NAO-2022-00168
FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE
The District Commander has received a joint permit application for Federal and State permits as described below:
APPLICANT
Captain Christopher T. Horgan, Commander
Naval Weapons Station Yorktown
Attn: Tom Olexa, Natural Resources Manager
160 Main Road, Bldg 406
Yorktown, Virginia 23691
PROJECT LOCATION: The work will occur within the York River along Penniman Spit at the mouth of King Creek at Naval Stations Yorktown Cheatham Annex in Yorktown, Virginia.
PROJECT SIZE: 3 Acres
NEAREST WATERWAY: York River
LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE: 37.281460°, -76.583115°
PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE: The project consists of restoring approximately 2,000 linear feet of eroded shoreline along the historic Penniman Spit which has experienced extensive erosion in recent years. The restoration will include the installation of five rock still, two stone spurs and a stone breakwater to stabilize the shoreline, resulting in impacts to approximately acre of subaqueous bottom. Sand backfill will be placed behind the stone structures resulting in impacts to approximately 2.7 acres of vegetated wetlands, non-vegetated wetlands and subaqueous bottom, and sand nourishment will be planted with Spartina species to reestablish a marsh and dune complex. These impacts are detailed on the attached drawings entitled “Penniman Spit Living Shoreline Project,” dated July 30, 2021, and stamped as received by our office on March 19, 2022.
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION: The restoration template was designed to match the historic footprint of Penniman Spit and resulting in the minimum coverage required to meet the necessary grades to reduce erosion, and to provide the design level of storm protection to maintain the protection of the spit and surrounding waterway. The project will nourish an existing spit with a marsh and dune ecosystem, therefore, there will not be a change in use or habitat types along the shoreline that is different from what currently and historically has existed in the project area.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: No compensatory mitigation is proposed as the impacts associated with the shoreline restoration project will be minor and temporary. The project will impact subaqueous bottom and intertidal beach areas within the York River which is a tidal waterbody off the Chesapeake Bay. The proposed project will be beneficial and self-mitigating as it will restore a marsh spit which was lost over time due to erosion. By restoring the spit, additional habitat will be provided along the shoreline for species found in and along the river, and it will improve water quality by reducing erosion of the shorelines in the immediate vicinity. Therefore, no permanent adverse impacts to waters of the United States are expected and no mitigation is proposed.
In addition, the applicant must obtain an Individual Section 401 Water Quality Certification or waiver from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) assuring that applicable laws and regulations pertaining to water quality are not violated.
The applicant must obtain a permit from the York County Wetlands Board.
A copy of the joint permit application can be found on the Virginia Marine Resources Commission’s website (https://webapps.mrc.virginia.gov/public/habitat/getPDF.php?id=20220565).
AUTHORITY:
(X) Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403).
( ) Sections 401 and 404 of the Clean Water Act (Public Law 95-217) and
Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia.
() Section 103 of the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972
(33 U.S.C. 1413).
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, 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 (EIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. Preliminary review of the application indicates that no EIS will be required.
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.
The Navy is funding the project and therefore has been designated by the Corps as the lead Federal agency to fulfill the collective Federal responsibilities under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (PL 93-205), Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (PL 89-665), and the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, as amended by the Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996 (PL 104-267). The Navy has preliminarily determined that: (l) no environmental impact statement will be required; (2) after conducting informal consultations with the NOAA Protected Resources Division, it was determined that listed/proposed/candidate species and/or designated/proposed critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544, 87 Stat. 884), as amended) will not be adversely affected. Based on this not likely to adversely affect determination, no further coordination with the NOAA is required; (3) after conducting informal consultations with the National Marine Fisheries Service, it was determined that project will not have a substantial adverse effect on Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) and therefore expanded EFH consultation is not required; and (4) Historic Resources eligible for inclusion or included in the NRHP are in or near the Corps permit area or would likely be affected by the proposal, however, the effect will not be adverse. Additional information might change any of these findings.
VIRGINIA’S COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM: For compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended for projects located in Virginia’s Coastal Zone, 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’s Coastal Zone Management Program (Virginia CZM Program), and obtain concurrence from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Office of Environmental Impact Review (OEIR). It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit a consistency certification to the OEIR 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 in the Federal Consistency Manual here: https://www.deq.virginia.gov/permits-regulations/environmental-impact-review/federal-consistency . For more information or to obtain a list of the enforceable policies of the Virginia CZM Program, contact the DEQ-OEIR at (804) 659-1915 or e-mail: bettina.rayfield@deq.virginia.gov.
The applicant has submitted concurrence.
VIRGINIA’S SECTION 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION PROGRAM: The applicant must obtain, from the Virginia DEQ, a Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certification for any federal license or permit that authorizes an activity that may result in a discharge into waters of the U.S. (40 CFR Part 121). As the Certifying Authority, the Virginia DEQ may grant, grant with conditions, or deny a certification request. Alternatively, the Virginia DEQ may waive, expressly or implicitly, its authority to act on a certification request. In either case, a written notice of waiver from DEQ (expressly waived) or from the Corps (implicitly waived), satisfies the project proponent’s requirement to obtain certification.
Pursuant to 33 CFR 325.2(b)(1)(i), this Public Notice serves as the Corps’ CWA § 401(a)(2) notification to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Pursuant to 40 CFR 121.11-13, the EPA shall notify the Corps, the Virginia DEQ, and the applicant, within 30 days of receipt of the application and certification, if the Regional Administrator determines that the proposed discharge may affect the quality of the waters of any neighboring jurisdiction.
COMMENT PERIOD: Comments on this project should be in writing and can be sent by either email to Nicole.l.woodward@usace.army.mil, or by regular mail, addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers (ATTN: CENAO-WRR), 803 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510-1011, and should be received by the close of business on September 22, 2022.
PRIVACY AND 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 Nicole Woodward at 757-201-7122 or nicole.l.woodward@usace.army.
Attachments: Drawings