20171312 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20171201

9 North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 0
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
01 December 2017
Mr. Thomas Blackwell
HDR
440 South Church Street, Suite 1000
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202
SUBJECT: Pre -Construction Notification for the Salt Barn Tributary Regenerative Stormwater
Conveyance Project, Guilford County, North Carolina. DEQ No. 20171312.
Dear Mr. Blackwell,
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) have reviewed the subject
document. Comments are provided in accordance with provisions of the Clean Water Act of 1977 (as
amended) and Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act Wildlife Coordination Act (48 Stat. 401, as amended;
16 U.S.C. 661 et seq.).
HDR, on behalf of the City of Greensboro, has submitted a Pre -Construction Notification application for
the Salt Barn Tributary Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance project located adjacent to 2252 Randolph
Avenue in Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina. The project will stabilize the Salt Barn
Tributary, which drains an existing settling basin adjacent to the City of Greensboro salt storage facility,
and to reduce the pollutant load that drains into Mile Run Creek. The Salt Barn Tributary is an unnamed
tributary to Mile Run Creek in the Cape Fear River basin. Mile Run Creek is classified as a Water Supply
V and Nutrient Sensitive Water by the N.C. Division of Water Resources (NCDWR). Mile Run Creek
occurs within the Lake Jordan Nutrient Sensitive Waters watershed.
The proposed project includes the installation of a diversion box with a flow splitter to divert low -flow
runoff into an oil/water separator, and stabilize the existing channel using a series of 12 rock step -pool
structures. The project would result in 80 linear feet of permanent impacts to the Salt Barn Tributary.
We have historical records for the state special concern Greensboro burrowing crayfish (Cambarus
catagius) within the vicinity of the project. We have no other records of federally or state -listed rare,
threatened, or endangered species within or near the site. HDR conducted on-site surveys for federal
protected species and none were documented within the project area.
The NCWRC offers the following recommendations to minimize impacts to aquatic and terrestrial
wildlife resources:
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

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1. Where feasible, establish and/or maintain a minimum 100 -foot undisturbed, native forested
riparian buffer along perennial streams, and a minimum 50 -foot buffer along intermittent streams
to provide habitat areas for aquatic and terrestrial wildlife species. In addition, forested riparian
buffers protect water quality by stabilizing stream banks and filtering stormwater runoff.
2. The Greensboro burrowing crayfish may occur within or adjacent to the site; therefore, NCWRC
would like to survey the area prior to construction. Please contact Brena Jones, the Central
Aquatic Wildlife Diversity Research Coordinator, at 919-707-0369 or
brena. j ones (a)ncwildlife. org.
3. Re -seed disturbed areas with seed mixtures that are beneficial to wildlife. Avoid using
Bermudagrass, redtop, tall fescue, and lespedeza, which are invasive and/or non-native and
provide little benefit to wildlife.
4. We are pleased to see the project will reduce pollutants and stabilize the existing channel. To
increase the potential for further reducing salt and additional pollutants, we recommend using
phytoremediation, which uses living plants to remove, transfer, stabilize, and/or destroy
contaminants. Several native species may provide phytoremediation of salt and other pollutants
in the project area, including hybrid cottonwood (Populus spp.), willow (Salix sp.), eastern
baccharis (Baccharis halimifolia), cattail (Typha sp.), and other species (Fumulari, n.d.; Jesus et
al., 2014; Liang et al., 2016). We recommend planting these species around the settling basin,
within the project area, and/or in a rain garden/bioretention pond.
5. Sediment and erosion control measures should be installed prior to any land -disturbing
activity. The use of biodegradable and wildlife -friendly sediment and erosion control
devices is strongly recommended. Silt fencing, fiber rolls and/or other products should have
loose -weave netting that is made of natural fiber materials with movable joints between the
vertical and horizontal twines. Silt fencing that has been reinforced with plastic or metal mesh
should be avoided as it impedes the movement of terrestrial wildlife species. Excessive silt and
sediment loads can have detrimental effects on aquatic resources including destruction of
spawning habitat, suffocation of eggs, and clogging of gills.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this permit application. Further information on
phytoremediation and free technical guidance from the NCWRC, please contact me at [phone] or
olivia.munzerAncwildlife. org.
Sincerely,
Olivia Munzer
Western Piedmont Habitat Conservation Coordinator
Habitat Conservation Program

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Literature Cited
Famulari, S. n.d. Phytoremediation Database. Accessed on 01 December 2017. Available at
http://www.steviefamulari.net/phytoremediation/inde? .php
Jesus, J.M., C.S. Calheiros, P.M. Castro, and M.T. Borges. 2014. Feasibility of Typha Latifolia for High
Salinity Effluent Treatment in Constructed Wetlands for Integration in Resource Management
Systems. International Journal of Phytoremediation 16(4):334-46.
Liang, L., W. Liu, Y. Sun, X. Huo, S. Li, and Q. Zhou. 2016. Phytoremediation of Heavy Metal -
Contaminated Saline Soils Using Halophytes: Current Progress and Future Perspectives.
Environmental Reviews. Available at
hlt 2s:Htspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/76770/1/er-2016-0063.pdf
ec: Sue Homewood, NCDWR
David Bailey, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Brena Jones, NCWRC