19950355 Ver 2_WRC Comments_20170313

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 9
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
March 13, 2017
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Macon County Recreation Park
Cartoogechaye Creek, Macon County
Dear Mr. Brown:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to stabilize 470 feet of Cartoogechaye Creek with 2 rock cross vanes, bank sloping,
and a floodplain bench in Macon County. I am familiar with the site. 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 should not impact wild trout, and project activities do not need to be avoided during
the trout moratorium. However, Cartoogechaye Creek is part of the Little Tennessee River
(Upper) Aquatic Habitat, a natural area rated High by the NC Natural Heritage Program due to
the richness of rare species it contains. In the vicinity of the site, the river supports Eastern
Hellbender (Cyptobranchus alleganiensis), Smoky Dace (Clinostomus sp.), Little Tennessee
Crayfish (Cambarus georgiae), and Olive Darter (Percina squamata), all of which are US
Federal Species of Concern and NC Special Concern. These rare species are especially sensitive
to excess sediment, and proper sediment and erosion control is essential to protect this aquatic
community.
As Cartoogechaye Creek is large at the site, we assume that the placement of in -stream structures
will involve work in the wet. We recommend that all efforts to work from the bank be used and
that work in the stream be done as quickly as possible. Efforts to isolate flows from the area of
work should also be employed.
We offer the following recommendations to minimize impacts to fish and wildlife resources:
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Macon County Recreation Park Page 2 March 13, 2017
Cartoogechaye Creek, Macon County
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 matted as soon as possible, preferably at the end of each work day.
2. Instream work should be performed during low flows. If possible, the work areas should be
isolated from the main channel with the use of sand bags, other coffer dam material, and/or
silt fence.
3. Any erosion control matting used be free of plastic or nylon mesh, as this type of mesh
netting frequently entangles wildlife and is slow to degrade, resulting in a hazard that may
last for years.
4. The stream bank should be planted with native trees, shrubs, grasses, and wildlflowers in
order to ensure project success. It is essential that park maintenance staff do not remove
planted trees and shrubs from the site. Streamside vegetation can ensure greater bank
stability, filter overland pollutants, and provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.
5. The native seed mix includes Orchard Grass and Timothy, both which are good erosion
control but are non-native and can displace native species. We recommend eliminating these
from the perennial seed mix.
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,
I.,,J6,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
ec: Kevin Mitchell, NC Division of Water Resources
Byron Hampstead, US Fish and Wildlife Service