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FERC Project No. 2232

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FERC Project No. 2232 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Application for Non-Capacity License Amendment Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project FERC Project No. 2232 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Office of Energy Projects Division of Hydropower Administration and Compliance 888 First Street, NE Washington, D.C. 20426 May 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page No. 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Application 1 1.2 Purpose and Need for Action 1 1.3 Statutory and Regulatory Requirements 2 2.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND OPERATION 4 2.1 Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project Description 4 2.2 Rhodhiss Development Operation 5 3.0 PROPOSED ACTION AND ALTERNATIVES 7 3.1 Description of Licensee’s Proposal 7 A. Proposed Action 7 B. Proposed Environmental Protection Measures 7 3.2 No-Action Alternative 9 3.3 Other Action Alternatives 9 4.0 AGENCY CONSULTATION AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT 10 4.1 Licensee’s Pre-Filing Consultation 10 4.2 Commission’s Public Notice Consultation 10 5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 11 5.1 General Area Description 11 5.2 Resource Area Descriptions and Analysis 12 A. Geology and Soils 12 B. Water Quality 12 C. Aquatic Resources 13 D. Terrestrial Resources 15 E. Recreation Resources 17 5.3 Cumulative Impacts 20 5.4 Impacts of No-Action Alternative 20 6.0 CONCLUSIONS AND STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS 20 6.1 Conclusions 20 6.2 Staff Recommendations 20 6.3 Finding of No Significant Impact 21 7.0 LITERATURE CITED 22 8.0 LIST OF PREPARERS 22 Project No. 2232-698 ii LIST OF FIGURES Figure No. Page No. Figure 1. Proposed sand mining site location 2 Figure 2. General vicinity of the Catawba-Wateree developments 6 Figure 3. Locations of Rhodhiss Development recreational facilities 19 LIST OF TABLES Table No. Page No. Table 1. Recreation facilities at the Rhodhiss Development 18 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF ENERGY PROJECTS DIVISION OF HYDROPOWER ADMINISTRATION AND COMPLIANCE 1.0 INTRODUCTION Project Name: Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project FERC Project No.: 2232 1.1 Application Application Type: Non-Project Use of Project Lands and Waters; sediment removal and discharge associated with hydraulic sand mining operation Date filed: November 13, 2017 Licensee: Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC Water Body: Lake Rhodhiss Nearest Town: Morganton, North Carolina County & States: Burke County, North Carolina 1.2 Purpose and Need for Action On November 13, 2017, Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (licensee or Duke Energy), licensee for the Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project, FERC Project No. 2232, filed an application requesting Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) authorization to allow Carolina Sand Inc. (Carolina Sand) the use of Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project lands and waters for year-round hydraulic sand mining and discharge of water. This proposed site has been used for sand mining in the past, so no construction would be necessary, and the licensee does not anticipate the need for any operational modifications to accommodate the request. Mined sand is used in asphalt for road construction, snow and ice control, in concrete, as backfill for construction, and in landscaping. The location of the proposed action is on a project reservoir, Lake Rhodhiss. The only physical components to exist within the project boundary would be a hydraulic dredge on a barge in the reservoir, a portion of a pipeline, and the dredge access area. The project boundary includes the area within the full pool elevation of the project Project No. 2232-698 - 2 - Figure 1. Proposed sand mining site location (source: Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC’s November 13, 2017 filing with the Commission). reservoir. The full pool elevation of Lake Rhodhiss is 995.1 feet mean sea level,1 which does not include the processing area (Figure 1). This Environmental Assessment (EA) analyzes the environmental effects of the licensee’s proposed action, to authorize a non-project sand mining operation, and provides a basis for the Commission to make an informed decision on the licensee’s November 13, 2017 request. 1.3 Statutory and Regulatory Requirements Clean Water Act Under section 401 of the Clean Water Act, non-federal applicants seeking federal approval to use state waters or waterways must obtain either certification from the appropriate state water pollution control agency, verifying compliance with the Clean 1 Unless otherwise specified, all elevations referred to in this document are relative to mean sea level. Project No. 2232-698 - 3 - Water Act, or a waiver of certification by the appropriate agency. The proposed action is located in North Carolina; therefore, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (North Carolina DEQ) is the appropriate state water pollution certifying agency to act on the Carolina Sand’s request. By letter dated February 24, 2017,2 the North Carolina DEQ indicated that Carolina Sand should instead obtain a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). Section 404 of the Clean Water Act establishes a program to regulate the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States. Activities in waters of the United States regulated under this program include fill for development, water resource projects, infrastructure development, and mining projects. The Corps issued a permit for the proposed action on May 19, 2017 that expires on March 18, 2022. Endangered Species Act Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act requires federal agencies to ensure that their actions are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of endangered or threatened species or result in any adverse modification of the critical habitat of such species. Eight federally-listed species are known to occur or potentially occur in the Catawba-Wateree project area and downstream in the Wateree River. These species include the threatened dwarf-flowered heartleaf, wood stork, American alligator, and bog turtle; and the endangered Schweinitz’s sunflower, Carolina heelsplitter, shortnose sturgeon, and Atlantic sturgeon. No critical habitat has been designated for federally listed species within the Catawba-Wateree Project area. As there is no proposed construction, the proposed action is unlikely to adversely affect the terrestrial dwarf- flowerd heartleaf and Schweintz’s sunflower. Similarly, American alligator, wood stork, Shortnose sturgeon, Atlantic sturgeon, and Carolina heelsplitter have historically limited occurrences in the lower Catawba-Wateree developments. As they have not been recorded at the Rhodhiss development, the proposed action is not likely to adversely impact these species. The bog turtle has been observed in Bristol Creek, a tributary of Lake Rhodhiss that enters the lake upstream of the reservoir and outside the zone of operational influence. This, combined with the bog turtle’s preferential wetland habitat type not occurring near the proposed dredging location, makes adverse effects unlikely. The robust redhorse, which is under review for listing, also has a historic range overlapping the proposed mining area; however, there are no recent observations. By letter dated March 9, 2017,3 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) concluded that the proposed action would not adversely impact any federally-listed species. 2 The North Carolina DEQ’s letter is included in the licensee’s November 13, 2017 filing. 3 The FWS’ letter was included in the licensee’s November 13, 2017 filing. Project No. 2232-698 - 4 - The Mining Act of 1971 Article 7 of the Mining Act of 1971 requires any entity seeking to extract minerals by mining to do so in such a way as to minimize its effects on the surrounding environment, and to conduct proper reclamation of mined land to prevent undesirable land and water conditions that would be detrimental to the general welfare, health, safety, beauty, and property rights of North Carolina citizens. The North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (North Carolina DENR) issued a permit allowing the proposed action on March 3, 2005. The permit expires on September 2, 2021. The permit included authorization to use hydroxyl-chlorosulfate, which acts as a coagulant to solidify sediment and reduce turbidity, prior to discharging water; however, the licensee’s application does not indicate that any chemicals would be added to discharge water and the 404 permit does not authorize discharge of any such chemical. As such, this Environmental Assessment will not consider the use of hydroxyl-chlorosulphate. National Historic Preservation Act Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act requires that every federal agency take into account how each of its undertakings could affect historic properties. Historic properties are districts, sites, buildings, structures, traditional cultural properties, and objects significant in American history, architecture, engineering, and culture that are eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. By letter dated March 15, 2017,4 the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ State Historic Preservation Office indicated that no known historic or cultural resources would be affected by the proposed action. 2.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION 2.1 Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project Description The Commission issued a license for the Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project to Duke Energy on November 25, 2015.5 Commission staff issued a Final Environmental Assessment on July 23, 2009 that considered relicensing the project. The following description of the Catawba-Wateree Project is from that Final Environmental
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