October 11, 2023
CENAO-WRR
NAO-1989-0319; VMRC 23-V1618
FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE
The District Commander has received a joint permit application for Federal and State permits as described below:
APPLICANT
Richard Broad
City of Norfolk
810 Union Street, Suite 700
Norfolk, VA 23510
PROJECT LOCATION:
This is an existing drainage outfall, and the project is located at the intersection of Rogers Avenue and Evergreen Avenue in the Glenwood Park neighborhood in Norfolk, Virginia.
PROJECT SIZE: Approximately 1.02 acres.
NEAREST WATERWAY: Tributary to Willoughby Bay
LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE: 36.9308 north, -76.3095 west
PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND PURPOSE:
The project purpose is to mitigate flooding of roadways and residential properties caused by 10-year storm events within the Glenwood Park neighborhood The applicant is proposing to accomplish this by removing accumulated sediments and invasive vegetation (primarily common reed grass) at an existing drainage outfall and within an unnamed tributary to Willoughby Bay. Approximately 634 cubic yards (18,770 square feet) will be dredged to maintain/create the new drainage channel. The existing channel will be re-established with a clear flowpath, floodplain bench, and stable banks. The tidal marsh zones in the reworked drainage channel will be planted with appropriate herbaceous vegetation, and landward banks will be stabilized with suitable woody vegetation.
The City of Norfolk will regrade/dredge 648 linear feet of existing channel. The project will impact the following aquatic resources: 3,672 square feet (0.084 acres) of permanent and 999 sf (0.023 ac.) of subaqueous bottom impacts; 14,092 sf (0.323 ac) of permanent and 5,354 sf (0.123 ac.) of temporary estuarine emergent wetland impacts; 421 sf (0.010 ac.) of permanent and 751 sf (0.017 ac.) of temporary estuarine forested impacts; 227 sf (0.005 ac.) of permanent and 681 sf (0.016 ac.) of temporary palustrine forested wetland impacts; and 515 sf (0.012 ac.) of permanent and 114 sf (0.002 ac.) of temporary estuarine intertidal aquatic bed impacts.
The permit application can be reviewed at VMRC’s website at the following link:
https://webapps.mrc.virginia.gov/public/habitat/additionaldocs.php?id=20222769
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION:
In an effort to minimize impacts, the applicant will use a turbidity curtain while planting and excavating portions of the new channel, will work in the dry and will use temporary pump-arounds to reduce sedimentation, and will phase the dredging part of this project.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION:
The applicant is proposing permanent and temporary impacts to a stormwater feature that was apparently excavated in uplands in the early 1990’s and then connected to the unnamed tributary to Willoughby Bay. The ecosystem within the project area consists of low-quality wetlands, based on the prevalence of invasive species, impaired flow, and accumulated sediments. The proposed project will provide ecological uplift in the form of replanting with native species, improved flow regime and drainage pattern, enhanced habitat for the native fauna, and more effective filtering of sediment and nutrients, which may result in a reduced pollutant load entering waters of the U.S. The applicant states that this project is self-mitigating, relying on the benefits to and improved function of the natural community. The impacted areas will be re-established as a healthier, more stable tidal complex with a net gain of 666 sf (0.015 ac.) of waters of the U.S.
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.
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/additionaldocs.php?id=20231618
AUTHORITY:
(X) Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403).
(X) 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).
( ) Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 408 (Section 408)).
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.
ENDANGERED SPECIES:
After conducting the Norfolk District Endangered Species Act (ESA) Project Review Process, the Corps has made the preliminary determination that:
No listed/proposed/candidate species and/or designated/proposed critical habitat under the ESA of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544, 87 Stat. 884), as amended, will be affected. Based on this “no effect” determination, no further coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) or National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is required.
Additional information might change any of these findings.
HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES:
No known Historic Resources eligible for inclusion or included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) are in or near the Corps permit area or would likely be affected by the proposal.
Additional information may change any of these findings.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT:
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 NMFS on all actions, or proposed actions, permitted, funded, or undertaken by the agency, that may adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat (EFH).
Willoughby Bay contains EFH for various life stages of seven fish species including summer flounder, red hake, bluefish, Atlantic herring, clearnose skate, black sea bass, and windowpane flounder. The habitat which this project would affect consists of nonvegetated intertidal areas and emergent wetlands vegetated primarily with Phragmites australis. The proposed project is described in Proposed Work and Purpose, above. This project will improve flow into and out of the project area, will replace invasive wetland plant species with more valuable native plants, and will result in better stormwater filtering and nutrient uptake. Our assessment of the project leads us to a preliminary determination that it will not have a substantial adverse effect on EFH and therefore expanded EFH consultation is not required. Our rationale for this preliminary determination is based on the expected short-term nature of the direct impacts, minimal increases in turbidity and water temperature changes, and the lack of submerged aquatic vegetation and anadromous fish spawning habitat (due to unsuitable substrate and shallow water depths). Based on comments from the NMFS in response to this public notice, further EFH consultation may be necessary.
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/our-programs/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 not submitted concurrence.
VIRGINIA’S SECTION 401 WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION PROGRAM:
The Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 401 Certification Rule (Certification Rule, 40 CFR 121), effective September 11, 2020, requires certification, or waiver, for any license or permit that authorizes an activity that may result in a discharge. The scope of a CWA Section 401 certification is limited to ensuring that a discharge from a Federally licensed or permitted activity will comply with water quality requirements. To comply with the Virginia Section 401 Water Quality Certification Program and the Certification Rule, the applicant is responsible for adhering to the procedures outlined in the Certification Rule when requesting certification from the certifying authority, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. In accordance with Certification Rule part 121.12, the Corps will notify the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator when it has received a Department of the Army (DA) permit application and the related certification. The Administrator is responsible for determining whether the discharge may affect water quality in a neighboring jurisdiction. The DA permit may not be issued pending the conclusion of the Administrator’s determination of effects on neighboring jurisdictions.
COMMENT PERIOD:
Comments on this project should be in writing and can be sent by either email to Katherine.t.hollingsworth@usace.army.mil or by regular mail, addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers (ATTN: CENAO-WRR, Katherine T. Hollingsworth), 803 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510-1011, and should be received by the close of business on November 10, 2023.
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 Ms. Taylor Hollingsworth at Katherine.t.hollingsworth@usace.army.mil or by telephone at (757) 201-7044.
Attachments: