20170856 Ver 1_WRC Comments_20170731

� North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission �
Gordon Myers, Executive Director
July 31, 2017
Mr. David Brown
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch
151 Patton Avenue, Room 208
Asheville, North Carolina 28801-5006
SUBJECT: Chestnut Park Stream Restoration
Shingle Cove Branch, Haywood County
Dear Mr. Brown:
Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) reviewed an
application to stabilize 360 ft of Shingle Cove Branch in Waynesville, Haywood County.
NCWRC staff visited the site on July 28, 2017. 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).
Project activities should not impact wild trout and do not need to be avoided during a trout
moratorium. Shingle Cove Branch has some areas of bank erosion and incision, especially at its
upstream end. It appears to be evolving towards a stable channel; multiple benches are present
throughout the reach. Upstream of the project reach, the channel appears to be relatively stable,
having evolved to a condition with a floodplain and sinuous and stable channel within it.
The application proposes to stabilize 360 ft of channel with a combination of rock and log vanes,
a bankfull bench, and native vegetation. The design is difficult to follow. We believe that the
design includes structures that are not needed and/or could cause additional instability. A rock
cross vane and two log vanes are set perpendicular to the channel flow, and this position will
likely cause the channel to overwiden.
In order to stabilize the channel, we recommend that a lighter touch be used, sloping back the
eroding banks at a 3:1 slope, creating some additional benches where needed, and planting the
banks with native woody vegetation.
Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, NC 27699-1721
Telephone: [phone] • Fax: [phone]

Chestnut Park Stream Restoration Page 2 July 31, 2017
Shingle Cove Br, Haywood County
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.
3. We recommend that the project incorporate as many native trees, shrubs, wildlflowers, and
grasses as possible. Trees and shrubs are particularly needed near and upstream of the dam,
which is currently maintained in lawn. A woody buffer of at least 30 feet on both sides of the
stream as infrastructure allows can ensure greater bank stability, filter overland pollutants,
provide cool stream temperatures, and provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.
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
ec: Elizabeth Teague, Town of Waynesville
Eric Romaniszyn, Haywood Waterways Association
Amy Annino, NC Division of Water Resources
Scott Loftis, NCWRC