20170158 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20170222

� North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 9
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
February 22, 2017
Mr. Steve Kichefski
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Harmon Dairy Stream Restoration
UT Mary's Branch, Polk County
Dear Mr. Kichefski:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to restore 1,052 ft of an unnamed tributary (UT) to Mary's Branch in Polk County. I
visited the site on January 26, 2017. This project is proposed to serve as mitigation for impacts
at the Tryon Equestrian Center. 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 restore an unstable reach of stream that has been severely impacted by
livestock access. The project will be constructed in the dry and will involve bank sloping, brush
mattresses, soil lifts, constructed riffles, and riparian planting. We assume that cattle will be
excluded from the reach and that the planted riparian buffer will be at least 50 feet in width. We
are supportive of this project, as it should stabilize this stream, improve in -stream habitat, and
reduce sediment loss to downstream reaches.
This project should not affect trout and the activities do not need to be avoided during the trout
spawning moratorium.
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to the aquatic community:
1. 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. 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.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Harmon Dairy Stream Restoration Page 2 February 22, 2017
UT Mary's Branch, Polk County
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: Clement Riddle, C1earWater Environmental
Andrew Bick, Wildlands Engineering
Andrew Moore, NC Division of Water Resources
Byron Hamstead, US Fish and Wildlife Service