20071392 Ver 1_Restoration Plan Review_20070827

NC Division of Water Quality
401 Oversight and Express Permitting Unit
August 27, 2007
Memorandum
To: Tammy Hill
From: Eric Kulz
Subject: DWQ # 20071392
Comments on PCN and Restoration Plan -Cat Creek Stream and Wetland
Restoration. (Macon County)
Report prepared by Earthtech for NCEEP
Tammy:
Take a look at the wetlands stuff in here. I seemed to recall some conversations regarding
removal of fill material over hydric soils as possibly not being considered restoration, but would be
creation?
This would certainly affect the amount of credits generated.
The stream restoration stuff looks OK. On the Waldroop tract, buffers along the upper reach of
Cat Creek are proposed to be 15`- 25' in width. Similarly, for the lower reach buffers will average
20'. In addition, according to the plan, buffers on the middle reach of Cat Creek on the Waldroop
tract will be periodically trimmed to an elevation of 3' to 5' to allow visual access to the horse
pasture from the residence.
These buffer issues may reduce the amount of stream credit generated by the project, as the
2003 Interagency guidelines say that, in most cases, 30-foot buffers will be required for stream
mitigation sites in the mountains.
Eric
North Carolina Division of Water Quality; 401 Oversight and Express Permitting Unit
1650 Mail Service Center; Raleigh, NC 27699-1650
2321 Crabtree Blvd., Raleigh, NC 27604-2260
Telephone: [phone]; Fax: [phone]
http://ncwaterquality. org/wetlands