SAJ-2007-05319(SP-JKA)

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) and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. §403) as described below:

APPLICANT:  Palm Beach County

                       Deborah Drum

                       2300 N. Jog Road

                       West Palm Beach, Florida 33411

WATERWAY AND LOCATION:  The project is located within four locations in estuarine environments within Lake Worth Lagoon adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway, in Palm Beach County. Estuarine sites located within Lake Worth Lagoon are both north and south of Lake Worth Inlet.

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic: The basic project purpose is artificial reef deployment and reef enhancement.

Overall: The overall project purpose is to provide additional reef habitat to enhance coral and fish habitat within four deployment areas in the Lake Worth Lagoon, Palm Beach County, Florida.

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The four artificial reef deployment areas are located within an estuarine portion of Lake Worth Lagoon. The deployment areas are located outside of the Corps’ federal channel right of way and within areas that contain a mud, sand, and shell substrate.

PROJECT HISTORY: The Department of the Army permit dated December 5, 2008
authorized the construction of artificial reefs at five sites within Lake Worth Lagoon: Sugar Sands Site 1, Rybovitch Site K, Flagler Bridge Site L, and Everglades Island Site M; and 12 Oaks. The Corps modified the permit on March 20, 2009, to change the location of the 12 Oaks Artificial Reef site. The Corps issued a 5-year standard permit dated January 11, 2017, which re-authorized the deployment of reef materials within the five previously authorized deployment areas. The permit required that deployed materials be a minimum of 500 feet from any submerged aquatic resources including seagrasses, macroalgae, hard or soft coral, sponges, oysters, hard bottom, or areas where there are unique or unusual concentrations of bottom-dwelling marine organisms. The Corps modified this authorization by letter dated October 14, 2021 to extend the permit expiration to December 22, 2023 and update two of the special conditions (No. 15 and 16) in the permit.

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks re-authorization for the four of the previously authorized artificial reef deployment areas: Sugar Sands Site 1, Rybovitch Site K, Flagler Bridge Site L, and Everglades Island Site M. Authorized reef materials include pre-fabricated concrete and concrete modular pieces, heavy gauge steel pieces, limestone boulders, and other approved marine substrate. No vessels are proposed for deployment. All deployed materials will be a minimum of 500 feet from submerged aquatic resources including seagrasses, macroalgae, hard or soft coral, sponges, oysters, hard bottom, or areas where there are unique or unusual concentrations of bottom-dwelling marine organisms.

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:

• An environmental resource survey depicting the exact location of the artificial reef site, locations of observed resources and a stability analysis shall be submitted 30 days prior to the commencement of the artificial reef deployment.
• All artificial reef material will be placed in barren sandy bottom locations void of all environmental resources.
• All reef materials shall be clean concrete or rock, clean steel boat hulls, other clean heavy gauge steel products with a thickness of ¼ inch or greater, and prefabricated structures that are a mixture of clean concrete and heavy gauge steel.
• All reef materials shall be cleaned so that they are free of soils, oils and greases, debris, litter, putrescible substances or other pollutants.
• All reef materials shall be placed so that the top of the reef does not exceed ½ the distance from the bottom to the surface of the water unless a greater distance from the surface is required for safe navigation. At no time shall the distance between the top of the reef and the surface of the water be less than 6 feet. Reef construction shall not occur in a shipping lane or navigational channel.
• The deployment site shall be clearly marked with buoys before and during material placement to insure containment within the permitted site.
• Placement of reef material shall be accomplished through the use of tugs and/ or barges as the situation requires.
• Materials used shall be long lasting and of sufficient weight and form to resist migration across the bottom even during severe storm conditions.
• Material deployment will only be conducted when wave heights are less than 4 ft and short term (day) weather forecasts are favorable.
• Reef materials shall maintain a 500 foot buffer from submerged aquatic resources including seagrasses, macroalgae, hard or soft coral, sponges, oysters, hard bottom, or areas where there are unique or unusual concentrations of bottom-dwelling marine organisms.
• Comply with the NMFS Protected Species Conditions dated May 2021
• Comply with the Standard Manatee Conditions for In-Water Work – 2011

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has provided the following explanation why compensatory mitigation should not be required:

No impacts to submerged aquatic vegetation, corals, mangroves or other aquatic resources are anticipated, therefore no compensatory mitigation should be required.

CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps is aware of recorded historic resources within or adjacent to the permit area and 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, those federally recognized tribes with concerns in Florida and the Permit Area, and other interested parties.

ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus) and its designated critical habitat; swimming sea turtles: (green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempii), Loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), Leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), Hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata)); smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata); and Giant Manta Ray (Mobula birostris). 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 by separate letter.

The Corps has determined the proposal would have no effect on any other listed threatened or endangered species or designated critical habitat.

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 88 acres of unvegetated mud, sand, shell and rock habitat utilized by various life stages of penaeid shrimp complex, reef fish, stone crab, spiny lobster, migratory/pelagic fish, and snapper/grouper complex. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the South Atlantic Region. 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.

NAVIGATION: The proposed deployment areas are located in the vicinity of the Intracoastal Waterway, within the Lake Worth Lagoon. Our preliminary findings show the deployment areas are outside the 100-foot setback of the federal channel, but this will be confirmed through coordination with the Corps Navigation Section.

SECTION 408: The applicant will not require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would not alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.

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.

COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 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, Jerilyn Ashworth, in writing at the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410; by electronic mail at Jerilyn.Ashworth@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (561-545-3171).

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.

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.

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). The project is being reviewed under FDEP application no.:

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.