20041246 Ver 2_Other Agency Comments_20060510

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS
PO BOX 1890
WILMINGTON NC 28402-1890
May 5.2006
Regulatory Division
SUBJECT: Action ID 200421367, TIP R-2237B
Gregory J. Thorpe, Ph.D.
Environmental Management Director, PDEA
N.C. Department of Transportation
1548 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1548
Dear Dr. Thorpe:
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As you are aware, we have for some time included a special condition on all Individual
Permits issued to the NCDOT that prohibits the deposit of fill material into waters or wetlands
associated with borrow or waste facilities without modification of the permit issued to NCDOT.
By including this condition on our permits, we are confirming that we consider such impacts to
be a direct result of the roadway construction project, and must be evaluated as such to be in
compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1972 as well as our
regulations at 33 CFR Part 320 to 330. Overall, we are satisfied that allowing your contractors to
conduct their own searches for borrow and waste areas, in compliance with the permit condition
referenced above, has allowed us to adequately satisfy the requirements of our permits and that of
addressing secondary and cumulative effects pursuant to NEPA.
Recently we were made aware that the US 321 widening project (R-2237B) in Caldwell
County will generate approximately 2 million yds3 of waste material for which no suitable
disposal areas were identified in advance of project letting. We are also aware that there were
several property owners in the vicinity of the project that had obtained separate Department of
the Army (DA) authorizations through a Nationwide Permit to culvert and fill strea-ns on their
property. According to information provided to us, the contractor on the project was under the
impression that so long as a landowner had a valid DA permit issued to him, that the deposit of
the waste material on his property was allowable under the terms and conditions of the
landowner's permit. This is incorrect. It is our position that the assessment of impacts to waters
and wetlands associated with the disposal of waste material that is generated in connection with
the NCDOT project is the responsibility of NCDOT. We feel that these impacts are directly
related to the transportation project and that these impacts must be avoided and minimized to the
maximum extent practicable, and that those remaining impacts must be compensated for. It is
our understanding that NCDOT or its contractor is currently looking for suitable disposal
locations. It will be incumbent upon NCDOT to avoid and minimize impacts associated with

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this activity to the maximum extent practicable and will be required to provide compensatory
mitigation for any remaining impacts.
In the future, we feel it will be in the best interest of NCDOT that when a project is
identified that will generate a significant amount of waste material that the advance identification
of suitable waste areas be undertaken as soon as possible, preferably before the project is
permitted. In this regard, it will be less likely that the project will be delayed while suitable
locations are found and, more importantly, any impacts associated with such waste areas can be
adequately addressed during the permit process.
Should you have any questions regarding this correspondence, please contact the
undersigned in the Wilmington Field Office at [phone].
Si cerel ,
Scott McLendon
Team Leader, NC Department of Transportation
Copies Furnished:
Mr. John Hennessy
NC Department of Environment and
Natural Resources
Division of Water Quality
1650 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650
Mr. Frank Gioscio, PE
Resident Engineer
NC Department of Transportation
160 Den-Mac Drive, Suite A
Boone, North Carolina 28607