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Home My WebLink About20041582 Ver 1_Other Agency Comments_20081023aTF _ 158 z DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS Washington Regulatory Field office . Box 1000 Washington, North Carolina 27889-1000 IN REPLY REFER TO October 21, 2008 ???????? Regulatory Division OCT 2 3 2008 pENR °NSTOERRNrdQUALI VATER6NW?0'? Action ID No. 199606890 / Timberlake Farms Expanded Service Area vgnoDsr Mr. Donald Carr Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw, Whitman 2300 N Street NW Washington, D.C. 20037-1128 Dear Mr. Carr: This correspondence confirms my receipt of your letter dated October 14, 2008, regarding your request for expansion of the geographic service area (GSA) for the Timberlake Farms property of the Great Dismal Swamp mitigation bank located off U.S. 64, east of Columbia, in Tyrrell County, North Carolina. The North Carolina Interagency Review Team responsible for establishing standards for mitigation banking threshold issues recently reaffirmed the State's position of maintaining geographic service areas at the 8-digit HUC, but would be willing to consider broadening a GSA within the same river basin if justified. All agencies are unanimous in not allowing GSA's to extend across river basins and some have regulations prohibiting such. Currently, the GSA for the Timberlake property is located within the 03010205 HUC; however, it is restricted to the south side of the Albemarle Sound. In consideration of the justification you have provided, the GSA as is stands today, as well as the NCIRT opinion that GSA's should be maintained at the 8-digit HUC, I am willing to consider modification of the current service area to encompass the entire 03010205 HUC, excluding the Outer Banks and Virginia as discussed. Note that this proposed GSA encompasses ten river basins (Alligator, Scuppernong, lower Roanoke, lower Cashie, Yeopim, Perquimans, Little, Pasquotank, North and North Landing Rivers) and four sounds (Albemarle, Currituck, Croatan and Roanoke), and would represent the most expansive service area of any bank ever authorized in this state. Undoubtedly, I will have to work closely with the IRT to gain consensus on this proposal. As you are aware, there is already a mechanism within the Great Dismal Swamp mitigation banking instrument (MBl) that allows for debits outside of the prescribed GSA on a case-by-case basis. This decision is rightfully reserved for the Section 404 permit evaluation process. Accordingly, should you wish to pursue expansion of the GSA for the Timberlake property to include the entire 03010205 HUC, excluding the Outer Banks and Virginia, please submit a written request and I will ensure that a decision is rendered in a timely manner. -2- For the record, you are reminded that the requisite mitigation monitoring reports for Phase H of the Timberlake property for the 2007 monitoring year were never submitted. This has been a perennial problem and I have expressed my concerns to you many times over the years. Consequently, until such time that the 2007 monitoring reports have been submitted, reviewed and accepted, you are hereby notified that no credits will be released from the Phase II segment of the Timberlake bank property until you have fulfilled your reporting obligations under the MBI. Please be reminded that monitoring reports for the 2008 monitoring year are due no later than December 31. Thank you for your time and cooperation. If you have any questions, please contact me at the Washington Regulatory Field Office, telephone (252) 975-1616, extension 22. Sincerely, David M. Lekson, P.W.S. Chief, Washington Regulatory Field Office Enclosure Copies Furnished (with enclosure): Mr. Mike Wicker United States Fish and Wildlife Service Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Post Office Box 33726 Raleigh, North Carolina 27636-3726 Mr. Ron Sechler National Marine Fisheries, NOAA Habitat Conservation Division Pivers Island Beaufort, North Carolina 28516 -3- Mr. John Dorney Division of Water Quality North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources 1650 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650 Ms. Kathy Matthews United States Environmental Protection Agency Wetlands Regulatory Section Mail Code: E143-04 Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711 Mr. Howard Hall United States Fish and Wildlife Service Ecological Services - Raleigh Field Office Post Office Box 33726 Raleigh, North Carolina 27636-3726 Ms. Maria Dunn North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 943 Washington Square Mall Washington, North Carolina 27889 Mr. Eric Kulz Division of Water Quality - Wetlands and Stormwater Branch North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources Mail Service Center 1650 Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650 Ms. Tammy Hill Division of Water Quality - Wetlands and Stormwater Branch North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources Mail Service Center 1650 Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650