The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About20171559 Ver 3_DMS Conditional Acceptance Final_20220201ROY COOPER Governor ELIZABETH S. BISER Secretary MARC RECKTENWAL❑ Director Jim Melvin Greensboro Randolph Megasite Foundation 324 W. Wendover Ave., Suite 207 Greensboro, NC 27408 NORTH CAROLINA Environmental Quality February 1, 2022 Expiration of Acceptance: 7/31/2022 Project: Greensboro Randolph Megasite County: Randolph This is a conditional acceptance letter. The purpose of this letter is to notify you that the NCDEQ Division of Mitigation Services (DMS) is willing to accept an in -lieu fee payment for compensatory mitigation associated with impacts from the above -referenced project as specified below. Compliance with all other state, federal or local government permits, regulations or authorizations associated with the proposed activity including G.S. § 143-214.11 is also required. Based on the information supplied by the applicant, the impacts for which you are requesting compensatory mitigation credit are summarized in the following table. The amount of mitigation required and assigned to DMS for this impact is determined by permitting agencies and may exceed the impact amounts shown. River Basin Impact Location (8-digit HUC) Impact Type Impact Quantity Cape Fear 03030003 Warm Stream Up to 39,229 feet Cape Fear 03030003 Riparian Wetland Up to 9.641 acres Once DMS receives a copy of the permit(s) an invoice will be issued based on the required mitigation in the permit(s) and payment must be made to DMS prior to conducting the authorized work unless otherwise approved by the permitting agencies. It is the applicant's responsibility to send copies of the permits to DMS. The amount of the in -lieu fee to be paid is calculated based on the Fee Schedule and policies listed on the DMS website. As required under 15A NCAC 02R .0402 (g) the DMS unit rate is determined by summing the actual cost of all mitigation bank and full delivery project purchase costs for the credit type (e.g., streams), contracted by DMS within the last three years divided by the actual credits purchased by DMS for the credit type within the last three years. The costs are adjusted to present-day values using the annual composite USACE Civil Works Construction Cost index, and include completed projects, terminated projects, and projects in process. In accordance with 15A NCAC 02R. 04202 (c) the rates are published on the DMS website (:ittps://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/mitigation-services/dms-customers/current-rate-schedui€ ). In accordance with 15A NCAC 02R .0402 (f) the wetland and stream rates are calculated and adjusted annually. Updated rates are published on the DMS website two weeks prior to the July 1 effective date. Other relevant federal and state regulations are referenced on the DMS website and attached to this letter. (,ittps://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/mitigation-services/about-dms/enabling-legislation) The total credit request by the applicant is for 68,917 stream credits and 18.668 wetland credits. The invoice for the requested amount will be $42,875,917.17 based on the updated request amount and the 2021-2022 rate schedule. See table below. Impact Type Quantity Credits 2021-2022 Rate/credit Warm Stream 9,541 If @ 1:1 29,688 If @ 2:1 68,917 $603.87 Riparian Wetland 0.614 ac @ 1:1 9.027 ac @2:1 18.668 $67,442.06 DMS proposes to seek to procure all credits in the Cape Fear 03030003 Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC). If insufficient credits are available in this service area to satisfy permit conditions, procurement will be fD_E North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Mitigation Services 217 West Jones Street 11652 Mail Service Center I Raleigh. North Carolina 27699-1652 919.707.8976 Page 2 expanded into the Cape Fear 03030002 HUC. In that event, the additional payment must be provided to DMS resulting from applicable locational ratios required by permitting agencies. The additional payment amount will be calculated using the number of credits required to meet the unmet mitigation requirement multiplied by the unit rate for each credit type and will not exceed $8,234,972.08 if invoiced by June 30, 2022 and paid by August 30, 2022. This acceptance is valid for six months from the date of this letter and is not transferable. If we have not received a copy of the issued 404 Permit/401 Certification within this time frame, this acceptance will expire. If you need to extend the acceptance, please notify KeIIy.Williams@ncdenr.gov prior to this letter's expiration date. Sincerely, Marc Recktenwald Director, Division of Mitigation Services cc: Sushma Masemore Bill Lane Jim Stanfill Vickie Miller Wendee Smith ROY COOPER Governor ELIZABETH S. BISER Secretary MARC RECKTENWAL❑ Director NORTH CAROLINA Environmental Quality Applicable Federal and State Regulations 40 CFR § 230.98 (o) (5) (ii) For in -lieu fee programs, the cost per unit of credit must include the expected costs associated with the restoration, establishment, enhancement, and/or preservation of aquatic resources in that service area. These costs must be based on full cost accounting, and include, as appropriate, expenses such as land acquisition, project planning and design, construction, plant materials, labor, legal fees, monitoring, and remediation or adaptive management activities, as well as administration of the in -lieu fee program. The cost per unit credit must also take into account contingency costs appropriate to the stage of project planning, including uncertainties in construction and real estate expenses. The cost per unit of credit must also take into account the resources necessary for the long-term management and protection of the in -lieu fee project. In addition, the cost per unit credit must include financial assurances that are necessary to ensure successful completion of in -lieu fee projects. NCGS § 143-214.11. (e) Payment Schedule. - A standardized schedule of compensatory mitigation payment amounts shall be established by the Commission. Compensatory mitigation payments shall be made by applicants to the Ecosystem Restoration Fund established in G.S. 143-214.12. The monetary payment shall be based on the ecological functions and values of wetlands and streams permitted to be lost and on the cost of restoring or creating wetlands and streams capable of performing the same or similar functions, including directly related costs of wetland and stream restoration planning, long-term monitoring, and maintenance of restored areas. Compensatory mitigation payments for wetlands shall be calculated on a per acre basis. Compensatory mitigation payments for streams shall be calculated on a per linear foot basis. In -Lieu Fee Program instrument dated July 28, 2010 "All program costs including expenses for land acquisition, project planning and design, construction, plant materials, labor, legal fees, monitoring, remediation or adaptive management activities, and long-term management, as well as administration of the program are accounted for in the establishment of fees." GQE o,�. n,ien: ni rnninnmenr.i we North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Mitigation Services 217 West Jones Street 11652 Mail Service Center I Raleigh. North Carolina 27699-1652 919.707.8976