TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: The Jacksonville District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received an application for a Department of the Army permit pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344) as described below:
APPLICANT: Mark Graham, 223 Lagoon Drive, Dunedin, FL 34698
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with the Homosassa River. The project site is located on two vacant parcels at 9731 West Fishbowl Drive (a.k.a Tax Parcel Altkey Numbers 2688645 and 1139350), in Section 28, Township 19 South, Range 17 East, Homosassa, Citrus County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: From U.S Highway 19/South Suncoast Boulevard in Homosassa, head west on West Halls River Road. Turn south onto West Fishbowl Drive. Proceed on West Fishbowl Drive for approximately 0.70 of a mile. The project site is accessible via a gated drive on the north side of the road.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 28.798280° / Longitude -82.597818°
PROJECT PURPOSE: Basic: The basic project purpose is residential construction. / Overall: The overall project purpose is the construction of a single-family residence with riparian access to the Homosassa River.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The wetland system consists of a freshwater forested wetland system adjacent to a tidally influenced section of the Homosassa River. The onsite vegetation consists primarily of Carolina/Pop ash, with Sabal palm, winged Elm, and Dog woods. The existing area surrounding the project area consists of two vacant lots, totaling 6.16 acres, zoned for residential development. The project site overall contains 2 acres more or less of uplands and 4 acres more or less of forested wetlands.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to discharge 1,207 cubic yards of fill material into 0.25 acre of wetlands adjacent to the Homosassa River in order to construct a single-family residence and attendant features including a septic system and storm water treatment area.
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION INFORMATION – The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment: According to the applicant, the home site is designed to straddle the two vacant lots in order to utilize the largest upland expanse in the northern extent of the two parcels, and to partially use an existing access drive to avoid wetland impacts. In order to minimize wetland impacts, the applicant proposes to utilize proper erosion control and turbidity control measures during the construction of the proposed residence.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment: The applicant proposes to preserve 3.86 acres of onsite wetlands along with 1.31 acres of onsite uplands to offset the unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment resulting from the proposed project.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps is not aware of any known historic properties within the permit area. By copy of this public notice, the Corps is providing information for review. Our final determination relative to historic resource impacts is subject to review by and coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer and those federally recognized tribes with concerns in Florida and the Permit Area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has determined the proposed project is not likely to adversely affect the Wood stork. The Corps utilized the Effect Determination Key for the Wood Stork, dated September 2008 (Wood Stork Key). Use of the Key resulted in the following sequential determination: A > B > C(1) > NLAA. The proposed project is not located within the core foraging area for any know colony. The proposed work would impact less than 0.5 acre of suitable foraging habitat. The project site is located 18 miles southwest of the nearest documented Wood stork colony. Thus, the key referenced above supports a NLAA determination for the Wood stork. According to the key referenced above, no further consultation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is required to satisfy the consultation requirements of Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): This notice initiates consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996. The proposal would impact approximately 0.25 acre of forested wetlands adjacent to the Homosassa River. It is not likely that any species under NMFS purview utilize these wetlands. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. Our final determination relative to project impacts and the need for mitigation measures is subject to review by and coordination with the National Marine Fisheries Service.
NOTE: This public notice is being issued based on information furnished by the applicant. This information has not been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with laws and regulation governing the regulatory program. The jurisdictional line has not been verified by Corps personnel.
AUTHORIZATION FROM OTHER AGENCIES: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and/or one of the state Water Management Districts.
COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Jacksonville Permits Section, Gainesville Field Office, 2833 NW 41st Street Unit 130, Gainesville, Florida 32606, within 30 days from the date of this notice.
The decision whether to issue or deny this permit application will be based on the information received from this public notice and the evaluation of the probable impact to the associated wetlands. This is based on an analysis of the applicant's avoidance and minimization efforts for the project, as well as the compensatory mitigation proposed.
QUESTIONS concerning this application should be directed to the project manager, James “Bo” Davidson, in writing at the Jacksonville Permits Section, Gainesville Field Office, 2833 NW 41st Street Unit 130, Gainesville Field Office; by electronic mail at james.e.davidson2@usace.army.mil; by facsimile transmission at (352) 264-7733; or, by telephone at (352)264-7672.
IMPACT ON NATURAL RESOURCES: Coordination with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Marine Fisheries Services, and other Federal, State, and local agencies, environmental groups, and concerned citizens generally yields pertinent environmental information that is instrumental in determining the impact the proposed action will have on the natural resources of the area.
EVALUATION: 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. 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.
The US Army Corps of Engineers (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 also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.
COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT CONSISTENCY: In Florida, the State approval constitutes compliance with the approved Coastal Zone Management Plan. In Puerto Rico, a Coastal Zone Management Consistency Concurrence is required from the Puerto Rico Planning Board. In the Virgin Islands, the Department of Planning and Natural Resources permit constitutes compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Plan.
REQUEST FOR PUBLIC HEARING: Any person may request a public hearing. The request must be submitted in writing to the District Engineer within the designated comment period of the notice and must state the specific reasons for requesting the public hearing.