HomeMy WebLinkAbout20141149 Ver 1_Public Notice_20141128E I I
US Army Corps PUBLIC NOTICE
Of Engineers
Wilmington District
Issue Date: November 28, 2014
Comment Deadline: January 13, 2015
Corps Action ID #: SAW - 2014 -00657
The Wilmington District, Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received a prospectus describing the
establishment of an umbrella compensatory mitigation bank, known as the Cape Fear 02
Umbrella Stream Mitigation Bank (Bank), to offset impacts authorized as part of future Federal
and State permits.
Bank Sponsor:
Restoration Systems, LLC
Mr. John Preyer
1101 Haynes Street, Suite 211
Raleigh, NC 27604
This public notice does not imply, on the part of the Corps of Engineers or other agencies, either
favorable or unfavorable opinion of the work to be performed, but is issued to solicit comments
regarding the factors on which final decisions will be based.
LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK: The initial phase of the proposed umbrella bank-
includes 8 sites as described in the table below:
Site Name
Easement
Size (acres)
Township
County
Stream/
Receiving Water
Latitude
( °N)
Longitude
( °W)
Motes Creek
19
Swepsonville/
Alamance
Motes Creek
35.98848
- 79.28553
Saxapahaw
Benton Branch
30
Elon
Caswell
Benton Branch
36.27534
- 79.42369
Orphan Creek
14
Swepsonville/
Alamance
Meadow Creek
35.97934
- 79.31693
Saxapahaw
Chico Branch
8
Reidsville
Rockingham
Troublesome Creek
36.27987
- 79.63362
Major Hill
10
Snow Camp
Alamance
Pine Hill Branch
35.87539
- 79.35916
Maple Hill Farm
11.1
Snow Camp
Alamance
Marys Creek
35.93841
- 79.38905
Rocky Top
5.2
Snow Camp
Alamance
Reedy Branch
35.88662
- 79.38780
Slingshot Creek
13
Reidsville
Rockingham
Lake Hunt
36.33447
- 79.71185
*All sites as proposed are within the Cape Fear River Basin, Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) 03030002
PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE: The Bank proposes 8 sites including approximately
31,073 linear feet of existing intermittent and perennial warm water streams, and involves a
combination of stream restoration and enhancement as itemized in the table below:
Site Name
Hydrologic
Status*
Existing Length
(linear feet)
Mitigation
Type **
Approx. Final
Length (linear feet)
Motes Creek
P
5,746
R / E
6,693
Benton Branch
P /I
8,843
R / E
10,343
Orphan Creek
P /I
2,668
R / E
3,081
Chico Branch
P /I
2,295
R
2,805
Major Hill
P /I
2,410
R / E
3,160
Maple Hill Farm
P /I
3,990
R / E
4,493
Rocky Top
P
1,214
R / E
1,273
Slingshot Creek
P
3,907
R / E
4,777
*P = Perennial; I =
Intermittent
* *R = Restoration; E = Enhancement
Wetlands exist at two or more of the sites, although their boundaries and extent have not been
determined at this time. Currently there are no detailed designs on proposed stream restoration
and enhancement reaches. The proposed stream restoration design would restore a stable,
meandering stream at new locations, improving floodplain connectivity while using reference
streams and appropriate regional curves to design and construct natural hydrodynamics, stream
geometry, and local microtopography. Primary activities designed to restore channels include:
belt -width preparation and grading, channel excavation, installation of channel plugs, backfilling
of abandoned channels, installation of piped channel crossings, and vegetative planting.
Enhancement activities, categorized as level I or II, are proposed where the use of restoration
may not be necessary to improve a system's ecological function. Stream Enhancement I is
expected to include cessation of agricultural activities (including row crop production, hay
production, and /or livestock grazing), removal of invasive species, raising the channel bed
elevation to reconnect bankfull stream flows to the abandoned floodplain, and planting with
native, woody species. Stream Enhancement II is expected to include the cessation of
agricultural activities as above, removal of invasive species, and supplemental planting with
native, woody tree species.
A monitoring program would be implemented for at least seven years following the initial
biological improvements to evaluate whether the Bank's goals and objectives are met.
The Sponsor states that the ecological objectives of the Bank include: 1) reducing and /or
eliminating non -point source pollution associated with heavy livestock and agricultural activities;
2
2) improving water quality functions by restoring native, woody riparian vegetation adjacent to
Phase I channels; 3) improving floodplain function by increasing hydraulic resistance to
floodwaters; 4) improving aquatic habitat through channel stabilization and increased habitat
heterogeneity; and 5) improving near - channel habitat for terrestrial species and refugia for
aquatic species through restoration of native, woody riparian vegetation. General actions for
specified objectives are described in the table below:
Functional
Category
Improvement Objectives
Proposed Actions
Floodplain Connectivity
Reconnect channels with historic floodplains
U
Floodplain Resistance
Plant woody riparian buffers; increase microtopography
o
Stream Stability and Sediment
Reconstruct stream channels, sized to convey bankfull
o
Transport
discharges and watershed sediment supplies
Surface and Subsurface
Channels constructed or raised to historic floodplain
Storage and Retention
elevations; increased floodplain hydraulic resistance by
planting woody vegetation and increasing microtopography
Remove Pollutant Sources
Cattle exclusion
Upland Pollutant Filtration
Plant woody riparian buffers; construct marsh treatment
features intercepting overland flows
a
Floodplain Biogeochemical
Increase floodplain connectivity, plant woody riparian
Processing
buffers; increase microtopography; construct marsh
treatment areas
Thermal Regulation
Plant woody riparian buffers to provide shade
In- channel Habitat
Construct stable channels, geomorphology designed to
increase hydraulic and bedform habitat heterogeneity
Riparian Habitat and
Plant native, woody riparian buffers providing foraging,
Structure
nesting and cover for terrestrial species as well as refugia
for aquatic species
GEOGRAPHIC SERVICE AREA: The proposed Geographic Service Area for this bank-
includes the Cape Fear River basin, hydrological unit code (HUC) 03030002.
PROSPECTUS: The full prospectus and mitigation plan is available for review at:
httD: / /www. saw.usace. armv.mil/ Missions/ RegulatorvPermitProLram /PublicNotices. asbx
This umbrella mitigation bank may be considered one of a number of practicable alternatives
available to applicants to compensate for unavoidable stream impacts associated with permits
issued under the authority of Sections 404 and 401 of the Clean Water Act for projects located
within the prescribed geographic service area.
Oversight of this stream mitigation bank will be by a group of federal and state agency
representatives collectively referred to as the Interagency Review Team (IRT). The IRT shall be
chaired by the Wilmington District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is comprised of
representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
N.C. Division of Water Quality, and the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.
The actual approval of the use of this mitigation bank for a specific project is the decision of the
Corps pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. The Corps provides no guarantee that any
particular individual or general permit will be granted authorization to use this stream
compensatory mitigation bank to compensate for unavoidable stream impacts associated with a
proposed permit, even though mitigation from this bank may be available.
AUTHORITY: This public notice is required pursuant to 33 CFR Part 332, Compensatory
Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources.
FEDERAL EVALUATION OF PROPOSAL: The Corps is soliciting comments from the public;
federal, state, and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other interested parties in order
to consider and evaluate this proposed mitigation bank. Any comments received will be
considered by the Corps in evaluating this proposal. Comments are used to assess impacts on
endangered species, historic properties, conservation, economics, aesthetics, general
environmental concerns, wetlands, cultural values, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards and
flood plain values (in accordance with Executive Order 11988), land use, navigation, shore
erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs,
safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership, and in
general, the needs and welfare of the people.
Preliminary review indicates that:
1. An environmental impact statement (EIS) will not be required.
2. There are species of fish, wildlife, or plant (or their critical habitat) listed as endangered
or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (PL 93 -205) that may be
affected. We will coordinate with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to determine the
impacts upon the listed species within the area, specifically the smooth coneflower
(Echinacea laevigata) in Rockingham County.
3. No cultural or historic resources considered eligible or potentially eligible for listing on
the National Register of Historic Places will be affected.
Additional information may change any of these preliminary findings.
Written comments pertinent to the proposed work, as outlined above, will be received in this
office, Wilmington District, Corps of Engineers, Attention: Mr. David E. Bailey, Raleigh
Regulatory Field Office, 3331 Heritage Trade Drive, Suite 105, Wake Forest, North Carolina
27587, until 5:00 p.m., January 13, 2015.