PN-25-15 NAB-2020-00388-P02 (PA DOT I-83 South Bridge Replacement Project)

                                                                                      Public Notice

Baltimore District
Permit Application No. NAB-2020-00388-P02 (PA DOT I-83
South Bridge Replacement Project)

The Baltimore 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). The purpose of this public notice is to solicit comments from the public regarding the work described below:

APPLICANT: Marwa Said, P.E.
                        Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
                        Engineering District 8-0
                        2140 Herr Street
                       Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17103

AGENT:         Eric Gogola, Project Manager
                       HNTB Corporation
                       4507 North Front Street
                      Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17110

LEAD FEDERAL AGENCY: The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), as the lead federal agency, is responsible for all coordination pursuant to applicable federal authorities.

WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States and navigable waters of the United States associated with the Susquehanna River and wetlands. The project is located in Lemoyne Borough, Cumberland County, and the City of Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania; at Latitude 40°14’54.9” N; and Longitude -76°52’37.7” W.

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The project area includes approximately 42.6 acres of the Susquehanna River with a channel width of 3,200-linear feet; approximately 0.07 acre of Paxton Creek with a channel width of 20-linear feet; and three wetlands totaling approximately 3.21 acres situated on a mid-river island.

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic: To reconstruct a bridge to provide a vehicular crossing over the Susquehanna River.

Overall: To discharge dredged or fill materials associated with the reconstruction on partial new alignment and widening of the existing Interstate 83 South John Harris Memorial Bridge, to improve traffic flow and safety.

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant requests authorization to discharge dredged or fill materials into the Susquehanna River and wetlands associated with the reconstruction of a new bridge and temporary stone access road/causeway as follows:

Structural Discharge for Bridge Piers: To permanently adversely impact 1.69 acres below the ordinary high-water mark (OHWM) of the Susquehanna River and 0.03 acre of forested wetlands (PFO) in Wetland 2 for construction of a total of 16 lines of new bridge piers (continuous across northbound and southbound direction bridges, with a break in between) and an additional 4 piers for the northbound 2^nd Street off ramp.

Discharge of Fill Material for Pier Scour Protection: To permanently impact 0.91 acre below the OHWM of the Susquehanna River for R-7 rock, choked with natural streambed material, scour protection of the new piers.

Discharge of Fill Material for Temporary Access Road/Causeway: To temporarily impact 3.57 acre below the OHWM of the Susquehanna River for the construction of a temporary access road/causeway, including 942-linear feet of temporary impact along the west bank of the river, with a maximum channelward encroachment into the river of 285-linear feet as measured from the OHWM. The temporary access road/causeway will be in place within the Susquehanna River for an estimated 7 years.

Sandbag Cofferdams for Construction Access and Dewatering: To temporarily impact (direct and indirect impacts from the sandbag placement and dewatered area) 0.13 acre below the OHWM for the construction of the East Shore permanent outfall structure; 0.20 acre below the OHWM for the East Shore slope restoration; and 0.07 acre below the OHWM for construction of a temporary emergency boat ramp.

Structural Discharges for Temporary Trestle Bridge Piers: To discharge concrete into sealed casings for the construction of 1,808 caissons each measuring 2-feet in diameter, for the structural support of a temporary trestle bridge. The trestle bridge would be constructed in four phases, with no phase exceeding one half of the river width, permanently impacting 0.26 acre below the OHWM of the Susquehanna River. After construction, the caissons will be cut off below the riverbed and the riverbed will be restored to pre-construction condition with channel substrates and sediment.

Discharge of Fill Material for Outfall Structure Rip-Rap Aprons: To permanently impact 0.01 acre below the OHWM for the West Shore outfall structure apron constructed of R-8 rip-rap with a maximum channelward encroachment of 32-linear feet; and to permanently impact 0.02 acre below the OHWM for the East Shore outfall structure apron constructed of R-8 rip-rap with a maximum extent channelward encroachment of 32-linear feet.

Discharge of Fill Materials for Vegetated Rip-Rap Bank Protection: To permanently impact 452-linear feet of river bank and 0.18 acre below the OHWM for construction of the West Shore vegetated rip-rap bank protection; and to permanently impact 232-linear feet of river bank and 0.09 acre below the OHWM for construction of the East Shore vegetated rip-rap bank protection; both consisting of R-8 boulders, and R-5 rip-rap choked with topsoil and planted with a native herbaceous seed mix and live willow stakes.

Discharge of Fill Materials for East Shore Temporary Boat Ramp: To temporarily impact 0.03 acre below the OHWM for the construction of a 92-foot-long by 20-foot-wide temporary boat ramp for providing emergency response units access to the Susquehanna River in the immediate vicinity of the South Bridge and the Dock Street Dam.

EFFECTS ON AQUATIC RESOURCES:

AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION: The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment: The applicant has proposed a phased trestle bridge (4 phases) for construction access in-lieu of a full width stone causeway alternative and a phased hybrid earthen-trestle alternative. The phased trestle bridge alternative will avoid temporary impacts to approximately 12.79 acres of river bottom below the OHWM, and approximately 0.80 acres of submerged aquatic vegetation beds. Use of the trestle bridge will also result in the avoidance of approximately 0.70 acre of PFO wetland impacts (Wetland 2) on the mid-river unnamed island.

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:

Mitigation Statement

Due to the need to replace the bridge, impacts to wetlands and waterways are unavoidable. Mitigation methods include avoidance, minimization, repair or restoration, reduction of impacts over time, or compensation.

The following measures have been incorporated into the design to offset effects:

• Monitor the shoreline and islands during construction to determine if erosion is taking place as a result of the temporary causeway and construction bridges; remediate if issues are noted.
   
• Replant the island and re-establish the shoreline once the temporary construction bridge/causeway is removed.
   
• No tree cutting shall occur between May 15 and August 15. This restriction avoids the Northern Long Ear Bat pup season, when females are giving birth and have non-volant pups (pups unable to fly).
   
• Clear trees from the river island but do not grub to maintain root structure and stability of the island.
   
• Prepare an erosion and sedimentation control plan during final design that addresses the procedures and BMPs, including Antidegradation Best Available Combination of Technologies, for the construction of the new bridges to limit impacts to surface waters.
   
• Utilize an in-lieu fee program to off-set the wetland impact area.
   
• Design the construction causeway to include temporary construction bridge sections (trestles) to ensure fish and eel passage is maintained during construction.
   
• Restrict in-stream work (construction/removal of causeways) from May 1 to June 15 due to smallmouth bass spawning.
   
• Install dam warning signs and buoys up and downstream of the Dock Street Dam in accordance with the approved ATON plan.
   
• Follow Pennsylvania Department of Transportation PennDOTs invasive species guidance and BMPs (PennDOT Publication 756 [2014]) during construction to minimize the potential for invasive species to take root or spread during construction.
   
• Develop a monitoring plan to monitor the submerged aquatic vegetation beds before and after construction to ensure they re-establish naturally.
   
• Remove existing bridge piers to 24 inches or more below the river bottom.

CULTURAL RESOURCES: The National Register of Historic Places was consulted, and coordination with the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office (PA SHPO) was completed by PennDOT under the provisions of the Programmatic agreement among the FHWA, the Corps, the advisory council on historic preservation, the PA SHPO and the PennDOT regarding implementation of the National Historic Preservation Act for federal aid highway projects and/or highway projects requiring a Corps permit in Pennsylvania. The PA SHPO determined that there will be no adverse effect to properties currently listed, or eligible for listing, on the register which would be directly affected by the proposed work. For further information regarding project compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, reference Section 3.8.2, Historic Properties, in the SR0083 Section 094, Interstate 83 South Bridge Replacement Project, Dauphin County, Environmental Assessment, dated October 2023, prepared by PennDOT Engineering District 8-0 and the FHWA at: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/penndot/projects-near-you/district-8-projects/i-83-south-bridge-project.html.

ENDANGERED SPECIES: Pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act, any required consultation with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service will be conducted in accordance with 50 CFR part 402. The FHWA is the lead federal agency for Endangered Species Act consultation for the proposed action. A Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory project receipt was provided with the permit application, to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, as well as the proposed and final designated critical habitat may occur in the vicinity of the proposed project. Based upon the results of the Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory project search, a determination was made that the proposed project is not likely to adversely affect any listed species or critical habitat, provided that avoidance measures are implemented to ensure that take is not reasonably certain to occur. The applicant has agreed to the avoidance measures in writing.

NAVIGATION: The proposed structure or activity is not located in the vicinity of a federal navigation channel.

SECTION 408: The applicant will not require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would not alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: The applicant is required to obtain a water quality certification in accordance with Section 401 of the Clean Water Act from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

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 geographic extent of aquatic resources within the proposed project area that either are, or are presumed to be, within the Corps jurisdiction has not been verified by Corps personnel.

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. Evaluation of the impact of the activity on the public interest will also include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, EPA, under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act or the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.

COMMENTS: The 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 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 Baltimore District will receive written comments on the proposed work, as outlined above, until April 23, 2025. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs or to Mr. Michael Danko, Transportation Program Manager, at mike.danko@usace.army.mil. Alternatively, you may submit comments in writing to the Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, Attention: Mr. Michael Danko, Carlisle Field Office,
401 East Louther Street, Suite 205, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, 17013. Please refer to the permit application number in your comments.

Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a public hearing will be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.

General information regarding the Corps’ permitting process can be found on our website at https://www.nab.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory.aspx. This public notice has been prepared in accordance with Corps implementing regulations at 33 CFR 325.3.