TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: The Jacksonville District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received a complete prospectus proposing the establishment of a mitigation bank pursuant to the 2008 Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources regulations (33 CFR Part 332) as described below:
APPLICANT: Southern States Land and Timber, LLC
Russell Walters
203 Main Street,
Franklin, LA 70538
LOCATION: The proposed project, identified as the 202.96-acre Lesley Mitigation Bank (LEMB), is located south of Lake Hatchineha Road between Tyner and Jim Edwards Roads within Sections 19 and 30, Township 28S, Polk County, Florida.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude: 28° 02’ 09.79” N
Longitude: 81° 33’ 06.85” W
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY: Pursuant to 33 CFR 332.8(d)(4), the Corps has posted a full copy of the LEMB prospectus online so that it is available for review by the public. The prospectus may be downloaded from the Regulatory In-Lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System (RIBITS) at web address: https://ribits.usace.army.mil.
Once on the RIBITS homepage, select "Jacksonville" from the "ALL DISTRICTS" drop down menu located in the lower left corner of the screen. Once the district filter has been selected, click on the “Banks & ILF Sites” link located in the Navigation box (upper left corner). This will generate a list of projects, scroll down the list and click on the “LEMB” link. On this page, click on the "Cyber Repository" link located on the menu bar above the General Information box, then click on the Prospectus Documents folder to access the prospectus associated with the LEMB project.
If you are unable to access the web address, a copy of the prospectus is available upon request to the project manager listed at the end of this public notice.
PROJECT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: The applicant seeks authorization to restore and permanently protect the hydrology and wildlife habitat of 202.96 acres of wetland habitats and adjacent upland buffer habitats while increasing the wetland function of the Kissimmee River watershed on the Lake Wales Ridge. Specific restoration objectives include:
- Rehabilitation of 39.78 acres of freshwater marsh that provide flood attenuation, nutrient cycling, aquifer recharge, and wildlife habitat within the watershed.
- Rehabilitation of 46.22 acres of wet prairie that provides flood attenuation, water quality treatment, nutrient cycling, aquifer recharge, and wildlife habitat within the watershed.
- Establishment of 68.27 acres of wet prairie that will provide additional flood attenuation, water quality treatment, nutrient cycling, aquifer recharge, and wildlife habitat within the watershed.
- Creation of a 2.72 acre stormwater treatment area to capture and treat the runoff from Lake Hatchineha Road before entering the wet prairie and freshwater marsh.
- Rehabilitation of 39.24 acres of dry prairie and 2.77 acres of live oak forest upland buffer habitats that provide wildlife habitat within the watershed.
- Maintenance of 3.89 acres maintenance trails and 0.06 acres of a cattle pond that extends offsite to the north.
- Preservation of all 205.28 acres of restored wetland habitat and upland buffer habitat in order to protect and manage the natural resources in perpetuity.
ECOLOGICAL SUITABILITY OF THE SITE: The historical pre-disturbance condition of the northern reach of the LEMB consisted of peat-based freshwater marsh in the lowest elevations, wet prairies present slightly upgradient, and dry prairie located between the wet prairie and the upland scrub. The topography is nearly flat, slowly sheet flowing west throughout the site until reaching the freshwater marsh, which would empty offsite to the southwest into mixed wetland hardwoods that would drain south to Lake Pierce. The historical pre-disturbance condition of the southern reach of the LEMB consisted of a large flat area of dry prairie surrounded by upland scrub
ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF THE BANK: The proposed LEMB would be established and operated by Southern States Land and Timber, LLC as the Sponsor with the assistance of GreenSource Environmental Professionals, Inc. The entire LEMB is under contract to be purchased by Southern States Land and Timber, LLC. The LEMB is proposed to be established as a single and complete project. Following LEMB successful implementation, attainment of final success criteria, and relinquishment of all credits, long-term management activities will be implemented in order to ensure the sustainability of LEMB. In addition, the Sponsor will provide sufficient financial assurances to ensure construction and long-term management of the proposed LEMB.
PROPOSED SERVICE AREA: The project is located within the Lake Pierce Subwatershed, identified as Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC 03090101) which is part of the larger Kissimmee River Subbasin (HUC 03090101). The Applicant proposes a Mitigation Service Area (MSA) that includes portions of the Kissimmee River Subbasin (HUC 03090101). The LEMB MSA is anticipated to include wetland habitat communities that could reasonably be expected to occur on the LEMB.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The proposed bank is not expected to have any direct or indirect impact to cultural resources. Project review will, however, include review of the proposal for any potential impact to cultural resources.
Endangered Species: The site will be reviewed for potential critical habitat and presence of endangered species. The findings will be coordinated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service.
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH): It is unlikely that essential fish habitat is present onsite, however, the project proposal will be coordinated with the pertinent federal agencies to minimize the risk for any potential impact to EFH.
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.
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.
COMMENTS: Comments regarding the proposed mitigation bank should be submitted in writing to the District Engineer at the address below within 30 days from the date of this notice.
The initial evaluation pertaining to whether or not this mitigation bank proposal has the potential for providing compensatory mitigation for activities authorized by issued Department of the Army permits will be based on the information contained in the prospectus, received from this public notice and obtained during an inspection of the project site.
If you have any questions concerning this proposed project, you may contact Mr. Steven Currie by electronic mail at steven.j.currie@usace.army.mil, by fax at 904-232-1904, or by telephone at 904-232-3701 or at the following address:
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
JACKSONVILLE DISTRICT CORPS OF ENGINEERS
P. O. BOX 4970
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA 32232-0019
IMPACT ON NATURAL RESOURCES: Preliminary review of this application indicates that an Environmental Impact Statement will not be required. 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. By means of this notice, we are soliciting comments on the potential effects of the project on threatened or endangered species or their habitat
EVALUATION: After the end of the comment period, the district engineer will review all comments received and make an initial determination as to the potential of the proposed project to provide compensatory mitigation for activities authorized by Department of the Army permits. That determination 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. Factors relevant to the proposal will be considered including 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.
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 proposed activity. All comments received will be considered by the Corps during the formulation of the initial determination of potential for the proposed activity.