NAO-1990-2297 - Maplewood Landfill

Published Jan. 7, 2016
Expiration date: 2/8/2016

January 7, 2016
CENAO-WRR-S
NAO-1990-2297

FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE
The District Commander has received a joint application for Federal and State permits as described below:

APPLICANT
Waste Management
Attn:  Ray McGowan
20221 Maplewood Road
Jetersville, Virginia  23083

WATERWAY AND LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK: The project is located on Maplewood Branch a tributary of the Appomattox and James Rivers and the Chesapeake Bay of at the intersection of U.S.n360 and Maplewood Road in Amelia County, Virginia.

PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE: The applicant proposes to construct a 40-foot overhead utility line corridor to provide electricity to operate two new sump pumps for leachate management to new cells at the Maplewood Landfill and to complete construction of the perimeter road previously permitted but not completed prior to permit expiration. The proposed utility line corridor will convert 0.081 acres of palustrine forested wetlands (PFO) to palustrine emergent wetlands (PEM) and 0.098 acres of scrub shrub wetlands (PSS) to palustrine emergent wetlands for a total of 0.179 acres of conversion impacts. Compensation for wetland impacts will be accomplished by preserving wetland on-site directly next to the existing mitigation area in the following increments: 0.081 credits for conversion of PFO to PEM (1:1 ratio) and 0.075 credits for conversion of PSS to PEM (0.75:1ratio). The proposed perimeter road project will impact 0.266 acres of PFO, 0.004 acres of PSS, 0.176 acres of PEM and 434 linear feet of stream channel. Compensation for wetland impacts will be accomplished by preserving in-kind on-site directly next to the existing mitigation site in the following increments:  0.534 acres of PFO (2:1 ratio), 0.006 acres of PSS (1.5:1 ratio), and 0.176 acres for PEM (1:1ratio). Stream impacts will be compensated for on-site totaling 101 credits and the remaining 250 credits will be purchased from the Amelia Environmental Bank. The applicant demonstrated avoidance and minimization by using the minimum utility corridor width and by shifting the perimeter road and increasing the slope to minimize wetland impacts. 

In 1991, a permit was issued to construct the perimeter road resulting in 2.4 acres of wetland impacts. The compensation for these impacts was accomplished by constructing 5.2 acres of wetlands on-site. This area has expanded for a total of 8.1 acres of wetlands to date. This area consists of some forested, scrub shrub and emergent wetlands. 

In addition to the required Department of the Army permit, the applicant must obtain a Virginia Water Protection Permit from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) assuring that applicable laws and regulations pertaining to water quality are not violated. Project drawings are attached.

AUTHORITY: Permits are required pursuant to Sections 401 and 404 of the Clean Water Act (Public Law 95-217) and Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia.

FEDERAL EVALUATION OF APPLICATION: 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. The decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits which reasonably may be expected from the proposal must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All of the proposal's relevant factors will be considered, including conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, cultural values, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, flood plain values, land use classification, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, consideration of property ownership and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people.  The Environmental Protection Agency's "Guidelines for Specification of Disposal Sites for Dredged or Fill Material" will also be applied (Section 404(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act). 

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 direct, indirect, and cumulative 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. Anyone may request a public hearing to consider this permit application by writing to the District Commander within 30 days of the date of this notice, stating specific reasons for holding the public hearing. The District Commander will then decide if a hearing should be held.

Preliminary review indicates that: (l) no environmental impact statement will be required; (2) after conducting the NAO ESA Project Review Process, there may be an effect to the northern long eared bat species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Official Species List and Species Conclusion Table is attached for review and comment by Fish and Wildlife Service; and (3) no known properties eligible for inclusion or included in the National Register of Historic Places are in or near the permit area, or would likely be affected by the proposal. Additional information might change any of these findings. 

For compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended for projects located in Tidewater, the applicant must certify that federally licensed or permitted activities affecting Virginia's coastal uses or resources will be conducted in a manner consistent with the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program (VCP) and obtain concurrence from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Office of Environmental Impact Review (OEIR). This project is in Amelia Count outside of the CZMA area. It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit a consistency certification to the Office of Environmental Impact Review for concurrence or objection and proof of concurrence must be submitted to the Corps prior to final permit issuance. A template federal consistency certification can be found here: http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/EnvironmentalImpactReview/FederalConsistencyReviews.aspx#cert. For more information or to obtain a list of the enforceable policies of the VCP, contact the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Environmental Impact Review at (804) 698-4330 or e-mail: bettina.sullivan@deq.virginia.gov or john.fisher@deq.virginia.gov.

COMMENT PERIOD: Comments on this project should be made in writing, addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers (ATTN: CENAO-WR-R), 803 Front Street, Norfolk, Virginia  23510-1096, and should be received by the close of business on February 8, 2016.

PRIVACY & CONFIDENTIALITY: Comments and information, including the identity of the submitter, submitted in response to this Public Notice may be disclosed, reproduced, and distributed at the discretion of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  Information that is submitted in connection with this Public Notice cannot be maintained as confidential by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Submissions should not include any information that the submitter seeks to preserve as confidential.

If you have any questions about this project or the permit process, contact Ms. Julie S. Hamilton at (804) 323-3783 or julie.s.hamitlon@usace.army.mil.

Attachment: Drawings