20170957 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20170823

9 North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 9
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
August 23, 2017
Ms. Amanda Fuemmeler
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Gibson Branch Restoration
UT Sandymush Creek, Buncombe County
Dear Ms. Fuemeller:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to stabilize 250 ft of an unnamed tributary (UT) to Sandymush Creek in Buncombe
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 application proposes to stabilize 250 feet of channel by installing log sill structures and
planting a 30 ft buffer of native vegetation. Project activities should not impact wild trout and do
not need to be avoided during a trout 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 should 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.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Gibson Branch Restoration Page 2 August 23, 2017
UT Sandymush Cr, Buncombe 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.
Sincerely,
Andrea Leslie
Mountain Region Coordinator, Habitat Conservation Program
cc: Dena Chandler, Equinox Environmental
Zan Price, NC Division of Water Resources