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Home My WebLink About20141169 Ver 1_Revised EEP Letter_20150226��A 4 NCDENR North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources Pat McCrory Ecosystem Enhancement Program Governor February 25, 2015 Mr. Richard W. Hancock, P.E. Manager, Project Development and Environmental Analysis Unit North Carolina Department of Transportation 1548 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699 -1548 Dear Mr. Hancock: Subject: EEP Mitigation Acceptance Letter: Donald R. van der Vaart Secretary R -2514B / C / D, US 17 Widening from South of Belgrade in Onslow County to the New Bern Bypass, Onslow, Jones and Craven Counties The purpose of this letter is to notify you that the Ecosystem Enhancement Program (EEP) received a request for stream and wetland mitigation and buffer mitigation for the subject project. Based on the information supplied by you on October 29, 2014 and February 24, 2015, the impacts are located in CU 03020106 of the White Oak River basin and in CU 03020204 of the Neuse River basin in the Southern Outer Coastal Plain (SOCP) Eco- Region, and are as follows: *Some of the stream and wetland impacts may be proposed to be mitigated at a 1:1 mitigation ratio. See permit application for details. All buffer mitigation requests and approvals are administrated through the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund. The NCDOT will be responsible to ensure that appropriate compensation for the buffer mitigation will be provided in the agreed upon method of fund transfer. Upon receipt of the NCDWR's Buffer Authorization Certification, EEP will transfer funds from the NCDOT 2984 Fund into the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund (2982). Upon completion of transfer payment, NCDOT will have completed its riparian buffer mitigation responsibility for TIP Number R- 2514C/D. Subsequently, EEP will conduct a review of current NCDOT ILF Program mitigation projects in the river basin to determine if available buffer mitigation credits exist. If there are buffer mitigation credits available, then the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund will purchase the appropriate amount of buffer mitigation credits from NCDOT ILF Program. The buffer impacts are located in CU 03020204 of the Neuse River basin and are as follows: Buffer River Basin Cu Eco- Region Stream Wetlands Stream and River CU Eco - 03020204 SOCP Cold Cool Warm Riparian Non- Coastal Wetlands Basin Location Region Riparian Marsh Impacts Oak 03020106 SOCP 0 0 1,788.0 5.17 22.97 0 Impacts Neuse 03020204 SOCP 0 0 2,214.0 1 1.63 17.14 0 *Some of the stream and wetland impacts may be proposed to be mitigated at a 1:1 mitigation ratio. See permit application for details. All buffer mitigation requests and approvals are administrated through the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund. The NCDOT will be responsible to ensure that appropriate compensation for the buffer mitigation will be provided in the agreed upon method of fund transfer. Upon receipt of the NCDWR's Buffer Authorization Certification, EEP will transfer funds from the NCDOT 2984 Fund into the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund (2982). Upon completion of transfer payment, NCDOT will have completed its riparian buffer mitigation responsibility for TIP Number R- 2514C/D. Subsequently, EEP will conduct a review of current NCDOT ILF Program mitigation projects in the river basin to determine if available buffer mitigation credits exist. If there are buffer mitigation credits available, then the Riparian Restoration Buffer Fund will purchase the appropriate amount of buffer mitigation credits from NCDOT ILF Program. The buffer impacts are located in CU 03020204 of the Neuse River basin and are as follows: Buffer River Basin Cu Eco- Region Buffer Impacts Zone 1 Zone 2 TOTAL Impacts Neuse 03020204 SOCP 86,156.0 62,050.0 148,206.0 1652 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699 -1652 Phone: 919- 707 -89761 Internet: hftp: / /portal.ncdenr.org /web /eep An Equal Opportunity 1 Affirmative Action Employer- Made in part by recycled paper Mr. Richard Hancock February 25, 2015 Page Two NCDOT TIP R -2514B / C / D EEP's mitigation operations are governed by an In -Lieu Fee Instrument signed on July 28, 2010, by NCDENR -EEP and the state and federal environmental agencies responsible for authorizing impacts to waters of the U.S. Within the instrument, EEP is charged with providing mitigation for permitted impacts within the same 8 -digit catalog unit (CU) (as defined by USGS) in which the impact occurs. EEP is also charged in procuring and implementing mitigation for the NCDOT projects in advance of the impact occurring. In order to accomplish the advance procurement and implementation of mitigation, the NCDOT submits an annual impact projection dataset in February that contains the anticipated impacts associated with planned projects scheduled for letting during a seven year period that includes the river basin and CU location of the impacts. The NCDOT has requested mitigation for impacts associated with this project in both the Neuse and White Oak River basins every year since 2004 (with the exception of 2010). EEP is aware of the NCDOT's request to the USACE and NCDWR dated May 9, 2014 and subsequent responses from the USACE and NCDWR to the NCDOT dated May 20 and May 22, 2014, to utilize mitigation credits from the Croatan mitigation site to offset all of the stream and wetland impacts associated with this project. The Croatan mitigation site is located in CU 03020204 of the Neuse River basin in Craven County. EEP was not aware or involved with these actions at the time of their occurrences. It is noted that there are stream and wetland mitigation credits available in CU 03020106 of the White Oak River basin to offset impacts associated with this project in the White Oak 03020106. Currently, two mitigation sites, Clayhill Farms (Jones County) and Bowl Basin (Onslow County) have 5,880 stream credits, 14.0 riparian wetland credits and 40.84 non -riparian wetland credits available. The Bowl Basin project was contracted specifically for this TIP and is presently wrapping up construction. Clayhill is an older DOT surplus credits site. EEP has had abundant success procuring mitigation credits in CU 03020106 of the White Oak River (most recently in 2012) and is confident that ample opportunities exist for developing additional mitigation credits as needed. This mitigation acceptance letter replaces the mitigation acceptance letter issued on November 14, 2014. EEP commits to providing the stream and wetland mitigation credits to offset the impacts associated with this project as determined by the regulatory agencies, in the CUs of the impacts or all mitigation from the Croatan mitigation site, whichever is approved by permit. If the above referenced impact amounts are revised, then this mitigation acceptance letter will no longer be valid and a new mitigation acceptance letter will be required from EEP. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact Ms. Beth Harmon at 919 - 707 -8420. Sincerely, Ja14 s B. Stanfill EEP Asset Management Supervisor cc: Mr. Tom Steffens, USACE — Wilmington Regulatory Field Office Ms. Amy Chapman, NC Division of Water Resources, Wetlands /401 Unit Mr. Steve Sollod, NC Division of Coastal Management File: R- 2514B /C/D Revised 2