20190397 Ver 1_R-2566B Concurrence Point 4B Meeting_WRC_20210218

Wanucha, Dave
From:Chambers, Marla J
Sent:Thursday, February 18, 2021 1:43 PM
To:Hining, Kevin J; 'Lori Beckwith ([e-mail])'; Wanucha, Dave
Subject:RE: \[External\] R-2566B Concurrence Point 4B Meeting_WRC
To me, it looks like habitat only a trout can navigate. It’ll be good to look closer at this and other crossings for
importance of passage. I’ll try to help as much as I can.

Marla

Marla Chambers // NCDOT Coordinator
Habitat Conservation Program

NC Wildlife Resources Commission
mobile: [phone]
[e-mail]

ncwildlife.org

From: Hining, Kevin J <[e-mail]>
Sent: Thursday, February 18, 2021 1:07 PM
To: 'Lori Beckwith ([e-mail])' <[e-mail]>; Wanucha, Dave
<[e-mail]>; Chambers, Marla J <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: \[External\] R-2566B Concurrence Point 4B Meeting Minutes

Hey folks,

I was driving by the 3 @ 7’x6’ RCBC at Station 287+96 -L- on R-2566B earlier this week and was able to stop by. I’m
hoping the photos and description below will help provide a better picture of the stream reach.

Immediately upstream of the culvert are several steep bedrock slides and vertical drops. It’s really steep, with what I’ve
always called complex habitat - a combination of cascades, vertical drops, scattered small pools and riffles (every type of
habitat a mountain stream can have, all shoved into a small area). My initial thought is that the natural stream
morphology is the primary passage issue at this location, and while there are probably ways to improve passage through
the culvert (it has shallow, sheet flow on the inlet side), I’m not sure it would be worth the expense given the habitat
immediately upstream.

More important than my thoughts - NCWRC fisheries staff contacted me yesterday and we are lining up some survey
dates, hopefully in the next 2-3 weeks, to survey streams related to the R-2566B project. While on site, I plan to take
them by this site and get their evaluation regarding possible aquatic passage. They may have a different perspective. I
was not able to stop by the culvert location at Station 197+25, but plan to look at it as well with NCWRC.

Marla – thanks for asking the fisheries staff to review these sites, and contact me. It will be good to see if I still know
how to operate a backpack shocker….:)

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Thanks,

Kevin

Kevin Hining
Division 11 Environmental Officer
North Carolina Department of Transportation

828-386-7202 cell
[e-mail]

801 Statesville Rd.
PO Box 250
North Wilkesboro, NC 28659

Email correspondence to and from this address is subject to the
North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties.
_____________________________________________________________

From: Wanucha, Dave <[e-mail]>
Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2021 2:09 PM
To: Hining, Kevin J <[e-mail]>; [e-mail]; Chambers, Marla J
<[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: R-2566B concurrence follow up

Hey Kevin,
Thanks for the follow-up. Please send any pics you think help with the process.

Dave W.

Division of Water Resources
401 & Buffer Transportation Permitting
NC Department of Environmental Quality

336-776-9703 office
336-403-5655 mobile
[e-mail]

NC DEQ Winston Salem Regional Office
450 West Hanes Mill Road, Suite 300
Winston Salem, NC 27106

Based on the current guidance to minimize the spread of COVID-19, the Department of Environmental Quality has
adjusted operations to protect the health and safety of the staff and public. Many employees are working remotely or
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are on staggered shifts. To accommodate these staffing changes, all DEQ office locations are limiting public access to
appointments only. Please check with the appropriate staff before visiting our offices, as we may be able to handle your
requests by phone or email. We appreciate your patience as we continue to serve the public during this challenging
time.

From: Hining, Kevin J <[e-mail]>
Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2021 11:59 AM
To: Wanucha, Dave <[e-mail]>; [e-mail]; Chambers, Marla J
<[e-mail]>
Subject: R-2566B concurrence follow up

I wanted to follow up with the three of you after yesterday’s R-2566B meeting. I know it is tough now with Covid, but
I’m more than happy to meet any of you to look at the streams we discussed yesterday. I plan to go by all of them soon
and take some photos. I can share if you would like to see them. Also, I went through the NCWRC fish database today (I
only have updates up to 2019, so may be missing some stuff), but looked like most of the UT’s we reviewed yesterday
have not been surveyed. I’m assuming most of those not surveyed are fishless, based on their size, but can’t say for
sure.

I’m particularly interested in the two box culverts on Laurel Fork, as I think those might pose the best opportunity for
this project to improve passage.

Marla – speaking of, I did not see any fish data for the single barrel box culvert nr Station 197, and I can’t recall ever
looking at that UT while with WRC. Would it be possible to ask district staff or the brook trout survey group to check
that stream out this spring, below and above the culvert? I know fish aren’t the only concern when it comes to passage,
but I think having that data would be helpful. I’m more than happy to assist with the survey if they need an extra
person.

Thanks!

Kevin

Kevin Hining
Division 11 Environmental Officer
North Carolina Department of Transportation

828-386-7202 cell
[e-mail]

801 Statesville Rd.
PO Box 250
North Wilkesboro, NC 28659

Email correspondence to and from this address is subject to the
North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties.
_____________________________________________________________

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Email correspondence to and from this sender is subject to the N.C. Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties.

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