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LRH 2019-865-GMR

Published Dec. 16, 2020
Expiration date: 1/15/2021

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: The district engineer has received a request to modify an approved in-lieu fee program (ILFP) instrument to implement an ILFP project within the United States (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), Huntington District regulatory boundary as described in this Public Notice. This Public Notice is required pursuant to the “Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources; Final Rule,” (Rule) as published in the April 10, 2008, Federal Register, Vol. 73, No. 70, Pages 19594-19705 (33 CFR Parts 332). The purpose of this Public Notice is to inform you of the proposed ILFP project and to solicit your comments and information to better able us to make a reasonable decision on factors affecting the public interest.

INTERAGENCY REVIEW TEAM: As indicated in the Corps’ regulations (33 CFR 332.8(b)), the district engineer has established an Interagency Review Team (IRT) to review documentation for the establishment and management of mitigation banks and ILFPs. The Corps, Huntington District (Regulatory Division) is the lead district for the State of Ohio and chairs the Ohio IRT on all statewide or multiple District proposals. The Ohio IRT is presently comprised of the Corps (Buffalo, Huntington, and Pittsburgh Districts), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA).

 

SPONSOR:                The Nature Conservancy (TNC)

6375 Riverside Drive, Suite 100

Dublin, Ohio 43017-5045

 

LOCATION: The proposed ILFP project is located on a 57-acre site parcel approximately 0.5 miles northeast of the intersection of Monroe-Concord Rd and Peters Rd near Concord Township, in Miami County, Ohio (latitude 39.998932°, longitude -84.235379°). 

DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED ACTIVITY: TNC, the sponsor, operates an approved ILFP, which includes the Upper Great Miami watershed (Hydrologic Unit Code: 05080001) as one of its established geographic service areas. They have submitted a proposal to modify their approved ILFP instrument to implement an ILFP project identified as the Wannemacher Nature Preserve In-Lieu Fee Mitigation Project within the Upper Great Miami watershed.

The sponsor states the primary objective of the proposed ILFP project is the restoration of streams, wetlands, and associated buffers. Their goal is to institute an ecologically sound, well-developed and feasible restoration plan to generate in-kind mitigation credits to fulfill advance credits sold in the Upper Great Miami watershed through their approved ILFP for activities authorized by the Corps and the Ohio EPA. A complete copy of the October 2020 Wannemacher Nature Preserve In-Lieu Fee Mitigation Plan is available upon request.

The sponsor indicates the proposed ILFP project has been identified and selected in accordance with the Compensation Planning Framework of their approved ILFP instrument. The sponsor proposes to generate approximately 5,203 stream mitigation credits and 3.7 wetland mitigation credits, as summarized in the table below.

 

Stream or Wetland (Type)

Method of Compensation

Acres (ac)/ Linear Feet (lf)

Estimated Credit Ratio

Estimated Stream Credits

Estimated Wetland Credits

Unnamed Tributary of Boone Creek

Type 1, Level 1 Restoration

2383 (lf)

2:1

4766

--

Extra Riparian Buffer

Type 4 Re-establishment

1747 (lf)

1:4

437

--

Riparian Scrub-Shrub and Forested Wetland

Re-establishment

12.9 (ac)

1:1

--

12.9

Wetland Buffer (50 Meter)

Re-establishment

23 (ac)

1:4

--

4.7

Extra Habitat

Re-establishment

6 (ac)

--

--

--

 

 

 

Total

5,203

17.6

The sponsor proposes specific performance standards for the ILFP project based on measures of physical, chemical, and/or biological integrity. Following completion of construction, the sponsor would submit an as-built report to the Ohio IRT. The ILFP project would be annually monitored relative to the achievement of the performance standards for a minimum period of 10 years. The sponsor would provide monitoring reports to the Ohio IRT describing the findings of the monitoring activities. The sponsor has indicated financial assurances would be provided to help ensure a high level of confidence that the ILFP project would be successfully completed, in accordance with its performance standards.

A long-term management plan, to be implemented following the monitoring period, would be developed, including identification of a long-term manager, a description of long-term management needs, annual cost estimates for those needs, and a funding mechanism to meet those needs. The sponsor proposes to provide long-term protection of the 26.7-acre ILFP project site through the use of an environmental covenant. The site protection instrument would prohibit uses incompatible with the goals and objectives of the proposed ILFP project.

The location and details of the proposed ILFP project are shown on the attached documents (Sheets 1 through 7).

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY PERMITS: The establishment and management of the proposed ILFP project is being considered as a modification to the existing ILFP instrument. Additionally, a Department of the Army (DA) permit would be required under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act for the project activities proposed in within the mitigation work plan. The proposed activities would be evaluated under the Nationwide Permit No. 27 described in the January 6, 2017 Federal Register, Issuance and Reissuance of Nationwide Permits (82 FR 1860).

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: The Ohio EPA has granted Section 401 Water Quality Certification for the verified use of Nationwide Permit No. 27 in Ohio.  If an individual permit is required, an individual Section 401 Water Quality Certification may be required.

HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES: This undertaking must be reviewed to determine any potential effect to properties that may be eligible for or listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The NRHP has been consulted, and it has been determined there are no historic properties currently listed on the NRHP within the area to be affected by the proposed ILFP project. The Corps is soliciting comments from the public, Federal, state, and local agencies and officials, Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the potential effects on historic properties.  If you wish to provide comments or objections regarding the effect of the proposed ILFP project on historic properties, please provide this information to our office prior to the close of the comment period.

THREATENED & ENDANGERED SPECIES: One (1) federally listed threatened species (northern long-eared bat [Myotis septentrionalis]) and one (1) federally listed endangered species (Indiana bat [Myotis sodalis]) have to potential to occur within the proposed ILFP project area. The proposed ILFP project would involve mitigation activities expected to result in stream channel, riparian buffer, wetland, and upland buffer ecological improvements. Based on the nature of the proposed ILFP project, this office has determined the proposed ILFP project may affect but would not likely adversely affect any of the aforementioned threatened or endangered species.  This Public Notice serves as a request for concurrence from the USFWS regarding the aforementioned effect determination and/or for any additional information they may have on whether any listed or proposed to be listed endangered or threatened species may be present in the areas which would be affected by the activities, pursuant to Section 7(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1972 (as amended).

PUBLIC INTEREST REVIEW AND COMMENT:  This proposal will be reviewed in accordance with 33 CFR 320-332, the Regulatory Program of the Corps, and other pertinent laws, regulations, and executive orders. In addition, the evaluation of the impact of the activities on the public interest will include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, USEPA, under the authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act.  Interested parties are invited to state any objections they may have to the proposed work.  Any person who has an interest that may be adversely affected by the approval of this proposed ILFP project may request a public hearing. The request must be submitted in writing to the district engineer on or before the expiration date of this notice and must clearly set forth the interest which may be adversely affected and the manner in which the interest may be adversely affected by the activities. A DA permit may be required under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and/or Section 404 of the Clean Water Act for activities in conjunction with the establishment of this ILFP project. If required, the proposal would be evaluated for compliance with the terms and conditions of Nationwide Permit No. 27 for Aquatic Habitat Restoration, Establishment, and Enhancement Activities or, if determined necessary, an individual DA permit pursuant to the procedures outlined at 33 CFR 325.2 would be required. For individual DA permits, the decision whether to approve the ILFP project will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact, including cumulative impacts, of the proposed activities on the public interest. That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources.  The benefit that reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposals must be balanced against their reasonably foreseeable detriments.  All factors that may be relevant to the proposals will be considered including the cumulative effects thereof; of those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, 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.  Written statements on these factors received in this office on or before the expiration date of this Public Notice will become a part of the record and will be considered in the final determination.

SOLICITATION OF COMMENTS: The Corps is soliciting comments from the public, Federal, state, and local agencies and officials, Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the proposed ILFP project. For accuracy and completeness of the administrative record, all data in support of or in opposition to the proposed work should be submitted in writing setting forth sufficient detail to furnish a clear understanding of the reasons for support or opposition. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to approve, modify, condition or deny these proposals.  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 and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act.  Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.

CLOSE OF COMMENT PERIOD: Comments should be submitted electronically to Wes Barnett by email at wes.barnett@usace.army.mil. If you do not have internet access, comments may be submitted through the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to the following address:

 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

ATTN: CELRH-RD-E Public Notice No. LRH-2019-00865-GMR – UT to Boone Creek

502 Eighth Street

Huntington, West Virginia 25701-2070

 

Copies should only be provided through the USPS when electronic transmission is not possible. Precautionary internal mail handling procedures may be instituted to protect our workforce,  which may result in longer than normal times to process and receive hard copy submissions. To be considered in our evaluation, comments submitted through the USPS should have a postmark dated on, or prior to, the close of the comment period listed on page one (1) of this Public Notice.

Please note comments in response to this Public Notice become part of our administrative record and, as such, may be available to the public under provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.  Thank you for your interest in our Nation's water resources.  If you have any questions concerning this public notice, please contact Mr. Wes Barnett at the above address, by telephone at (304) 399-6905, or by email at wes.barnett@usace.army.mil.