February 2, 2023
CENAO-WRR
NAO-2022-02783 (Rapidan Mill Dam Mitigation Bank)
FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE
The District Engineer received a prospectus to establish a stream compensatory mitigation site for Federal and State permits as described below:
SPONSOR
Ecotone LLC (Ecotone)
attn: Matt Hubbard
129 Industry Lane
Forest Hill, Maryland 21050
Latitude and Longitude: 38.3103 N, -78.0666 W
WATERWAY AND LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK: The proposed compensatory mitigation site (Site) is a dam removal project located on the Rapidan River. The Site is located at Rapidan Road and Old Rapidan Road, in Orange County, Virginia. The Site is located within the Rapidan-Upper Rappahannock Subbasin and the Lower Chesapeake Bay Basin.
PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE: The Sponsor proposes to design, construct, establish and operate a stream compensatory mitigation site known as the Rapidan Mill Dam Mitigation Bank (Bank). This work is proposed to be accomplished through removing the Rapidan Mill Dam. The purpose of the Bank is to provide off-site compensatory mitigation for projects that result in unavoidable impacts to streams and waters of the United States.
The Sponsor proposes to construct the Bank in one (1) Phase. The Sponsor proposes the following stream credit breakdown:
Stream Credit Breakdown:
Credits proposed based on the effective impoundment length (26,000 LF in Rapidan River and 8,000 L.F. in the Robinson River) and relevant adjustment factors (AF).
|
Baseline: Impoundment Length, Riverine Aquatic Habitat, and Water Quality
|
1.0
|
34,000
|
|
|
AF 1: Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Species
|
0.3
|
10,200
|
|
|
AF 2: Diadromous Species Fish Passage (American Shad)
|
0.1
|
3,400
|
|
|
AF 2: Diadromous Species Fish Passage (Striped Bass)
|
0.1
|
3,400
|
|
|
AF 2: Diadromous Species Fish Passage (Blueback Herring)
|
0.1
|
3,400
|
|
|
AF 2: Diadromous Species Fish Passage (American Eel)
|
0.1
|
3,400
|
|
|
AF 2: Diadromous Species Fish Passage (Alewife)
|
0.1
|
3,400
|
|
|
AF 3: Tier 1 Priority for Fish Passage
|
0.3
|
10,200
|
|
AF 4: Impoundment Rapidan/Mainstem (6th order)
|
1.5
|
39,000
|
|
AF 5: Impoundment Robinson (5th order)
|
1.2
|
9,600
|
| AF 6: Downstream Functional Benefits |
0.2 |
6,800 |
|
Total Mitigation Credits Proposed
|
|
130,200
|
|
The Bank is located within Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) 02080103. The Sponsor is proposing that the geographic service area (GSA) for the Bank shall include the entire Rappahannock HUC 02080103 and HUC 02080104.
Oversight of Bank would be by an existing group of federal and state agency representatives. This interagency oversight group is known as the Interagency Review Team (IRT). The Norfolk District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) chair the IRT.
The actual approval of the use of the Bank for a specific project is the decision of USACE pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and/or by DEQ pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act and Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia. USACE and DEQ provide no guarantee that any individual or general permit will be granted authorization to use the Bank to compensate for unavoidable wetland or stream impacts associated with a proposed permit. Authorization by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission may also be required.
AUTHORITY: Issuance of a public notice regarding proposed compensatory mitigation sites is required pursuant to the “Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources; Final Rule,” (Rule) as published in the April 10, 2008, Federal Register, Vol. 73, No. 70, Pages 19594-19705 (33 CFR Parts 325 and 332).
FEDERAL EVALUATION OF PROPOSAL: USACE is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, state, and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other interested parties to consider and evaluate this proposed mitigation site. This is not an application for work in waters of the United States. USACE is evaluating this proposal and will consider any comments received. Comments are used to assess impacts on endangered species, historic properties, water quality, conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, 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, and consideration of property ownership.
Preliminary review indicates that: (1) no environmental impact statement would be required; (2) after conducting the Norfolk District ESA Project Review Process, there may be an affect to species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Official Species List and Species Conclusion Table located at Public Notices (army.mil) ; and (3) no known properties eligible for inclusion or included in the National Register of Historic Places are in the Bank property. Additional information might change any of these findings.
COMMENT PERIOD: Comments on this project should be made in writing, addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers-(ATTN: Charlottesville Field Office), Mr. Vinny Pero, at the address below, or via email at vincent.d.pero@usace.army.mil. and should be received by the close of business on March 6, 2023. The Prospectus and Drawings can be viewed at: Public Notices (army.mil)
NOTE: RIBITS is no longer supported by Internet Explorer (IE). Please use a different browser to access the above link.
If you have any questions about this Bank, please contact:
Mr. Vinny Pero
920 Gardens Blvd., Suite103-B
Charlottesville, Virginia 22901
757-297-0011
vincent.d.pero@usace.army.mil