The District Commander has received a joint application for Federal and State permits as described below:
APPLICANT
Shirley Contracting Company, LLC
ATTN: Mr. Chuck Smith
8435 Backlick Road
Lorton, VA 22079
WATERWAY AND LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK: The project is located in unnamed tributaries to Accokeek Creek, a tributary to Potomac Creek, and tributaries of Lower Aquia Creek, a tributary to the Potomac River, on Route 630 west of I-95, in Stafford County, Virginia.
PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE: The applicant proposes to widen and reconstruct 1.9 miles of Route 630 from 800 feet west of its intersection with Ramouth Church (Route 628) to Route 732 (Cedar Lane). In addition to widening to four lanes, the proposed project also includes turn lanes, the realignment of the Route 628 (Ramouth Church & Winding Creek)/Route 630 intersection, construction of stormwater management facilities construction, and a shared use path along the westbound lane and a sidewalk along portions of the eastbound lane to accommodate pedestrian access to Colonial Forge High and Winding Creek Elementary schools. This work will result in permanent impacts to 0.74 acres of wetlands (0.03 ac. emergent (PEM), 0.16 ac. scrub shrub (PSS), 0.55 ac. forested (PFO)) and 300 linear feet of stream (60 lf ephemeral, 101 lf intermittent, 139 perennial). In addition, the applicant proposes temporary impacts to 0.05 ac. of wetlands and 5 lf of stream.
The applicant indicates that while measures to avoid and minimize impacts to wetlands were incorporated, opportunities for such measures were limited because the project involves widening an existing road. The roadway will be constructed with curb and gutters, which reduces wetland impacts by removing the need for roadside ditches. All stormwater management facilities are located in uplands with the exception of one basin that will impact approximately 0.03 ac of wetlands; this basin was re-designed from a previous footprint that would have impacted 0.06 ac.
The applicant proposes to mitigate for all impacts through the purchase of mitigation bank credits at ratios of 2:1 for PFO impacts, 1.5:1 for PSS impacts and 1:1 for PEM impacts, and based on the application of the Unified Stream Methodology for stream impacts.
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 and a permit may be required from the Stafford County Wetlands Board. Selected 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: The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is the lead Federal agency for this project. (l) FHWA prepared a Categorical Exclusion in 2012. No environmental impact statement will be required; (2) The applicant’s consultant coordinated with the Fish and Wildlife Service regarding potential effects to threatened and endangered species using the USFWS Online Project Review system. Two species were identified via IPAC: for Harperella (Ptilimnium nodosum), it was determined that there is no suitable habitat; for the Northern Long-Eared Bat (Myotis septentrionalis), VDOT performed acoustic surveys in 2012 which concluded the probable absence of the bat. The Species Conclusion table submitted to USFWS indicated a No Effect determination for these species. The FHWA effect determinations under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544, 87 Stat. 884, as amended) are pending. It is anticipated that no further coordination with the Fish and Wildlife Service is required; and (3) The Virginia Department of Historic Resources concurred in 2012 that 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). We have not received a certification from the applicant prior to publication of this public notice. 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 in writing and can be sent by either email to alice.w.allen-grimes@usace.army.mil, or by regular mail, addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers (ATTN: CENAO-WR-R), 803 Front Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23510-1011, and should be received by the close of business on May 19, 2017.
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, you may contact Alice Allen-Grimes at 757-201-7219.