20211572 Ver 1_Haywood_5_404_narrative_.doc_20211029

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
ROY COOPER J. ERIC BOYETTE
GOVERNOR SECRETARY

Division 14 Office
Telephone: [phone] 253 Webster Road, Sylva, North Carolina 28779 Fax: [phone]

October 29, 2021

Mrs. Crystal Amschler, Project Manager
U. S. Army Corps of Engineers
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, NC 28801-2714

Subject: After-the-Fact Nationwide 3 Permit Application Narrative and Natural Resources
Report
DF17614.2044138
Replacement of Bridge #430005 on SR 1888 (Pisgah Creek Road)
Haywood County, North Carolina

Dear Mrs. Amschler:

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Division 14 is replacing bridge
#430005 on SR 1888 (Pisgah Creek Road) over the Pisgah Creek in Haywood County (see
map/study area). This bridge was demolished by Tropical Storm Fred on August 17, 2021 and is
now being replaced quickly because it serves as the only vehicle access to many residents of the
Cruso community. The replacement will be a new bridge situated a short distance upstream of
the temporary culverts that will maintain traffic during the new construction. A written
Nationwide 3 verification is hereby requested for the proposed unavoidable impacts of the
replacement in part due to a “may affect not likely to adversely affect” determination for clearing
of some potentially suitable bat roost trees. This project will be funded by the Federal
Emergency Management Agency as part of a Federally Declared Emergency.

Section 7
NCDOT coordinated with you and staffs with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
(USFWS) regarding Tropical Storm Fred related Section 7 and 404 permitting procedures in part
on August 22 and 25, 2021 and in a field meeting on September 7, 2021. Also, in accordance
with recent direction from the USFWS, the project was screened using IPAC to determine the
potentially affected listed species. According to the screening conducted on October 1, 2021 the
only federally listed species with the potential to be in or near the project area include
Appalachian elktoe (Alasmidonta raveneliana), rock gnome lichen (Gymnoderma lineare), small
whored pogonia (Isotria medeoloides), gray bat (Myotis grisescens), Indiana bat (Myotis
sodalist), and northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis, NLEB). The IPAC did not
identify old “county list” species that could not be in or near the project area due to specific
habitat requirements. Examples applicable here include spreading avens (Geum radiatum) and

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Haywood County

spruce-fir moss spider (Microhexura montivaga) which were excluded because of a relatively
low elevation at this location.

Appalachian elktoe are found in some well-oxygenated, cool-water rivers with moderate to fast
flowing water and stable, mixed substrates of silt, sand, gravel, and/or cobble. This species is
present Haywood County in the East Fork Pigeon River downstream of Cruso. However, Cruso
is approximately 6 miles upstream of the most recent Natural Heritage element occurrence for
this species (NHP viewer checked on October 1, 2021). The project should have no effect on
this mussel due to this distance and the minimal amount of sedimentation expected from the
construction work.

Rock gnome lichen can be found on rock faces at relatively low elevations in deep river gorges.
A gorge or any rock faces with consistently humid conditions required by this plant are not
present at the bridge. Therefore, the project will have no effect on this species.

Small whorled pagonia usually occurs in open, dry, deciduous woods with acidic soil, though it
can sometimes be found on slopes along streams and mesic forest in association with white pine
and rhododendron. The habitats at the project site include maintained road right-of-ways,
mowed residential lawns, and streambanks with only patches of narrowly wooded riparian buffer
(see photos). Suitable forested stands for this plant are not present.

Gray bats usually roost in caves or in/on structures year-round while Indiana bats and NLEB only
winter in caves or mines with stable, but not freezing, cold temperatures. During warm seasons
Indiana bats and NLEB usually roost on/in structures, under the shaggy bark of live trees such as
white oaks, sycamores, and hickories, or in cavities or under the loose peeling bark of dead trees.

There are no caves near the bridge. The bridge was surveyed for bats and evidence of bat
roosting on August 19 and 21, 2021 and on September 16, 2021 and none were evident. Absence
of bats and signs of bat usage will be confirmed prior to bridge demolition.

This project will not require blasting, but it will require the removal of approximately 25 trees
(>3 inch diameter) and short-term (couple days) percussive activity (e,g. guardrail post driving).
A few trees to be removed appear suitable for bat roosting because they have peeling or loose
bark. Trees will be removed between October 15 and April 1 when active tree roosting by bats is
unlikely.

There should be no night work for construction and there will be no permanent lighting installed
on the project. There is no existing permanent street lighting evident near the site. There are
some sources of light near the bridge associated with nearby private residences and a volunteer
fire station adjacent to US Highway 276. However, the removal of trees for the bridge project
should not appreciably increase the illumination of the river because riparian vegetation is
already absent along several hundred feet of the left bank of the river upstream and downstream
of the site. Moreover, after tree removal the residential lights on the east side of the river are not
likely to appreciably increase the illumination of the river proper following tree removal because
they are not close to the top of the river banks and not within line-of-sight of the channel due to
the high and steep river banks in this location. For these reasons, and with the inclusion of

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Haywood County

October 15 to April 1 “winter” tree clearing, we believe the project “may affect but not adversely
affect” gray bat, Indiana bat, and NLEB.

Section 106
The project is not expected to have effects on 106 resources. There was a “no survey required”
determination rendered for archaeology. Consultation with the federally recognized tribes has been
initiated with comments requested by October 8, 2020. No comments have ben received to date. A
determination of “no historic properties affected” was rendered for historic architecture.

Impacts to Waters of the United States
The project area (see attached) was surveyed for jurisdictional features on September 15, 2021. The only
feature noted is the mainstem of the East Fork Pigeon River. The East Fork Pigeon River (DEQ Class:
WS-III, Tr.) has a large watershed and supports fish including wild trout. The river is believed to be
Relatively Permanent Waters and under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In order to
construct the project, it will be necessary to impact Waters of the United States in the Pigeon River Basin
(HUC 06010106010010). Specifically, NCDOT is requesting to perform fills for rip rap bank protection,
as specified in the following table.

Site No.

Existing Condition Proposed Condition Net
Impacts
1 River bank Channel Excavation and Rip
Rap Bank Stabilization 260

Total Permanent Stream Impact 260

Compensatory mitigation has not been proposed because the permanent and temporary impacts are
minimal overall. Permanent impacts are for rip rap protection only and thereby do not constitute an
appreciable loss or diminution of aquatic habitat. This river is a cobble dominated high energy river with
rocky banks and bed.

Permits Requested
NCDOT is hereby requesting authorization under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act to proceed with the
construction project outlined above. This application has been sent to the North Carolina Department of
Environmental Quality (DEQ), Division of Water Resources (DWR) for a written GC, as needed. By
copy of this letter, I am asking Mrs. Marla Chambers, Western NCDOT Review Coordinator of the
WRC, to comment directly to the regulatory agencies and myself concerning the Nationwide Permit
Verification and 401 WQC Written requests. Note, by email dated September 10, 2021 Mrs. Chambers
has already noted that the WRC waived the trout moratorium for this emergency project.

Please contact me at [phone] if you have any questions about this application or need additional
information. Your prompt review and consideration of this request will be greatly appreciated.

Cordially

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Haywood County

Kevin Barnett
Division 14 Environmental Specialist II

Enclosures

cc: Mrs. Marla Chambers, Western NCDOT Review Coordinator, NCWRC, Albemarle
Mr. Kevin Mitchell, Division of Water Resources – DEQ, Asheville

Attach:s