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 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. §403) and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344) as described below:
APPLICANT: Jacksonville Electric Authority
Attn: Andrew Sears
21 West Church Street
Jacksonville, Florida 32202
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States (wetlands) hydrologically connected to Brandy Branch and the tidal St. Mary’s River. The project site is located 15701 Beaver Street West, in Sections 17, 18, 19, 20, Township 2 South, Range 24 East, Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida.
Directions to the site: From downtown Jacksonville, travel west on Interstate 10. Exit onto State Road 90 and travel west. Travel north on a road that is just west of Old Plank Road. Travel north to the existing Brandy Branch Substation. The project will begin just east of this substation.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 30.318825°
Longitude -81.934640°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: The basic project purpose is utility line construction to connect to a future solar farm.
Overall: The overall project purpose is utility line construction to connect to a future solar farm in western Duval County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The approximately 35.4 acre project site encompasses several vegetative communities identified by the Florida Land Use, Cover, and Forms Classification System (FLUCFCS) developed by the Florida Department of Transportation. These include Electric Power facilities (6.3 acres), Coniferous Plantations (1.8 acres), Woodland Pastures (15.6 acres), Wet Prairies (7.8 acres), Wetland Forested Mixed (2.2 acres), Pine Flatwoods (1.5 acres), and Mixed Wetland Hardwoods (0.2 acres). The applicant will submit an Approved Jurisdictional Determination (AJD) request to determine if there are waters of the U.S. that are jurisdictional to the Corp pursuant to the Navigable Water Protection Rule. Therefore, the acres of impacts to waters of the United States could change. The Corps will evaluate the AJD for the final impact amount, which could be less than the currently indicated impacts.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to discharge clean fill material over a total of 0.96 acres of waters of the United States (palustrine wetlands) and 0.04 acre of surface water for the installation of 9 concrete power distribution poles and an access road. The proposed project would begin at 15701 Beaver Street West, at the existing JEA Brandy Branch Substation, and continue east for 1.7 miles, terminating at a point off Old Plank Road. The project would connect to a future solar farm north and south of the proposed work site that is planned to be developed for renewable energy purposes. The solar farm would be constructed by a private contractor. The contractor is independent of JEA and the contractor has leased the adjacent JEA property for the future project. Neither JEA nor the contractor have provided the proposed plans for the solar farm. JEA has stated that the contractor plans to develop the solar farm in uplands and is required to follow all federal laws in the development of the project, per the solar land lease between JEA and the contractor. Construction of the project is scheduled to begin on September 28, 2020.
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 project design has been revised and has been designed in order to avoid wetland impacts to the greatest extent practicable. The distribution pole design has been revised so that the majority of the poles would be placed outside of wetlands. The proposed patrol road has also been designed to utilize existing upland areas as much as possible. Per JEA road design criteria, the roads are designed at 12 feet wide, which is the minimum width necessary for maintenance trucks that will perform future distribution line maintenance work along the patrol roads.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
Mitigation for the proposed project would be purchased from an approved mitigation bank that would be located within the project’s mitigation bank service area.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps is not aware of cultural or historic resources on site. 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 project area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES:
a. The Corps has determined the proposed work would have No Effect on the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis). The project site is within a consultation area identified by the Corps and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for this species and the project site is 5.61 miles south of the nearest Red-Cockaded Woodpecker nest. Habitat for Red-Cockaded Woodpecker typically incorporates mature pine woodlands; and, optimal habitat is characterized as a broad savanna with a scattered overstory of large pines and a dense groundcover containing a diversity of grass and shrub species. Nesting and roosting occur in cavity trees that are almost exclusively old, living, flat-topped pine trees. The project site does not encompass typical or optimum habitat; or, trees capable of supporting cavities. As significant forested habitat is located near the project site, it is likely that this species would only opportunistically forage at the site, and any birds could forage at locations nearby. Therefore, the Corps concludes that the project would have no effect on this species; therefore, additional coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is not required.
b. The Corps has determined the proposed work is not likely to adversely affect the Eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi). Eastern indigo snake frequents several habitat types, including pine flatwoods, scrubby flatwoods, high pine, dry prairie, tropical hardwood hammocks, and human-altered habitats, some of which are found within this project site location. Therefore, this species could utilize the area encompassed by the ESA scope of analysis for this project; therefore, potential impacts to the eastern indigo snake were evaluated using Eastern Indigo Snake Programmatic Determination Key 2013. Use of this key resulted in the sequential determination A > B > C > D > E > Not Likely to Adversely Affect due to the permit verification being conditioned for the use of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service’s Standard Protection Measures For The Eastern Indigo Snake during site preparation and project implementation. Therefore, additional coordination with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service is not required.
c. The Corps executed a Resources At Risk (RAR) report on September 14, 2020. The RAR did not indicate that the site is utilized by, or contains habitat critical to, any other federally listed threatened or endangered species, other than what is listed above. The Corps also reviewed geospatial data and other available information. The Corps has not received or discovered any information that the project site is utilized by, or contains habitat critical to, any other federally listed threatened or endangered species.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): This public notice initiates consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996. There is no EFH found on the property. The Corps’ initial determination is that the proposed action would have no impact on EFH. Our final determination relative to project impacts is subject to review 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 Corps would verify the extent of Federal jurisdiction.
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 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, Terri M. Mashour, in writing at the Jacksonville Permits Section, Post Office Box 4970, Jacksonville, Florida 32232; by electronic mail at terri.m.mashour@usace.army.mil; by facsimile transmission at (904) 232-1940; or, by telephone at (904) 570-4512.
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.