20161095 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20170222

� North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 9
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
February 22, 2017
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Matthew Wood Stream Repair and Stabilization Project
Brown Creek and Whittaker Branch, Cherokee County
Dear Mr. Brown:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to stabilize 149 ft of Brown Creek and 240 ft of Whittaker Branch 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).
The project proposes to stabilize unstable reaches of Brown Creek and Whittaker Branch with
bank sloping, matting, riparian planting, and rock cross vanes. The project will be constructed in
the dry, with water pumped around the work area. A berm along 793 ft of the Valley River will
be reduced in height. We are supportive of this project, as it should stabilize eroding reaches of
stream.
This project should not affect trout and the activities do not need to be avoided during the trout
spawning moratorium. However, the project is just upstream of the Valley River, which is part of
the Valley River Aquatic Habitat, a natural area rated by the NC Natural Heritage Program as
High due to the richness of rare species it harbors. Near the site, these species include the
Sicklefin Redhorse (Moxostoma sp., NC Threatened), Smoky Dace [Clinostomus sp., US Federal
Species of Concern (FSC), NC Special Concern (SC)], and Valley River Crayfish (Cambarus
brimleyorum, NC SR).
We are particularly concerned about potential sediment impacts to the Sicklefin Redhorse which
spawns in the Valley River in the late spring; we recommend that project activities be avoided
between April 1 and June 30 in order to avoid sediment impacts to spawning and egg and early
juvenile development.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Matthew Wood Stabilization Project Page 2 February 22, 2017
Whittaker Br & Brown Cr, Cherokee County
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to the aquatic community:
1. In -channel work should be accomplished as quickly as possible and vigilance used in
sediment and erosion control during site preparation, construction, and clean up. Disturbed
areas should be seeded, mulched and/or matted as soon as possible, preferably at the end of
each work day.
2. In -stream activities and bank grading should be constructed when stream flows are low in
order to minimize sediment loss.
3. Any erosion control matting used be free of nylon or plastic mesh, as this netting frequently
entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade resulting in a hazard that may last for years.
4. According to the project designer, the planted buffer width will be at least 10 ft. We
recommend that a woody buffer of at least 30 feet be planted on both sides of the stream as
infrastructure allows in order to ensure project success. A wide forested buffer can ensure
greater bank stability, filter overland pollutants, and provide habitat for birds and other
wildlife.
5. The planting specifications list Orchard Grass as a temporary seed. We recommend against
this non-native and invasive grass within the riparian area, and suggest an alternative such as
an annual grain.
6. We request that in -channel work be avoided from April 1 to June 30 in order to avoid
impacts to Sicklefin Redhorse 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 or need further assistance.
Sincerely,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
ec: Lane Sauls, Ecological Engineering
Kevin Mitchell, NC Division of Water Resources
Steve Fraley, NCWRC
Byron Hamstead, US Fish and Wildlife Service