Norfolk District
Project No. NAO-2019-01172
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: The Norfolk District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received a prospectus to establish a tidal wetland compensatory mitigation bank pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344). The purpose of this public notice is to solicit comments from the public regarding the work described below:
SPONSOR:
Nature Bank, LLC
3301 Colley Avenue
Norfolk Virginia 223508
AGENT:
Thomas L. Stokes Jr.
Stokes Environmental Associates, Ltd.
4101 Grandy Street, Suite 404
Norfolk, Virginia 23504
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The proposed compensatory mitigation bank (Bank) is located in the Back River watershed. The consists of five (5) parcels. Parcel 9000122 is 31 acres. Parcel 9000124 is 22 acres. Parcel 9000129 is 40 acres. Parcel 9000092 is 27 acres. Parcel 9000029 is 4.7 acres. Parcels 9000122, 9000124, and 9000129 are located at the north terminus of Howe Road and northern terminus of Haywagon Trail, Hampton, Virginia. Parcel 9000092 is located nearby at the terminus of S. Farm House Lane and parcel 9000029 is located nearby on Brittain Lane in Hampton, Virginia. The parcels are located within the Lynnhaven-Poquoson HUC 02080108.
PROPOSED WORK and PURPOSE: The Sponsor proposes to design, construct, establish, and operate the Bank for the purpose of providing off-site compensatory mitigation for projects that result in unavoidable impacts to waters of the U.S. including wetlands. Work involves minor grading to elevations that provides appropriate hydrology to support the planted vegetation.
The Sponsor is proposing the following credit breakdown:
Tidal Wetland Credit Breakdown
Parcel 9000124 - Vegetated Tidal Creation 2.99
Preservation Spartina Marsh 3.20
Preservation RPA buffer 1.34
Parcel 9000129 - Vegetated Tidal Creation 1.78
Preservation Spartina Marsh 10.33
Preservation RPA buffer 4.23
Parcel 9000029 - Preservation Spartina Marsh 3.30
Preservation RPA Buffer 1.44
Parcel 9000092 - Preservation Spartina Marsh 8.73
Preservation RPA buffer 4.73
Parcel 9000122 - Vegetated Tidal Creation 4.72
Preservation RPA Buffer 3.59
The Bank is located within the Lynnhaven-Poquoson HUC 02080108.
The Sponsor is proposing the primary service area to include HUC’s 02080101, 02080107, 02080206, 02080208, 03010205, and 02040304 within the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Oversight of the Project 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), the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and the Virginia Marine Resources (VMRC) Commission, chair the IRT.
The USACE, the DEQ, and the VMRC provide no guarantee that any individual or general permit will be granted authorization to use the Project to compensate for unavoidable wetland and stream impacts associated with a permit verified, authorized, or issued by the USACE, pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), and/or by the DEQ pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act and Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia and/or the VMRC pursuant to Title 28.2 of the Code of Virginia.
This is not an application for work in waters of the United States.
A copy of the Prospectus and all associated information can be found on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Regulatory In-lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System (RIBITS) website Public Notices (army.mil).
CULTURAL RESOURCES:
Pursuant to 36 CFR 800.2(a)(2) the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Norfolk District Corps) is the lead Federal agency responsible for compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act for the proposed action. Any required consultation will be completed by the Corps.
The Corps is evaluating the undertaking for effects to historic properties as required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. This public notice serves to inform the public of the proposed undertaking and invites comments including those from local, State, and Federal government Agencies with respect to historic resources. Our final determination relative to historic resource impacts may be subject to additional coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO), federally recognized tribes, and other interested parties.
The District Engineer’s final eligibility and effect determination will be based upon coordination with the SHPO and/or Tribal Historic Preservation Office, as appropriate and required, and with full consideration given to the proposed undertaking’s potential direct and indirect effects on historic properties within the Corps-identified permit area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has performed an initial review of the application, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Information for Planning and Consultation (IPaC), to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, and the proposed and final designated critical habitat may occur in the vicinity of the proposed project. Based on this initial review, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that there may be an effect to listed/proposed/candidate species and/or designated/proposed critical habitat.
Pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) any required consultation with the Service(s) will be conducted in accordance with 50 CFR part 402. The Corps is the lead Federal agency for ESA consultation for the proposed action. Any required consultation will be completed by the Corps.
This notice serves as request to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for any additional information on whether any listed or proposed to be listed endangered or threatened species or critical habitat may be present in the area which would be affected by the proposed activity.
The USFWS Information and Planning and Consultation (IPaC) Official Species List and Species Conclusion Table can be found on the RIBITS website Public Notices (army.mil).
NAVIGATION: The proposed activity is not located in the vicinity of a federal navigation channel.
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.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. 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 Sponsor 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.
NOTE: This public notice is being issued based on information furnished by the Sponsor. This information has not been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with laws and regulation governing the regulatory program. The geographic extent of aquatic resources within the proposed project area that either are, or are presumed to be, within the Corps jurisdiction has not been verified by Corps personnel.
EVALUATION: The decision whether to approve the Bank will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact including cumulative impacts of the proposed activity on the public interest. That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits, which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal, must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including cumulative impacts thereof; among these are conservation, economics, esthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historical properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food, and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership, and in general, the needs and welfare of the people. Evaluation of the impact of the activity on the public interest will also include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, EPA, under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act or the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.
COMMENTS: The Corps 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 impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to issue, modify, condition, or deny a permit for this proposal. To make this determination, comments are used to assess impacts to 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 (EA) and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.
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.
The Norfolk District will receive written comments on the proposed work, as outlined above, until June 27, 2025. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs or to Wes Hudson at CENAO_REG_MitigationTeam@usace.army.mil. Alternatively, you may submit comments in writing to the Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, Attention: Wes Hudson, CENAO-WRR), 803 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510-1011, Please refer to the permit application number in your comments.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a public hearing will be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.