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Home My WebLink About20110896 Ver 1_USACE Correspondence_20120130DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY WILMINGTON DISTRICT CORPS OF ENGINEERS 69 DARLINGTON AVENUE WILMINGTON NORTH CAROLINA 28403 1343 it REPLY TO ATTENTION OF Regulatory Division Action ID SAW 2011 00624 Mr Peter Talty Orton Plantation Holdings LLC 17'h Floor 1251 Avenue of the Americas New York New York 10020 Dear Mr Talty January 26 2012 II -DBqL.0 VAC) �4 - d 2 AN302012 WE DENR WATER W'N AND STO AWA EI BRANCH Please reference your Individual Permit application for Department of the Army (DA) authorization to permanently impact 1123 of waters of the U S and to temporarily impact 333 74 acres of waters of the U S for the purpose of replacing and repairing water control structures re establishing rice fields and repairing a dike system located at Orton Plantation The project area is located along the eastside of Plantation Road SE off NC Highway 133 in adjacent wetlands and tributaries to the Cape Fear River northeast of Southport, in Brunswick County North Carolina Upon review of our Public Notice of your proposal the United States Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 (US EPA) submitted comments and recommendations in a letter dated January 18 2012 (copy enclosed) We encourage you to take particular notice of the following concerns and requests for additional information identified by the US EPA • Clarification of the stated purpose and need • Explanation as to the overall objective of the rice cultivation proposal and the proposed benefit to the applicant and /or public • More detailed information on other practicable alternatives • As the US EPA asserts that the conversion of 333 74 acres of wetlands to rice fields would have significant permanent impact they request a compensatory mitigation plan for all proposed impacts to waters of the United States including the acreage of proposed rice cultivation • A watershed assessment and justification for any proposed permittee responsible mitigation proposal %� --4 2 The Corps concurs with the US EPA s concerns and requests your response which will be included in our evaluation of your proposal pursuant to the Section 404(b)(1) guidelines 33 CFR 332 and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Please also note that US EPA currently recommends denial of your current proposal Our administrative process provides you the opportunity to provide the information requested propose a resolution and/or rebut any and all objections before we arrive at a final decision In this regard I request a written response on or before February 24 2012 I am responsible for processing your application and available to assist you in coordinating with the review agencies If you have any questions please contact me at (910) 251 4923 or at lenmfer s flyegusace army mil Sincerely _�� -t-7� Jennifer S Frye Enforcement Project Manager Wilmington Regulatory Field Office Enclosure Copies Furnished (with enclosure) Ms Kim Williams and Mr Steve Morrison Land Management Group Inc Post Office Box 2522 Wilmington North Carolina 28402 Copies Furnished (without enclosures) Ms Jennifer Derby Chief Wetlands Protection Section Water Management Division U S Environmental Protection Agency Region IV 61 Forsyth Street Atlanta Georgia 30303 Ms Becky Fox U S Environmental Protection Agency — Region IV 1349 Firefly Road Whittier North Carolina 28789 Mr Pete Benjamin U S Fish and Wildlife Service Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Post Office Box 33726 Raleigh North Carolina 27636 3726 Mr Doug Huggett Division of Coastal Management North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 1638 Mail Service Center Raleigh North Carolina 27699 1638 Ms Heather Coats Division of Coastal Management North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 127 Cardinal Drive Extension Wilmington North Carolina 28405 3 Mr Ian McMillan 401 Oversight/Express Review Permitting Unit Division of Water Quality North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 2321 Crabtree Boulevard Suite 250 Raleigh North Carolina 27604 Mr Chad Coburn Division of Water Quality North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 127 Cardinal Drive Extension Wilmington North Carolina 28405 Ms Molly Ellwood North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Division of Inland Fisheries 127 Cardinal Drive Extension Wilmington North Carolina 28405 Mr Ron Sechler National Marine Fisheries Service Pivers Island Beaufort North Carolina 28516