Public Notice

SAW-2013-02417

Published Feb. 17, 2017
Expiration date: 3/20/2017

DISCLAIMER: Please download the attached PDF version of this notice for complete information, proper formatting, and inclusion of tables and figures.

PUBLIC NOTICE

 

Issue Date: February 17, 2017

Comment Deadline: March 20, 2017

Corps Action ID Number: SAW-2013-02417

The Wilmington District, Corps of Engineers (Corps) received an application from Camp

Davis Industrial Park Inc., seeking Department of the Army authorization to discharge fill

material into 0.41 acre of wetlands and 3.53 acres of tributaries (ditches), associated with

the construction of commercial office / industrial space in Holly Ridge, Onslow County,

North Carolina.

Specific plans and location information are described below and shown on the attached

plans. This Public Notice and all attached plans are also available on the Wilmington

District Web Site:

http://www.saw.usace.army.mil/Missions/RegulatoryPermitProgram.aspx

Applicant: Camp Davis Industrial Park, Inc.

C/o Thomas C. Rollins

Post Office Box 38

Holly Ridge, North Carolina 28445

AGENT (if applicable): Southern Environmental Group, Inc. (SEGi)

C/o Dana A. Lutheran

5315 South College Road, Suite E

Wilmington, North Carolina 28412

Authority

 

The Corps evaluates this application and decides whether to issue, conditionally issue, or

deny the proposed work pursuant to applicable procedures of the following Statutory

Authorities:

X - Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344)

   - Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403)

   - Section 103 of the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C. 1413)

Location

 

Directions to Site: The site is located at 1 Bacon Drive, within the incorporated limits of

Holly Ridge, Onslow County, North Carolina, on the west side of Hwy 17, approximately

0.2 miles south of its intersection with Hwy 50.

Project Area: 158.27 acres

Nearest Town: Holly Ridge

Nearest Waterway: Unnamed Tributary to Cypress Branch

River Basin: New River

Latitude and Longitude: 34.493414° N, 77.564263° W

Existing Site Conditions

 

The project area was historically used as a spray field to treat wastewater from a meat

processing operation. The majority of the site, including the wetlands, have been cleared

and mowed and are continuously maintained. The site contains 2.742 acres of wetlands

and 4.142 acres of Relatively Permanent Waters / Tributaries. The tributaries on the site

primarily consist of a network of drainage canals, dug primarily through hydric soils and

are dug deep enough (4+ feet) to intercept the shallow water table year round.

Soils throughout the entire site are mapped as Leon fine sand. There is a small forested

wetland approximately 0.10 acre in size located in the center of the site. The vegetation

in this wetland consists of Pinus taeda, Morella cerifera, Baccharis halimifolia and

Asptenium platyneuron. The remaining wetlands on the site are emergent herbaceous

wetlands primarily consisting of Salix nigra, Ludwigia repens, Polygonum

hyropiperoides, Sorghum halepense and Andropogon sp.. The upland portions of the site

consist primarily of Sorghum halepense. The tributaries and wetlands onsite drain to

Cypress Creek, which flows to Batts Mill Creek which is a Traditionally Navigable

Water.

Applicant’s Stated Purpose

 

“To provide commercial office / industrial space, with direct access to Hwy 17, to meet

local and regional demand, in a rapidly growing area of Onslow County, North Carolina.”

Project Description

 

The project includes two phases and will consist of the installation of roads, parking lots,

utilities, stormwater retention ponds and buildings, which will support the industrial

complex (see attached site plan). This will involve permanently filling 0.41 acre of

wetlands and 3.53 acres of RPW / Tributaries (ditches).

Avoidance and Minimization

 

The applicant provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or

minimize impacts to the aquatic environment: “The applicant designed the site plan to

avoid impacting the most functionally valuable wetlands (2.44 acres), which will be

placed into strict preservation.”

Compensatory Mitigation

 

The applicant offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable

functional loss to the aquatic environment: “Due to the low functional value of the

wetlands on this site, and the fact that the majority of impacts will be to ditches,

mitigation is being proposed through preservation of the remaining wetlands within the

property boundaries.” The proposed preservation area includes 2.44 acres of wetlands

and 0.12 acre of RPW / Tributaries (ditches).

Essential Fish Habitat

 

Pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, this

Public Notice initiates the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) consultation requirements. The

Corps’ initial determination is that the proposed project would not effect EFH or

associated fisheries managed by the South Atlantic or Mid Atlantic Fishery Management

Councils or the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Cultural Resources

 

Pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, Appendix C of

33 CFR Part 325, and the 2005 Revised Interim Guidance for Implementing Appendix C,

the District Engineer consulted district files and records and the latest published version

of the National Register of Historic Places and initially determines that:

   - Should historic properties, or properties eligible for inclusion in the National

Register, be present within the Corps’ permit area; the proposed activity requiring

the DA permit (the undertaking) is a type of activity that will have no potential to

cause an effect to an historic properties.

   - No historic properties, nor properties eligible for inclusion in the National

Register, are present within the Corps’ permit area; therefore, there will be no

historic properties affected. The Corps subsequently requests concurrence from

the SHPO (or THPO).

    - Properties ineligible for inclusion in the National Register are present within the

Corps’ permit area; there will be no historic properties affected by the proposed

work. The Corps subsequently requests concurrence from the SHPO (or THPO).

   - Historic properties, or properties eligible for inclusion in the National Register,

are present within the Corps’ permit area; however, the undertaking will have no

adverse effect on these historic properties. The Corps subsequently requests

concurrence from the SHPO (or THPO).

    - Historic properties, or properties eligible for inclusion in the National Register,

are present within the Corps’ permit area; moreover, the undertaking may have an

adverse effect on these historic properties. The Corps subsequently initiates

consultation with the SHPO (or THPO).

X - The proposed work takes place in an area known to have the potential for the

presence of prehistoric and historic cultural resources; however, the area has not

been formally surveyed for the presence of cultural resources. No sites eligible

for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places are known to be present

in the vicinity of the proposed work. Additional work may be necessary to

identify and assess any historic or prehistoric resources that may be present.

The District Engineer’s final eligibility and effect determination will be based upon

coordination with the SHPO and/or THPO, as appropriate and required, and with full

consideration given to the proposed undertaking’s potential direct and indirect effects on

historic properties within the Corps-indentified permit area.

Endangered Species

 

Pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the Corps reviewed the project area,

examined all information provided by the applicant and consulted the latest North

Carolina Natural Heritage Database. Based on available information:

X - The Corps determines that the proposed project would not affect federally listed

endangered or threatened species or their formally designated critical habitat.

   - The Corps determines that the proposed project may affect federally listed

endangered or threatened species or their formally designated critical habitat.

The Corps initiates consultation under Section 7 of the ESA and will not

make a permit decision until the consultation process is complete.

The Corps is not aware of the presence of species listed as threatened or

endangered or their critical habitat formally designated pursuant to the

Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) within the project area. The Corps will

make a final determination on the effects of the proposed project upon additional

review of the project and completion of any necessary biological assessment

and/or consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or National

Marine Fisheries Service.

Other Required Authorizations

 

The Corps forwards this notice and all applicable application materials to the appropriate

State agencies for review.

North Carolina Division of Water Resources (NCDWR): The Corps will generally not

make a final permit decision until the NCDWR issues, denies, or waives the state

Certification as required by Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (PL 92-500). The receipt

of the application and this public notice, combined with the appropriate application fee, at

the NCDWR Central Office in Raleigh constitutes initial receipt of an application for a

401 Certification. A waiver will be deemed to occur if the NCDWR fails to act on this

request for certification within sixty days of receipt of a complete application. Additional

information regarding the 401 Certification may be reviewed at the NCDWR Central

Office, 401 and Buffer Permitting Unit, 512 North Salisbury Street, Raleigh, North

Carolina 27604-2260. All persons desiring to make comments regarding the application

for a 401 Certification should do so, in writing, by March 20, 2017 to:

NCDWR Central Office

Attention: Ms. Karen Higgins, 401 and Buffer Permitting Unit

(USPS mailing address): 1617 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1617

Or,

(physical address): 512 North Salisbury Street, Raleigh, North Carolina 27604

North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (NCDCM):

 

X - The application did not include a certification that the proposed work complies

with and would be conducted in a manner that is consistent with the approved

North Carolina Coastal Zone Management Program. Pursuant to 33 CFR 325.2

(b)(2) the Corps cannot issue a Department of Army (DA) permit for the

proposed work until the applicant submits such a certification to the Corps and

the NCDCM, and the NCDCM notifies the Corps that it concurs with the

applicant’s consistency certification. As the application did not include the

consistency certification, the Corps will request, upon receipt,, concurrence or

objection from the NCDCM.

   - Based upon all available information, the Corps determines that this application

for a Department of Army (DA) permit does not involve an activity which would

affect the coastal zone, which is defined by the Coastal Zone Management (CZM)

Act (16 U.S.C. § 1453).

Evaluation

 

The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable

impacts including cumulative impacts of the proposed activity on the public interest.

That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of

important resources. The benefit which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the

proposal must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors

which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including the cumulative effects

thereof; among those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental

concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, flood plain

values (in accordance with Executive Order 11988), land use, navigation, shoreline

erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy

needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property

ownership, and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. For activities involving

the discharge of dredged or fill materials in waters of the United States, the evaluation of

the impact of the activity on the public interest will include application of the

Environmental Protection Agency’s 404(b)(1) guidelines.

Commenting Information

 

The Corps of Engineers is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State and local

agencies and officials, including any consolidated State Viewpoint or written position of

the Governor; Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate

the impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the

Corps of Engineers to determine whether to issue, modify, condition or deny a permit for

this proposal. To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on endangered

species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects and the other

public interest factors listed above. Comments are used in the preparation of an

Environmental Assessment (EA) and/or an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Comments are also used to

determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the

proposed activity.

Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice,

that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings

shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a

public hearing shall be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues

raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.

The Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District will receive written comments pertinent to

the proposed work, as outlined above, until 5pm, March 20, 2017. Comments should be

submitted to Brennan Dooley, Wilmington Regulatory Field Office,

69 Darlington Avenue, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403 , at (910) 251-4694.

DISCLAIMER: Please download the attached PDF version of this notice for complete information, proper formatting, and inclusion of tables and figures.