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: Enrique Rodriguez, Underwater Memorial, LLC
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would encompass a 40-acre area within the Atlantic Ocean. The project site is located north of Lovango Cay and west of Congo Cay, St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands.
BOUNDARY COORDINATES:
Latitude Longitude
18.3668764°N -64.809037°W
18.363296°N -64.808984°W
18.363256°N -64.813114°W
18.366840°N -64.813018°W
Directions to the site: The site is only accessible with a boat.
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Underwater memorial site for the deceased.
Overall: The objective of the proposal is to provide Virgin Islanders and others with an affordable alternative to burial which would help enhance the marine environment by providing substates for propagation of corals and habitat for other aquatic species. The applicant seeks authorization to create an underwater memorial park where people can have ashes of the deceased incorporated into small memorial structures and attached to the seafloor.
PROPOSED WORK: Underwater Memorial, LLC is proposing to create the Virgin Islands Underwater Memorial Park (Memorial Park). The applicant would place coral and rock shaped memorial markers, made of concrete and containing the ashes of the deceased, within a 20-acre portion of the proposed 40-acre memorial park. The memorial markers would be placed at a depth between 35 feet and 60 feet. The memorial markers will range from 18 to 24 inches in width and 12 to 30 inches in height. Each marker will have a 36-inch sand screw embedded into it. Divers will install the sand screws with the markers by hand. Markers could be placed in groups or spaced apart, as requested by clientele. If markers are free standing, they will be approximately one meter apart. The markers will be randomly placed starting from one area of the Memorial Park. At capacity, approximately 20,000 memorial markers could be installed.
Four marker buoys with helix anchors would be installed at the four corners of the memorial park demarcating the boundaries of the 40 acres. In addition, two mooring buoys would be installed using helix anchors and floating tackle. Both the boundary markers and the mooring buoys would have signage to state the area is a memorial park, and no anchoring is allowed. Moorings, marker buoys, and memorial markers will be installed and maintained by divers.
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:
Marker buoys, and moorings will use helix type anchors with floated lines to prevent bottom disturbance.
Boundary markers, moorings, and memorial markers will be placed in sand a minimum of 50 feet from existing corals and hardbottom habitat to avoid direct and indirect impacts to corals.
The concrete structures used to inter the remains of the deceased will be made on land and completely cured before deployment. The structures will be washed and soaked to remove any loose concrete and dust prior to deployment. No concrete release agents or other chemicals will be utilized on the structure. No green (i.e., unhardened) or uncured concrete will be placed in the water. By the time of deployment, the concrete should have a negligible leaching risk and should start to facilitate coral colonization immediately.
Quarterly inspections will be conducted to ensure memorial markers remain stable and to make any repairs and adjustments which may be required, and to collect any debris which may have been deposited in the area.
NOAA’s Vessel Strike Avoidance Measures and Reporting for Mariners will be implemented by all vessels associated with the project and National Marine Fisheries Service’s “Protected Species Construction Conditions, NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office.”
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant has provided the following explanation why compensatory mitigation should not be required: The proposed project would result in a net benefit to the aquatic environment by providing hard substrate for colonization by corals and other species.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The proposed Memorial Park encompass 40 acres of offshore submerged land containing open sand and reefs. There is no seagrass in the project site. The boundary of the Memorial Park would be approximately 250 feet from Congo Cay and 250 feet from Lovango Cay. The actual “interment” would be less than 20 acres. The larger, 40 acre area, qualifies Underwater Memorial, LLC for inclusion in several organizations which specialize in low impact natural burials and provides better protection of the coral reef resources within the 40-acre Memorial Park.
The reefs are coral colonized emergent pavement and have a large variety of corals including species listed under the Endangered Species Act. The reefs rise approximately one-foot above the seafloor. Soft corals are abundant and more prevalent than hard coral species. However, hard corals represented 19 of the 35 different species identified during the surveys. There are scattered sand channels within the pavement, but most are relatively narrow. There is a large area of open sand which has scattered diatom coats. The sand is 99% uncolonized. Because of changes in the topography of the rock beneath the sand there are occasional corals near the edges.
Depths of the sand at the proposed Memorial Park are approximately 25 inches nearest the reef and between 30-60 inches in the interment area and mooring buoy locations. Measurements were taken over 6 months at 9 locations to assess sand movement in the interment area. The greatest gain was 1.875 inches and the greatest loss was 2.15 inches. This study encompassed the winter months which typically has large northern swells. Sand movement in the open sand area is expected to be minimal during normal sea conditions.
The project area has excellent water quality and receives good circulation from currents running through the scattered islands and cays. Turbidity in the area is affected by wave approach and during periods of rough sea there can be areas of turbidity extending offshore due to the re-suspension of sand in the shallows. The offshore waters are classified as Class B and the best usage of the water is listed as the propagation of desirable species of marine life and for primary contact recreation (swimming, water skiing, etc.). The 40-acre site would be made a “No Anchoring Zone,” thus vessels would be able to transit the area unimpeded but could not drop anchor.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps has evaluated the undertaking for effects to historic properties as required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and has followed the guidelines of 33 CFR Part 325, Appendix C. The Corps determined the proposed activity within the permit area is of such limited scope there is little likelihood of impact upon a historic property; therefore, the proposed project would have No Potential to Cause Effect to Historic Properties. As discussed above the proposed project does not involve excavation or dredging. A benthic survey was conducted and no structures or artifacts were discovered.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata), leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus), giant manta ray (manta birostris), scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyma lewini), oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus), queen conch (Aliger gigas), Antillean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus) and roseate tern (Sterna dougallii dougallii). In addition, it is not likely to adversely affect listed corals or coral critical habitat or proposed green sea turtle critical habitat. The Corps will request consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with separate letters 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. The proposal would impact approximately 20 acres of habitat utilized by various life stages blue marlin, Caribbean reef shark, tiger shark, lemon shark, nurse shark, oceanic whitetip shark, corals, queen conch, reef fish (43 species), swordfish, white marlin, and yellowfish tuna. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the U.S. Virgin Islands. 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.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division.
COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT CONSISTENCY: In the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, Division of Coast Zone Management’s permit constitutes compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Plan.
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; 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.
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 Atlantic Ocean. This is based on an analysis of the applicant's avoidance and minimization efforts for the 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.
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 regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing within 30 days from the date of this notice. Please send comments to the attention of the District Engineer through Karen Urelius, Project Manager, Antilles Permits Section at karen.m.urelius@usace.army.mil or 787-370-8359.
QUESTIONS concerning this application should also be directed to Ms. Urelius.