HomeMy WebLinkAbout20021794 Ver 1_Mitigation Site Visit_20090129
Beverly Eaves Perdue, Governor
Dee Freeman, Secretary
North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Coleen H. Sullins, Director
Division of Water Quality
January 29,2009
Mr. Bill Biddlecome and Mr. William Wescott
Washington Regulatory Field Office
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
P,O. Box 1000
Washington, NC 27889-1000
Re: Neu-Con Mitigation Bank
Westbrook Lowgrounds (Johnston County) DWQ # 20020569
Alexander Wetland Mitigation Site (Greene County) DWQ # 20021794
Casey-King Wetland Mitigation Site (Lenoir County) DWQ # 20011644
Marston Mitigation Project (Jones County) DWQ # 20031035
Nahunta Mitigation Project (Wayne County) DWQ # 20040895
Dear Mr. Biddlecome and Mr, Wescott:
The Division of Water Quality (DWQ) 401 Oversight and Express Review Permitting Unit conducted
site visits with the Mitigation Bank Review Team (MBRT) on January 27-28,2009, We appreciate the
opportunity to coordinate site review with the other agencies, and we have provided our comments
below for your consideration.
Westbrook Lowgrounds
· The stream was observed to be stable and developing expected functionality, DWQ supports
release from monitoring with full stream credit.
· Vegetation was observed to be generally dense and vigorous. Many individuals of tree species
characteristic of the targeted wetland type have become well-established and quite large, The
trend appears to be toward a diverse vegetative community. DWQ supports release from
vegetation monitoring.
· Wetland hydrology appears to have been restored over the majority of the site. The notable
exception is in the southern portion of the restoration area where wells A W -I and A W -6 have
demonstrated continual saturation during only two to six percent of the growing season based on
2003-2007 data. A jurisdictional delineation map developed by EcoScience was presented to the
MBR T at the site visit. Our observations of soils and hydrologic conditions indicated that it
would be necessary to collect more data points in order to determine which areas are uplands
(<5%), jurisdictional wetlands (5-9%), and wetlands meeting success criteria (minimum 9%
continual saturation during growing season). Once the data analysis is provided, we will work
with the MBRT to make a decision about the amount of wetland mitigation credit generated by
the project.
~rthCarolina
!Votllrn//If
401 Oversight/Express Review Permitting Unit
1650 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carol ina 27699-1650
232 J Crabtree Boulevard, Suite 250, Raleigh, North Carolina 27604
Phone (919) 733-1786 / Fax (919) 733-6893
Internet: http://h2o.em.state . nc. us/ncwetlands
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Mr. Biddlecome and Mr. Wescott
US Army Corps of Engineers
Neu-Con Umbrella Mitigation Bank
Page 2 of3
Alexander Wetland Mitigation Site
· DWQ is satisfied with the trajectory of wetland community development on the site. We support
release from monitoring and closeout with full mitigation credit.
Casey-King Wetland Mitigation Site
· DWQ is satisfied with the trajectory of wetland community development on the site, We support
release from monitoring and closeout with full mitigation credit.
Marston Mitigation Proiect
· In many areas, planted trees have been stunted by some combination of herbivory and poor soils.
However, there are also areas in which planted (e.g. bald cypress) and volunteer (e.g, sycamore)
trees are growing vigorously, Overall, the project has met the tree counts required in the success
criteria,
. The wetland restoration boundary was difficult to determine from maps available at the site visit.
The bank sponsor committed to producing an overlay of the projected wetland mitigation line
with monitoring points. Once the MBRT has had an opportunity to compare the map with notes
from the site visit, we will work with you to finalize the credits generated by the project.
Nahunta Mitigation Proiect
. The MBRT visited the Gonder Tract on January 27, 2009. A lack of hydrology, possibly related
to inclusions of sandy soils and water table interactions with the adjacent canal, appeared to be
impacting both the stream and wetland components in some areas of this tract. The MBR T
discussed these issues with the bank sponsor in the field, Proposed actions to be performed in
the drier section of the tract included 1,) installation of another crest gauge and a monitoring well
in the stream channel, and 2.) compilation and analysis of hydrology modeling and monitoring
data.
. As noted in previous letters, the site has shown variable success in meeting both success criteria
and minimum wetland hydrology. While some tracts (Edmundsen North and South) have
generated data indicating success, other tracts (Cole, Tapp, Cook) have had mixed results. The
entire site will need to be explored more thoroughly in order to determine the amount of
mitigation credit present. It is our understanding that the bank sponsor plans to submit a tract-
by-tract analysis of site conditions to the MBRT during monitoring year 5 (2009).
If you have any questions related to our comments or this mitigation bank, please feel free to contact
Tammy Hill or Eric Kulz at (919) 733-1786.
Sincerely,
~((jj-~
Cyndi B. Karoly, Program Manager
401 Oversight and Express Review Progr~m
N2{thCarolina
/Valurn//!!
401 Oversight/Express Review Permitting Unit
1650 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650
2321 Crabtree Boulevard, Suite 250, Raleigh, North Carolina 27604
Phone (919) 733-1786 / Fax (919) 733-6893
Internet: httO://h2o.enr.state. nc. us/ncwetlands
An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer - 50% Recycled/10% Post Consumer Paper
Mr, Biddlecome and Mr. Wescott
US Army Corps of Engineers
Neu-Con Umbrella Mitigation Bank
Page 3 of3
Cc: File Copy (Tammy Hill)
Matt Matthews - DWQ, Wetlands and Stormwater Branch
Kathy Matthews - USEP A
Howard Hall - USFWS
Ron Sechler - National Marine Fisheries Service
Travis Wilson - NCWRC
N~lthCarolina
/Vall/rnll!!
401 OversightlExpress Review Pennitting Unit
1650 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1650
2321 Crabtree Boulevard, Suite 250, Raleigh, North Carolina 27604
Phone (919) 733-1786/ Fax (919) 733-6893
Internet: http://h2o.enr.state.nc.us/ncwetlands
An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer - 50% Recycled/10% Post Consumer Paper