WilliamsonResidence_UTHurricaneCr_Jackson_NCWRCComments

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
Cameron Ingram, Executive Director

Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]
February 19, 2024

Ms. Shannon Healy
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006

SUBJECT: Williamson Residence
UT Hurricane Cr, Jackson County

Dear Ms. Healy:

Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to place a 90-ft culvert into an unnamed tributary (UT) to Hurricane Creek in Jackson
County. Our comments on this application are offered for your consideration under provisions of
the Clean Water Act of 1977 (33 U.S.C. 466 et. seq.) and Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (48
Stat. 401, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 661-667d).

Brook Trout are found in the vicinity of the project, and in-stream activities should be avoided
between October 15 and April 15 to minimize impacts to trout reproduction. This species is
especially sensitive to excess sediment, and effective erosion and sediment control are essential
to minimize impacts to this species.

We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to fish and wildlife resources:

1. No specifications are provided on the culvert type and installation. We recommend against
using plastic (e.g., the black high density polyethylene), as this is slick and become a barrier
for fish and other aquatic animal movement; corrugated metal is a better alternative.
2. Culvert installation must be done in the dry (e.g., flows pumped around the work area). The
culvert should be buried at least a foot in order to allow free movement of sediment and
aquatic organisms.
3. Effective sediment and erosion control measures must be used and maintained to stabilize the
stream banks quickly after the work is performed. In order to stabilize the stream banks, we
recommend using matting over straw and a quick growing temporary seed mix. We
recommend planting a permanent seed mix of native grasses and wildflowers as well as
native trees and shrubs to provide permanent and natural bank stabilization.
Williamson Residence Page 2 February 19, 2024
UT Hurricane Cr, Jackson Co
4. Any matting used on site should be free of nylon mesh; nylon mesh netting frequently
entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade, resulting in a hazard that may last for years.
5. We recommend that removal of riparian vegetation along the stream be avoided as much as
possible outside of the impact areas.
6. The stream should not be excavated except in the immediate vicinity of the project location.
7. In-stream work should be avoided during the trout moratorium period of October 15 to April
15 to avoid impacts to Brook Trout spawning.

Thank you for the opportunity to review and comment on this project. Please contact me at
[phone] if you have any questions about these comments.

Sincerely,

Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program

ec: Travis Mileti, Mountain Works
Joey Winston, NC Division of Water Resources