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CLEARING FOR CATTLE PASTURE IN VERMILION PARISH
NAME OF APPLICANT: Brennan Billeaud, 503 Kensington Drive, Lafayette, Louisiana 70508.
LOCATION OF WORK: Located in Vermilion Parish, Section 6, Township 16S and Range 1E, in Kaplan, Louisiana, (lat. 29.648472, Long -92.410667), as shown within the attached drawings. (Hydrologic Unit Code 08080202, Mermentau Basin)
The work described below was partially completed prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit and was in violation of Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. All legal issues concerning the unauthorized work have since been deferred.
CHARACTER OF WORK: Unauthorized clearing of the scrub shrub wetlands on site to return the area to cattle pasture. Future clearing by bushog to maintain cattle pasture is proposed, as shown on the attached drawings. Approximately 2.6 acres of jurisdictional wetlands will be impacted as a result of this project. No fill is proposed and no hydrologic changes are proposed. Compensatory mitigation for unavoidable wetland impacts may be required through purchasing credits at an approved mitigation bank.
The applicant may be required to fully or partially restore the site to pre-project conditions if issuance of a permit is determined to be contrary to the public interest.
JOINT PUBLIC NOTICE
May 1, 2017
United States Army
Corps of Engineers
New Orleans District
Attn: Regulatory Branch
7400 Leake Ave.
New Orleans, Louisiana 70118-3651
State of Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality
Attn: Water Quality Certifications
Post Office Box 4313
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70821-4313
Project Manager:
Amy Oestringer
(504) 862-2272
Amy.l.oestringer@usace.army.mil
Application #: MVN-2014-00305 WQQ
Project Manager:
Elizabeth Hill
(225) 219-3225
WQC Application Number:
WQC # 170427-01
Interested parties are hereby notified that a permit application has been received by the
New Orleans District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to: [ ] Section 10 of the
Rivers and Harbors Act of March 3, 1899 (30 Stat. 1151; 33 USC 403); and/or [X] Section 404
of the Clean Water Act (86 Stat. 816; 33 USC 1344).
The application has also been mailed to the Louisiana Department of Environmental
Quality, for a Water Quality Certification (WQC) in accordance with statutory authority contained
in Louisiana Revised Statute 30:2074 A(3), and provisions of Section 401 of the Clean Water
Act (P.L. 95-17).
CLEARING FOR CATTLE PASTURE IN
VERMILION PARISH
NAME OF APPLICANT: Brennan Billeaud, 503 Kensington Drive, Lafayette, Louisiana 70508.
LOCATION OF WORK: Located in Vermilion Parish, Section 6, Township 16S and Range 1E,
in Kaplan, Louisiana, (lat. 29.648472, Long -92.410667), as shown within the attached
drawings. (Hydrologic Unit Code 08080202, Mermentau Basin)
The work described below was partially completed prior to obtaining a Department of the
Army permit and was in violation of Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. All legal issues
concerning the unauthorized work have since been deferred.
CHARACTER OF WORK: Unauthorized clearing of the scrub shrub wetlands on site to return the
area to cattle pasture. Future clearing by bushog to maintain cattle pasture is proposed, as shown
on the attached drawings. Approximately 2.6 acres of jurisdictional wetlands will be impacted as a
result of this project. No fill is proposed and no hydrologic changes are proposed. Compensatory
mitigation for unavoidable wetland impacts may be required through purchasing credits at an
approved mitigation bank.
The applicant may be required to fully or partially restore the site to pre-project conditions
if issuance of a permit is determined to be contrary to the public interest.
-2The comment period for the Department of the Army Permit and the Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality WQC will close 20 days from the date of this joint public
notice. Written comments, including suggestions for modifications or objections to the
proposed work, stating reasons thereof, are being solicited from anyone having interest in this
permit and/or this WQC request and must be submitted so as to be received before or by the
last day of the comment period. Letters concerning the Corps of Engineers permit application
must reference the applicant's name and the Permit Application Number, and be forwarded to
the Corps of Engineers at the address above, ATTENTION: REGULATORY BRANCH.
Individuals or parties may request an extension of time in which to comment on the
proposed work by writing, faxing, or e-mailing the Corps of Engineers Project Manager
listed above. Any request must be specific and substantively supportive of the
requested extension, and received by this office prior to the end of the initial comment
period. The Section Chief will review the request and the requestor will be promptly
notified of the decision to grant or deny the request. If granted, the time extension will
be continuous to the initial comment period and, inclusive of the initial comment period,
will not exceed a total of 30 calendar days. Letters concerning the Water Quality
Certification must reference the applicant's name and the WQC Application number and be
mailed to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality at the address above.
The application for this proposed project is on file with the Louisiana Department of
Environmental Quality and may be examined during weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30
p.m. Copies may be obtained upon payment of costs of reproduction.
Corps of Engineers Permit Criteria
The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable
impacts, 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 benefit 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 the cumulative effects thereof; among those are
conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic
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 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 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 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to determine whether to make, modify, condition, or deny
a permit for this proposal. To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on
endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and other
public interest factors listed above. Comments are used in the preparation of an Environmental
Assessment and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental
Policy Act. Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to
determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.
-3No properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places are near the proposed
work. The possibility exists that the proposed work may damage or destroy presently unknown
archeological, scientific, prehistorical, historical sites, or data. Copies of this notice are being
sent to the State Archeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer.
Our initial finding is that the proposed work would neither affect any species listed as
endangered by the U.S. Departments of Interior or Commerce, nor affect any habitat
designated as critical to the survival and recovery of any endangered species. Based on the
South Louisiana Standard Local Operating Procedure for Endangered Species (SLOPES), as
signed on October 22, 2014, between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans and the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, it has been determined that the project would have no effect to
any listed species.
This notice initiates the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) consultation requirements of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Our initial determination is that
the proposed action would not have impact on EFH or federally managed fisheries in the Gulf of
Mexico. 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.
If the proposed work involves deposits of dredged or fill material into navigable waters,
the evaluation of the probable impacts will include the application of guidelines established by
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Also, a certification that the
proposed activity will not violate applicable water quality standards will be required from the
Department of Environmental Quality, before a Department of the Army permit is issued.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice,
that a public hearing be held to consider this application. Requests for public hearings shall
state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing.
The applicant has certified that the proposed activity described in the application
complies with and will be conducted in a manner that is consistent with the Louisiana Coastal
Resources Program. The Department of the Army permit will not be issued unless the applicant
received approval or a waiver of the Coastal Use Permit by the Department of Natural
Resources.
You are invited to communicate the information contained in this notice to any other
parties whom you deem likely to have interest in the matter.
Darrell S. Barbara
Chief, Western Evaluation Section
Regulatory Branch
Enclosure