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: Jacksonville Electric Authority
Attention: Hai X. Vu, P.E.
21 West Church Street T-4
Jacksonville, FL 32202
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with Lanceford Creek which discharges into the Nassau River. The project site is located at The JEA Nassau Regional Water Treatment Plant (WTP), located at 96362 Piedmont Drive in Fernandina Beach, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: Travel north on Interstate 95. Take exit 373 onto FL-200, Fl-A1A toward Fernandina Beach. Turn right onto State Road toward Yulee, Amelia Island for 6.2 miles. Turn right onto Amelia Concourse. The destination is on the right after 0.4 miles.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude 30.620793°
Longitude - 81.548287°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: To install a new water supply well and water supply pipeline.
Overall: To install a new water supply well and water supply pipeline to improve the JEA Nassau Regional Water Treatment Plant (WTP) production capacity and system reliability, in Fernandina Beach, Nassau County Florida a design pumping capacity of 2,000 gallons per minute (gpm).
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The wetland system consists of a freshwater system. The onsite vegetation consists of mixed forested swamp, with dominant vegetation includes flattened pipewort (Eriocaulon compressum), broomsedge (Andropogon virginicus), yellow-eyed grass (Xyris sp.), sedges (Rhynchospora spp.), myrtle dahoon (Ilex cassine), gallberry (Ilex glabra), slash pine (Pinus elliottii), and foxtail clubmoss
(Lycopodiella alopecuroides). The existing area surrounding the project area consists of development associated with the urbanized City of Yulee.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to permanently impact 0.68 acres of freshwater wetlands and temporarily impact 0.01 acre of freshwater wetlands.
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:
The wellhead and well site have been located at the Nassau Regional WRF in an area of the property previously impacted by grading activities. The FDEP required setbacks for municipal water supply wells in proximity to wastewater systems and adjacent property lines determined the final placement of the wellsite resulting in 0.68 acres of permanent impact to PEM/PSS wetlands. The pipeline will be collocated within existing utility right-of-ways to the extent possible. The pipeline will be buried, ground surface regraded to original elevations, stockpiled wetland soils replaced, and the corridor allowed to revegetate naturally. Excavations in wetlands are estimated to be completed and regraded within 60 days of construction implementation. Vegetation would be expected to return to existing conditions within 5 years of the project completion. Erosion, sedimentation, and turbidity controls will be utilized at wetland crossings to further minimize water quality impacts to wetlands. Silt fences will be utilized to
reduce erosion and sedimentation to wetlands. The location of silt fences are shown on the project plans. All test well drilling will be kept out of the wetland areas. Discharges from well testing will be clear turbidity free and will be discharged to the west of the well site. Temporary impacts from the construction of the pipeline to wetlands will total 0.01 acres.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
Permanent wetland impacts incurred by the project are proposed to be compensated through purchase of wetland mitigation credits from an approved mitigation bank located in the Lower St. Mary’s and Nassau Basin. Longleaf Mitigation Bank, which services this basin, currently has “general wetland community type” credits available. The bank utilized a Wetland Rapid Assessment Protocol (WRAP) to score functional credits but Unified Mitigation Assessment Method (UMAM) scores can be also be transferred. It is anticipated that 0.36 credits will be required to mitigate the 0.68 acres of permanent impacts to wetlands from the project. UMAM datasheets for permanent impacts to Wetland B and the resulting offsetting credits are provided in Attachment 2.
Restoration of wetlands temporarily impacted (by the pipeline installation) will begin immediately upon completion of the installation. Prior to any trenching for pipeline installation, the top 6 inches of top soil (mucky soils and a wetland plant seed source) will be scraped and stockpiled separately for replacement as the top soil layer after the pipe is installed. The altered ground contours within the wetlands will be regraded and restored to pre-construction elevations so as to maintain natural drainage pattern. The stockpiled mucky top soil will be spread on top, to promote re vegetation of the impacted area. Because of the restorative actions described above, the existing condition of the wetland (previously graded and cleared), and the minimal temporary impacts proposed (0.01 acres) from the pipeline, no additional mitigation activities are proposed.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps has determined the permit area has been extensively modified by previous work and there is little likelihood a historic property may be affected.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the wood stork (Mycteria Americana) or its designated critical habitat. The Corps will request U.S. Fish and Wildlife/National Marine Fisheries Service concurrence with this determination pursuant to 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.
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 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, Post Office Box 4970 Jacksonville, Florida 32232 Permits Section, within 21 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, Danielle D’Amato, in writing at the Jacksonville Permits Section, Post Office Box 4970 Jacksonville, Florida 32232, by telephone at (904) 232-2166, or by electronic mail at Danielle.S.D’Amato@usace.army.mil.
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.