SAJ-2022-01300(SP-RJP)

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: 

South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)

c/o Drew Bartlett

3301 Gun Club Road

West Palm Beach, Florida 33406

WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project site is located within L-5 Remnant Canals and right-of-way, adjacent to and west of US Highway 27 and the South Florida Water Management District (applicant) S-7 pump station, approximately 0.14 miles (730 feet) northwest of the confluence of the North New River (NNR) Canal and would affect waters of the United States (U.S.) associated with the L-5 Remnant canal in Sections 19 through 30, Township 47 South, Range 37 East, in Palm Beach County and Broward County, Florida respectively.

Directions to the site are as follows:  From the East coast of Florida, take Southern Boulevard (State Road 80/U.S. 98) west. Turn left onto Florida 15 road south in Belle Glade. Continue south on Florida 15 as it turns into S Main Street. Follow S Main Street to the west as it turns into SR 80. Take a left onto U.S. 27 in South Bay. The proposed project is located west of US 27 in rural southwest Palm Beach/Broward Counties in the L-5 and L-5 Remnant Canals, adjacent to the North New River Canal and west of the S-7 pump station.

APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic:  Improvements to water conveyance and water quality.

Overall:  To increase conveyance capacity in the L-5 remnant canal located in the Everglades Watershed Basin, Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC) 03090202, to provide better water quality downstream to the Florida Everglades, Water Conservation Area 3A (WCA-3A), and Biscayne Bay.

ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY: The proposed project is a component of the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) North. CEPP is a critical sub-component of the larger Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), a statewide, multi-billion dollar ecological restoration project approved by the Chief of Engineers via the Chief’s Project Initiation Report and Environmental Impact Statement (PIR/EIS) for Central and South Florida, Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), Florida, dated July 2014, with the intent to reverse the aquatic impacts resulting from construction of the Central & South Florida Project of the 1950’s. However, while impacts to the L-5 remnant canal were reviewed and addressed as part of the original 2014 planning document, two (2) of the proposed project activities, the dredge material management area (DMMA) and the stockpile area, were not. 

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The applicant is the non-federal local sponsor tasked with executing the federal project. The project area has been previously disturbed. The applicant operates and maintains the L-5 Remnant canal to help convey water from Stormwater Treatment Areas (STA) 2 and STA 3/4 downstream to WCA-3A, the Everglades National Park, and out to the tidal waters. The proposed project site is classified by the Florida Land Cover Land Use (FLCLU) map as other surface waters identified for the canal; utility lands and wetland hardwoods to the north of the canal(s); and disturbed lands, vegetated non-forested wetlands, and wetland hardwoods observed south of the canal(s).

The geologic conditions on-site consist of predominately of shallow muck deposits including Lauderhill Muck (51%); Pahokee Muck (14%); and Shark Valley Muck (13%), with limestone deposits under the shallow muck layer. Per the Florida Natural Areas Inventory (FNAI), the area has been identified as a Glades Marsh wetland system. This habitat adapts well to broad shallow channels or depressions over a substrate of peat or marl deposits that directly overlies limestone. The applicant has indicated that limestone strata has been observed at shallow depths within the construction limit. The primary vegetation observed includes but is not limited to Sawgrass (Cladium jamaicense); Cattail (Typha latifolia); Gulf coast spikerush (Eleocharis cellulosa); and pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata). Glades Marsh habitat adapts well to broad shallow channels or depressions over a substrate of peat or marl deposits that directly overlies limestone. The applicant has also observed limestone strata deposits at shallow depths throughout the project site.  

PROPOSED WORK:  The applicant would expand approximately 6.2 miles of the L-5 remnant canal from L-19 (North New River canal) to the L-5 remnant canal plug, to increase the overall capacity of the L-5 remnant canal by approximately 500 cfs, respectively. Construction activities include dredging approximately forty (40) acres of the L-5 Remnant canal. The spoil piles would be separated into unusable material and usable material to construct the new L5R levee, the temporary stockpile area, and the Dredge Material Management Area (DMMA) area. The proposed project is expected to impact approximately 150 acres of herbaceous freshwater wetlands. The applicant will be required to provide all applicable operational, safety, and quality assurance plans. The Corps will review the applicant’s submitted plans and specifications accordingly. 

AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION INFORMATION – Avoidance and minimization efforts for the L-5 remnant canal were identified in the PIR/EIS, dated 2014, but the DMMA and stockpile area were not.  Any proposed alternatives will be reviewed by the Corps and consulted across multiple agencies if deemed necessary.  

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has identified approximately 150 acres of unavoidable impacts to wetland habitat. The applicant completed value assessments of the aquatic environment using the Uniform Mitigation Assessment Method (UMAM). As a result, the applicant has proposed compensatory mitigation to offset these impacts. The applicant has proposed to offset the impacts with hydrologic enhancement to approximately 2,416 acres of northwest Water Conservation Area 3A (WCA-3A). The applicant has proposed comparable mitigation on similar projects and has indicated that the aquatic benefits would include regional hydrology, wetland function, and would result in a net increase in aquatic resource function to the proposed area. The applicant would be required to implement best management practices (BMP's) and monitor for the enhancement benefits being proposed. 

The Corps will continue to evaluate the information provided by the applicant to finalize a compensatory framework that both complies with intent of the project while meeting the federal regulatory burden as identified in 33 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR).

CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps 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 reviewed the following threatened or endangered species and the affects the proposed project may have. The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect but is not likely to adversely affect the Everglade snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus), Audubon’s crested caracara (Caracara cheriway), eastern black rail (Laterallus jamaicensis ssp. jamaicensis), and wood stork (Mycteria americana); and may affect the Eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi). The applicant has indicated that the proposed project is not likely to destroy or adversely modify any designated critical habitat. The Corps will consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding the determinations pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act by separate letter.

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. However, the site consists of the L-5 and L-5 Remnant canals which is a freshwater system and does not support habitat for marine fisheries pursuant to NMFS purview. The applicant has indicated that there would be no essential fish habitat proposed to be impacted by this activity. 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 applicant stated that dredging and fill will not impact the navigable Section 10 waterways or applicable structures. The L-5 Remnant canals are not within 300 feet of any navigable waters of the United States.  The applicant indicates that there will be no restrictions to navigation to the North New River (to the east) and/or Miami canal (to the west) during or after construction. The Corps will continue to review the application information for any potential conflict to navigation. 

SECTION 408: The applicant may require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would 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 not 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 United States Army Corps of Engineers Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410, 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, Ryan J. Poland, in writing at the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Blvd. Suite 500, Palm  Beach Gardens, FL 33410; by electronic mail at Ryan.J.Poland@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (561) 472-3512.

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). 

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.