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AFTER THE FACT MINING OPERATIONS IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER BATTURE IN WEST BATON ROUGE PARISH
NAME OF APPLICANT: Corrent’s Trucking, c/o Coastal Environments, Inc., Attn: Mr. Randy Ellis, 1260 Main Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802
LOCATION OF WORK: On an approximate 148.88-acre project site, within the Mississippi River Basin, in the Lower Mississippi River- Baton Rouge hydrologic unit (HUC 08070100), on the Mississippi River batture, right descending bank, located approximately 238.3 miles above the Head of Passes, northwest of Port Allen, Louisiana, in WEST BATON ROUGE Parish, as shown on the enclosed drawings (Latitude 30.50111 N Longitude -91.25949 W).
The work described below was partially completed prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit and was in violation of Section 301 of the Clean Water Act. All legal issues concerning the unauthorized work have been deferred.
CHARACTER OF WORK: The applicant is requesting an after-the-fact Department of the Army permit to clear, grade, excavate, place and maintain fill material for the construction and operations of a dirt pit mining site. Approximately 129.3 acres are subject to the Corps’ jurisdiction on the project site, of which approximately 12.12 acres of jurisdictional wetlands were impacted prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit authorization. Approximately 3.56 acres of jurisdictional wetlands have been excavated and approximately 8.56 acres of wetlands have been cleared prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit. The applicant is proposing to utilize an approximate 23.35-acre borrow pit area. The applicant is proposing to avoid approximately 83.24 acres of jurisdictional batture wetlands. The applicant has designed the project to avoid and minimize direct and secondary adverse impacts to the maximum extent practicable. As compensation for unavoidable wetland impacts, the applicant is proposing to purchase appropriate credits from a Corps approved mitigation bank.
JOINT PUBLIC NOTICE
January 26, 2015
United States Army
Corps of Engineers
New Orleans District
Regulatory Branch
Post Office Box 60267
New Orleans, Louisiana 70160-0267
State of Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality
Water Quality Certifications Section
Post Office Box 4313
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70821-4313
(504) 862-1217
Project Manager
Kenny Blanke
Kenneth.G.Blanke@usace.army.mil
MVN 2014-0693-CQ
(225) 219-3225
Project Manager
Ms. Elizabeth Johnson
WQC Application Number
WQC 150123-02
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: [X] 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).
Application has also been made to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality,
Office of Environmental Services, for a Water Quality Certification (WQC) in accordance with
statutory authority contained in LRS30:2074 A(3), and provisions of Section 401 of the Clean
Water Act (P.L.95-17).
AFTER THE FACT MINING OPERATIONS IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER BATTURE
IN WEST BATON ROUGE PARISH
NAME OF APPLICANT: Corrent's Trucking, c/o Coastal Environments, Inc., Attn: Mr. Randy
Ellis, 1260 Main Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802
LOCATION OF WORK: On an approximate 148.88-acre project site, within the Mississippi
River Basin, in the Lower Mississippi River- Baton Rouge hydrologic unit (HUC 08070100), on
the Mississippi River batture, right descending bank, located approximately 238.3 miles above
the Head of Passes, northwest of Port Allen, Louisiana, in WEST BATON ROUGE Parish, as
shown on the enclosed drawings (Latitude 30.50111 N Longitude -91.25949 W).
The work described below was partially completed prior to obtaining a Department of the Army
permit and was in violation of Section 301 of the Clean Water Act. All legal issues concerning
the unauthorized work have been deferred.
CHARACTER OF WORK: The applicant is requesting an after-the-fact Department of the
Army permit to clear, grade, excavate, place and maintain fill material for the construction and
operations of a dirt pit mining site. Approximately 129.3 acres are subject to the Corps'
jurisdiction on the project site, of which approximately 12.12 acres of jurisdictional wetlands
were impacted prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit authorization. Approximately
3.56 acres of jurisdictional wetlands have been excavated and approximately 8.56 acres of
wetlands have been cleared prior to obtaining a Department of the Army permit. The applicant
is proposing to utilize an approximate 23.35-acre borrow pit area. The applicant is proposing to
avoid approximately 83.24 acres of jurisdictional batture wetlands. The applicant has designed
the project to avoid and minimize direct and secondary adverse impacts to the maximum extent
practicable. As compensation for unavoidable wetland impacts, the applicant is proposing to
purchase appropriate credits from a Corps approved mitigation bank.
The applicant may be required to fully or partially restore the project site to pre-project
conditions, if issuance of a permit is determined to be contrary to the overall public interest.
The comment period for the Department of the Army Permit and the Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality WQC will close 30 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 mailed 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 mailed to the Corps
of Engineers at the address above, ATTENTION: REGULATORY BRANCH. 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.
The New Orleans District is unaware of properties listed on the National Register of
Historic Places near the proposed work. The possibility exists that the proposed work may
damage or destroy presently unknown archeological, scientific, prehistorical, historical sites, or
data. Issuance of this public notice solicits input from the State Archeologist and State Historic
Preservation Officer regarding potential impacts to cultural resources.
The proposed activity is located in areas known to be utilized by the pallid sturgeon
(Scaphirhynchus albus). Utilizing Standard Local Operating Procedure for Endangered Species
in Louisiana (SLOPES), dated October 22, 2014, between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
New Orleans and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Office, the Corps has
determined that the proposed activity is not likely to adversely affect this species.
This notice initiates the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) consultation requirements of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The applicant's proposal
would result in the destruction or alteration of NA acres of EFH utilized by various life stages of
red drum and penaeid shrimp. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not
have a substantial adverse 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, Office of Environmental Services, before a 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. You are requested to
communicate the information contained in this notice to any other parties whom you deem likely
to have interest in the matter.
JOHN M. HERMAN
Chief, Central Evaluation Section
Regulatory Branch
Enclosure