2008-00429; 11-V1819

Published Jan. 16, 2012
Expiration date: 2/15/2012

FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE

The District Engineer and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality have received a joint application for Federal and State permits as described below:

                       

      APPLICANT

Chesterfield County Economic Development

Attn: Mr. Garrett Hart

9401 Courthouse Road

Chesterfield, Virginia 23832

                 

     

WATERWAY AND LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK:  The project site is approximately 1,163 acres and is located north of Bermuda Hundred Road, west of Enon Church Road, south of the James River, and in Chesterfield County, Virginia. The project site drains into the James River.

 

PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE:  The applicant proposes to permanently  impact 1 acre of forested wetlands,  to permanently convert 0.20 acre of forested wetlands to emergent wetlands, and to temporarily impact 0.08 acre of forested wetlands  to continue construction of a county thoroughfare from Meadowville Road to Enon Church Road and Bermuda Hundred Road within the Meadowville Technology Park. The proposed main road corridor and a shorter connector road total approximately 6,200 linear feet . Proposed wetland impacts are for the construction of a road crossing and associated erosion and sediment control measures and a waterline crossing. To mitigate for the proposed permanent impacts the applicant proposes to purchase wetland mitigation credits at a 2:1 ratio.  To mitigate for the proposed wetland conversion the applicant proposes to purchase wetland mitigation credits at a 1:1 ratio.  Total mitigation credits required are 2.2.

 

The applicant indicated that impacts to wetlands have been avoided and minimized by designing the proposed crossings perpendicular to the wetland areas.

 

Previously authorized permanent impacts for the development of the Meadowville Technology Park are 0.3 acre of forested wetlands and 228 linear feet of stream channel.

 

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 individual 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 Engineer within 30 days of the date of this notice, stating specific reasons for holding the public hearing.  The District Engineer will then decide if a hearing should be held.

 

Preliminary review indicates that:  (l) no environmental impact statement will be required; (2) no species of fish, wildlife, or plant (or their critical habitat) listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (PL 93-205) will be affected, 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, the applicant must certify that federally licensed or permitted activities affecting Virginia's coastal zone (Tidewater) will be conducted in a manner consistent with the Virginia Coastal Resources Management Program (VCP). For more information or to obtain a list of the enforceable programs of the VCP, contact the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Environmental Impact Review at (804) 698-4330 or e-mail: elirons@deq.virginia.gov.

 

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, as amended by the Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-267), requires all Federal agencies to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service on all actions, or proposed actions, permitted, funded, or undertaken by the agency, that may adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). Our assessment of the project leads us to a preliminary determination that it will not have an adverse effect on RFH, and expanded EFH consultation is not required because of lack of suitable habitat and EFH resources within the immediate project area. Based on comments from the National Marine Fisheries Service in response to this public notice, further EFH consultation may be necessary.

 

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.

 

COMMENT PERIOD:  Comments on this project should be made in writing, addressed to the Corps of Engineers, Richmond Field Office, 9100 Arboretum Parkway, Suite 235, Richmond, Virginia 23236, and should be received by the close of business  on February 15, 2012.

 

If you have any questions about this project or the permit process, please contact:

 

Silvia Gazzera

(804) 212-6817

silvia.b.gazzera@usace.army.mil

 

FOR THE DISTRICT ENGINEER:

 

 

 

      Lynette R. Rhodes

      Chief, Southern Virginia

      Regulatory Section

 

Attachments: USGS map, Impact maps.