20150717 Ver 1_USACE Permit_20150731

U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS
WILMINGTON DISTRICT
Action Id. SAW- 2015 -01670 County: Rockingham U.S.G.S. Quad: NC- SOUTHEAST EDEN
INCOMPLETE APPLICATION
Property Owner: Duke Energy - Environmental Services Agent: AMEC Foster Wheeler
attn: Steve Cahoon attn: Joshua Bell, P.E.
Address: 410 South Wilmington Street Address: 2801 Yorkmont Road
Raleigh, NC. 27601 Charlotte, NC 28208
Location/Description of Proposed Activity: The project is located at the Duke Energy Dan River Steam Station
on the northwest side of the existing coal ash basins, approximately 0.2 mile southeast of the existing power
generation plant. Latitude 36.489899° N Longitude - 79.718144° W. The proposed uroiect includes the
permanent conversion of 0.407 acre of wetlands and 448 linear feet of stream to open waters in order to close
a 48 inch corrugated metal pipe that flows under an existing coal ash basin.
Type of Permit Applied For (check one): IP ❑ NWP ® GP ❑
Applicable law: Section 404 of the Clean Water Act®; Section 10, Rivers and Harbor Act ❑
YOUR APPLICATION IS INCOMPLETE AND CANNOT BE PROCESSED UNTIL THE FOLLOWING
INFORMATION IS RECEIVED (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY):
❑ Your application form has not been completed and/or signed (see remarks)
❑ Under the conditions of the Nationwide Permit, mitigation is required for your project. The mitigation
proposal submitted with your application is insufficient. (see remarks.)
❑ Your application did not include a statement explaining how avoidance and minimization for losses of
waters of the U.S. were achieved on the project site. (see remarks)
® Your submitted project plans or maps were insufficient, too large, or not legible (see remarks).
❑ Your application did not include a delineation of affected special aquatic sites, including wetlands, vegetated
shallows, and riffle and pool complexes as required.
❑ You must submit a copy of your application to the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) since your
proposed work is in a designated trout water county (see remarks section below for the address of your WRC
representative)
® Other (see remarks below).
"Please reference your PCN dated 7/17/2015, received 7/20/2015. Also, if a discussion would be helpful in
providing guidance on the items requested below, please feel free to facilitate a teleconference for these
purposes.
I Ili 010 F.11 t'A 193
1. The PCN includes impacts to stream and wetlands related to inundation. However, the PCN does not
include information regarding the discharge of dredged or fill material in wetlands or other waters of the
US that triggers a CWA section 404 permit. Please add plans /design sheets and update section C of the
PCN that clearly describe the regulated activity.
2. Section B.3d. of the PCN ties the purpose of the proposed project to the ash pond clean -up. Note that this
office is currently reviewing a proposal at the Dan River Steam Station to expand a railroad line to dispose
of coal ash on site (SAW- 2015- 01381). We will review all projects related to coal ash clean up as part of
the same single and complete project. Based on NWP condition 28, and the definitions of "single and
complete project" and "independent utility" found in the NWP terms and conditions, please justify how this
proposed project is single and complete, and why it should not be considered cumulative with the coal ash
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removal/disposal activities on site and the previously authorized 36" culvert plug project (SAW -2014-
01477).
3. Please note that, assuming comment 2 is addressed above, items currently listed in PCN section C.2a and
C.2b would be considered permanent impacts rather than temporary, similar to the previously authorized
36" culvert plug project (SAW- 2014 - 01477).
4. A waiver of the stream impact threshold is requested based on Regional Condition 3.1. However, the
NCDWQ Stream ID Forms included with the PCN do not pertain to the streams proposed for inundation
(based on the latitude and longitude on the forms) and document the features as being perennial instead of
intermittent. Please submit NCDWQ Stream ID Forms for the streams proposed for inundation to
document an intermittent flow regime.
5. A reduced mitigation ratio of 1:1 is proposed for both wetland and stream inundation impacts.
Compensatory mitigation proposals should be based on aquatic function. Further, as documented in the
Wilmington District Public Notice dated 4/21/2015, the Corps of Engineers Wilmington District will use
the NC Wetland Assessment Method ( NCWAM) and the NC Stream Assessment Method ( NCSAM) to
evaluate aquatic resource quality and functions for decisions regarding the amount and type of
compensatory mitigation.
<httD: / /www. saw.usace.armv.mil/ Missions/ ReaulatorvPermitProeram /PublicNotices /tabid/ 10057 /Article /5
85625 /implementation- of- nc -sam- and- nc- wam.aspx> Please submit NCWAM and NCSAM forms for the
wetland and stream areas proposed for inundation to justify your proposed reduced mitigation ratio of 1:1.
Although these forms are referenced in the PCN document, they were not included in the submittal
package. Please note that the USACE "Stream Quality Assessment Worksheet' has been replaced by the
NCSAM form for documenting aquatic resource quality and functions.
Please submit the above information within 30 days of receipt of this Notification (via e -mail is
fine) or we may consider your application withdrawn and close the file. Please call or email
( David .E.Bailev2(i�usace.armv.mil) me if you have any questions.
Digitally signed by
BAILEY .DAVI D.E.1379283736
Date: Julv 31, 2015 DN: c =US, o =U.S. Government, ou =DoD,
ou =PKI, ou =USA,
cn= BAILEY.DAVID.E.1379283736
Corps Regulatory Official: Date: 2015.07.3111:54:01 - 0400' Telephone No: 919 -554 -4884, ext. 30
David E. Bailev
Corps Regulatory Field Office Address: USACE Raleiuh Resulatory Field Office, 3331 Heritage Trade Drive,
Suite 105, Wake Forest, NC 27587
Copy furnished:
Sue Homewood, NCDENR -DWR, 450 W. Hanes Mill Road, Suite 300, Winston Salem, NC 27105
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