Public Notice No. 20-06; File No. LRN-2019-00998

Public Notice No. 20-06  
Nashville District
Application No. LRN-2019-00998
Date: February 10, 2020; Expires: March 11, 2020
Please address comments to:
Nashville District Corps of Engineers
Regulatory Division
3701 Bell Road
Nashville, TN 37214-2660

SUBJECT:  This notice announces a prospectus has been submitted for the development of the Sequatchie Valley Wetland Mitigation Bank – Phase II pursuant to 33 CFR 332, Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources (Federal Register: April 10, 2008, effective June 9,2008).

BANK SPONSOR:  H and T Holdings, LLC.
                                Mr. Karl Wagner 5741 Rivoli Drive
                                Macon, Georgia 31210
                                (478) 361-8220

LOCATION: The proposed Sequatchie Valley Wetland Mitigation Bank – Phase II (SVWMB II) proposes to add a 38.42 acre parcel (Figure 1) to the existing Sequatchie Wetland Mitigation Bank off Highway 28 near the intersection with Hackworth Road in Marion County, Tennessee (35.246383°, -85.462152°).
The property is located along the Sequatchie River, which flows directly into the Guntersville Lake impoundment of the Tennessee River.

PURPOSE:  The SVWMB II proposes to provide compensatory wetland mitigation for permitted impacts  within the primary geographic service area of the Sequatchie River (06020004) and secondary service areas of the 6 abutting HUC 8 Watersheds: Middle Tennessee-Chickamauga (06020001), Guntersville Lake (06030001), Upper Elk (06030003), Collins (05130707), Emory (06010208), and Watts Bar Lake (06010201).

GENERAL INFORMATION:  Mitigation banks are defined as a site, or suite of sites, where aquatic resources (e.g., wetlands, streams, riparian areas) are restored, established, enhanced, and/or preserved for the purpose of providing compensatory mitigation for impacts authorized by Department of the Army (DA) permits pursuant to Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and/or Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.  In general, units of restored, established, enhanced or preserved wetlands or streams are expressed as “credits” which may subsequently be withdrawn to offset “debits” incurred at a permitted project site. In this way, a permit requirement to provide compensatory mitigation can be transferred to the mitigation bank sponsor. The operation and use of a mitigation bank are governed by an approved mitigation banking instrument (MBI). The MBI is the legal document for the establishment, operation and use of a mitigation bank. This bank is intended to be a private commercial bank.  The sponsor would be responsible for the successful development of the mitigation bank including monitoring and reporting requirements.

A group of federal and state regulatory and resource agency representatives known as the Interagency Review Team (IRT) would oversee the execution and management of the project. The IRT is chaired by the US Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District (USACE). The primary role of the IRT is to facilitate establishment of the mitigation site through the development of a MBI. The IRT will review the prospectus, instrument, and other appropriate documents and provide comments to the USACE.

Approval of the use of the bank for specific projects is the decision of the USACE pursuant to Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and/or Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and/or the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) pursuant to Section 401 of the CWA
and/or applicable State of Tennessee statute(s) and regulation(s).

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The SVWMB II Prospectus proposes to return 54.59 acres of hardwood forested wetlands to the area by restoring natural hydrology and planting native wetland hardwood trees. The mitigation project also proposes to enhance and preserve 53.85 acres of non-wetland buffer by reducing invasive species such as Bradford pear (Pyrus calleryana), Privet (Ligustrum spp.) and Johnson grass (Sorghum halepense) and to preserve 62.48 acres of existing wetlands. See Table 1 for a listing of the proposed mitigation approaches and credit calculation.

The project prospectus can be viewed by clicking here. Information in the mitigation plan would serve as the basis for deriving and releasing credits for the mitigation bank.

HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES:  At this early stage in the regulatory process, no project design plans have been submitted; therefore, USACE cannot complete an effects determination for historic and cultural resources. The Corps invites responses to this public notice from American Indian
Tribes or tribal governments; Federal, State, and local agencies; historical and archeological societies; and other parties likely to have knowledge of or concerns regarding historic properties and cultural significance at or near the project area. Upon submittal of the design plans, USACE will evaluate the design plans along with any substantive comments from this public notice to determine the potential of impacts to historic and cultural resources for Section 106 compliance. If the Corps determines that consultation is required, the Corps would consult with the Tennessee Historic Commission (SHPO) and American Indian Tribes in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, as appropriate.

Table 1.  Proposed Phase II Wetland Mitigation Credit Calculation

ENDANGERED/THREATENED SPECIES REVIEW:  A review of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) website, http://ecos.fws.gov/ipac identified the following federally-listed species that are known to or believed to occur in the vicinity of the proposed project (Table 2):

Table 2.  Potential Endangered and Threatened Species in the Proposed Project Group     

A copy of this notice is being furnished to USFWS for their review. After receipt of any comments, USACE will evaluate the potential effects to proposed and/or listed species and their designated critical habitat, and initiate consultation with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, if required.

COMMENT PERIOD:  Written statements received in this office by March 11, 2020 will become a part of the record and will be considered in the determination. Any response to this notice should be directed to the Nashville District Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Division, Attention:
Ms. Katie Alston at the above address or by email: katherine.c.alston@usace.army.mil.

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Joshua W. Frost
Chief, Technical Services Branch
Regulatory Division
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers