TO
WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: Comments are
invited on the work described below.
Please see the Public Involvement section for details on
submitting comments.
Point of Contact. If additional
information is desired, please contact the project manager,
Jim Ellis,
telephone number:
(501) 324-5295, mailing address: Little Rock District Corps of Engineers,
Regulatory Division, PO Box 867, Little Rock, Arkansas 72203-0867, email address:
Jim.D.Ellis@usace.army.mil
Project
Information. Pursuant to
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S. Code 1344),
notice is hereby given that
Mr. Charles Jones
McGeorge Contracting Company, Inc.
P.O. Box 408
Sweet Home, Arkansas 72164
has
requested authorization for the placement of fill material in waters of the
United States associated with the disposal of excavated material resulting from
the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) relocation project of
Arkansas Highway 25, north of Conway, Arkansas.
The proposed project would impact (fill) approximately 353 linear feet
of a jurisdictional ephemeral stream and 2.2 acres of a jurisdictional man-made
pond, which includes a wetland fringe.
Water flow enters the project area through the ephemeral stream that
originates approximately 200 linear feet to the east in steep terrain surrounding
the man-made pond/wetland. The ephemeral
stream flows into the man-made pond/wetland, then west into Tupelo Creek,
Cadron Creek and then south-southwest into the Arkansas River. The proposed project is located immediately north
of Conway and west of Arkansas Highway 25, in the NW 1/4 of section 26, T. 6
N., R. 14 W., Faulkner County, Arkansas.
The
basic purpose of the project is to provide a disposal area for a construction
project. The overall purpose of the
project is to provide a disposal area for excavated material near Beaver Fork
Lake resulting from the relocation of Highway 25 by the AHTD. The project is not water dependent.
To
accomplish the project, approximately 40 cubic yards of fill material will be
placed into 353 linear feet of a jurisdictional ephemeral stream and
approximately 35,500 cubic yards of fill material will be placed into 2.2 acres
of a jurisdictional man-made pond/wetland.
The
applicant has investigated other alternatives to the project that include: 1) disposal
of the fill material on the proposed property but outside waters of the United
States; 2) disposal of the fill material at another property (Ross Property)
located south of the proposed property; and 3) hauling the fill material to
other disposal sites located miles from the proposed project site. The applicant stated that, alternative 1, would
result in erosion problems in the immediate area due to the steep terrain
surrounding the proposed disposal site.
The applicant stated that alternative 2, disposing on the property
located south of the proposed project area, would involve cultural resources
and alternative 3, hauling the fill material miles from the project area, would
be cost prohibitive.
Compensatory
mitigation requirements for impacts to the ephemeral stream and man-made
pond/wetland will be assessed utilizing the 2011 Little Rock District Stream
Method for streams and the 2002 Charleston Method for wetland impacts. The applicant proposes to conduct
permittee-responsible on-site compensatory mitigation or purchase compensatory
mitigation credits from an approved mitigation bank that services the area.
Typical
best management practices such as silt fencing and other construction methods
will be used to mitigate impacts to water quality and other resources.
The
project location, general plan for the proposed work and stream and pond locations
are shown on the enclosed sheets, 1 through 6. Sheet Number 3 denotes the approximate
location of the jurisdictional ephemeral stream and jurisdictional pond/wetland
on the property.
Water
Quality Certification.
By copy of this public notice, the applicant is requesting water quality
certification from the Arkansas Department of
Environmental Quality (ADEQ) in accordance with Section 401(a)(1)
of the Clean Water Act. Upon completion
of the comment period and a public hearing, if held, a determination relative
to water quality certification will be made.
Evidence of this water quality certification or waiver of the right to
certify must be submitted prior to the issuance of a Corps of Engineers permit.
Cultural
Resources. A Corps staff
archeologist will review topographic maps, the National Register of Historic
Places, and other data on reported sites in the area. The District Engineer invites responses to
this public notice from Native American Nations or tribal governments; Federal,
State, and local agencies; historical and archeological societies; and other
parties likely to have knowledge of or concerns with historic properties in the
area.
Endangered
Species. Our preliminary
determination is that the proposed activity will not affect listed Endangered
Species or their critical habitat. A
copy of this notice is being furnished to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
and appropriate state agencies and constitutes a request to those agencies for
information on whether any listed or proposed‑to‑be‑listed endangered or
threatened species may be present in the area which would be affected by the
proposed activity.
Floodplain. We are
providing copies of this notice to appropriate floodplain officials in accordance
with 44 CFR Part 60 (Floodplain Management Regulations Criteria for Land
Management and Use) and Executive Order 11988 on Floodplain Management.
Section
404(b)(1) Guidelines.
The evaluation of activities to be authorized under this permit, which
involves the discharge of dredged, or fill material will include application of
guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency,
under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act. These guidelines are contained in 40 Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) 230.
Public
Involvement. Any interested
party is invited to submit to the above-listed POC written comments or
objections relative to the proposed work on or before April 18, 2016. Substantive comments, both favorable and
unfavorable, will be accepted and made a part of the record and will receive
full consideration in determining whether this work would be in the public
interest. The decision whether to issue
a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact 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, 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.
The
Corps of Engineers 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 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 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.
Any
person may request in writing within the comment period specified in this
notice that a public hearing be held to consider this application. Requests for public hearings shall state,
with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. The District Engineer will determine if the
issues raised are substantial and whether a hearing is needed for making a
decision.
NOTE: The mailing list for this Public Notice is
arranged by state and county(s) where the project is located, and includes any
addressees who have asked to receive copies of all public notices. Please discard notices that are not of
interest to you. If you have no need for
any of these notices, please advise us so that your name can be removed from
the mailing list.
Enclosures
Approximate
Coordinates of Project Center
Latitude: 35.12886 Longitude: -92.46117
UTM Zone: 15 North: 3887466.1 East: 549092.2