream
Mitigation Site is part of the official Neu-Con Umbrella Wetland Mitigation and Stream
Restoration Bank and as such, Nahunta is totally and completely governed by the existing
mitigation banking instrument. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District is the
NCIRT chair and lead signatory agency on the MBI and is responsible for tracking all credits
debited from the Bank. Accordingly, please reference the subject MBI, in toto, and specifically
Section IV,, Operation of the Bank G. Crediting/Debiting and Accounting Procedures, to ensure
that you provide all required information to the Corps in concert with the terms and conditions of
the MBI. All debits from the Nahunta Swamp Wetland and Stream Mitigation Site and the Neu-
Con Umbrella Wetland Mitigation and Stream Restoration Bank as a whole, must be
appropriately reported pursuant to the MBI.
Thank you for your time and cooperation. Once you have submitted the information
requested above, the Corps with lead the NCIRT through final evaluation of the Nahunta project.
The Wilmington District is committed to providing the highest level of support to the public. To
help us ensure we continue to do so, please complete the Customer Satisfaction Survey located at
our website at http://re ug lato_ry.usacesurvey.com/. If you have any questions, please contact me
at the Washington Regulatory Field Office, telephone (910) 251-4595.
Sincerely,
V
David M. Lekson, P.W.S.
Chief, Washington Regulatory Field Office
Copies Furnished:
Ms. Becky Fox
Wetlands Regulatory Section - Region IV
United States Environmental Protection Agency
1307 Firefly Road
Whittier, North Carolina 28789
4
Mr. Pete Benjamin
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Fish and Wildlife Enhancement
Post Office Box 33726
Raleigh North Carolina 27636-3726
Mr. Ron Sechler
National Marine Fisheries Service
Pivers Island
Beaufort, North Carolina 28516
Mr. John Dorney
Division of Water Quality
North Carolina Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
1650 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650
Ms. Tammy Hill
Division of Water Quality
North Carolina Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
1650 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650
Mr. David Cox
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
1142 Interstate 85 Service Road
Creedmoor, North Carolina 27522-9159
Mr. Steve Sollod
Division of Coastal Management
North Carolina Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
400 Commerce Avenue
Morehead City, North Carolina 28557
Mr. Daniel Ingram
WK Dickson and Company, Inc.
720 Corporate Center Drive
Raleigh, North Carolina 27607
Mr. Michael Ellison
Ecosystem Enhancement Program
North Carolina Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
1652 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1652
Gregory J. Thorpe, Ph.D.
Environmental Manager Director
Project Development and Environmental Analysis Branch
N.C. Department of Transportation
1548 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1548