COUNTY ROAD 491 REGIONAL DRAINAGE STUDY PHASE I Citrus County, Florida Southwest Florida Water Management District Environmental Resource Permit (ERP) Application APPENDIX B.2 Biological Assessment Supplement: Proposed Northern Ponds and Road Access Area Prepared By: Michael G. Czerwinski, P.A. Environmental Consultants Lecanto, Florida PROJECT MEMORANDUM Project: Citrus County Highway 491 Widening (SR 44 to West Lee Ann Lane) Biological Assessment Supplement: Proposed Northern Ponds and Road Access Area To: Juan Fong, P.E. Pegasus Engineering From: Andrew Holland, Environmental Scientist MICHAEL G. CZERWINSKI, P.A., ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANTS Date: November 4, 2015 Subject: Results of Cursory Biological Assessment MICHAEL G. CZERWINSKI, P.A., ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANTS (MGC) contracted with Pegasus Engineering to perform a cursory biological assessment of a proposed revised road access and pond locations (subject site) associated with the larger Citrus County Highway 491 Widening Project. MGC had previously conducted a larger scale biological assessment of the entire widening corridor, including areas directly adjacent to the subject site assessment area in September, 2013. The new proposed ponds and road access areas were added due to revisions to the scope and drainage service area of the larger road widening project. Preliminary site plans depict the creation of two stormwater ponds to be constructed and a new road access of approximately 1,400 linear ft. to be established within the subject site limits. The subject site, comprising approximately 36 acres, is located directly east of the Audubon Park medical offices and is located approximately one mile north of the intersection of State Road 44 and County Road 491 in Sections 33 & 34, T18S, R18E and sections 3 & 4, T19S, R18E in Lecanto, Citrus County, Florida. Ultimately, while listed species including the gopher tortoise were noted to occur within the larger widening project area as identified in the September 2013 Biological Assessment, no gopher tortoise burrows or other listed species were noted to occur within the 36 acre subject site. However, the habitat on the subject site is conducive to supporting gopher tortoises and may become inhabited overtime, and therefore should be re-assessed under the gopher tortoise burrow update survey covering the entire widening corridor to be submitted as part of the gopher tortoise relocation permit application to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The purpose of this biological assessment is to document the presence of listed species, wetlands, and other surface waters within / adjacent to the project limits in advance of proposed construction activities and, if necessary, to address potential impacts to those resources. Listed species, for the purposes of this assessment, are those plants and animals that are formally listed as Endangered, Threatened, or Species of Special Concern, or as a commercially exploited plant by the US Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service (USWFS) (50 CFR 17.11-12), the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) 1 2716 S. Lecanto Highway, Lecanto, Florida 34461 È Phone (352) 249-1012 s Fax (352) 249-1013 s E mail: [email protected] Phase 1 ESA’s ♦ Wetland Delineation ♦ Sinkhole Probability & Evaluation ♦ Listed Species & Habitat Assessments & Mapping ♦ Cultural Resource Assessments ♦ Water Quality Studies ♦ Environmental Impact Assessment (Chapter 68A-27 FAC) or the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FCACS) (Section 581 F.S.). Results maps and photo documentation for this investigation are provided in at the end of this report. Wetlands and their limits are defined in Chapter 62-340, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) Wetland Delineation Manual (1987). Wetlands, for the purpose of this assessment are defined as “those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface water or ground water at a frequency and a duration sufficient to support, and under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soils” (Chapter 62-340 F.A.C). Previously delineated and SWFWMD reviewed / approved wetland systems (Wetlands H, I, M) are located within 200-400’ to the south of the subject site, and will require evaluation / potential mitigation for impacts as part of the larger widening project, but no additional wetlands were identified within the subject site limits. Prior to conducting the field investigations, publicly available mapping data were queried to gain an understanding of the project area conditions. The subject site lies along the western flank of the Brooksville Ridge Physiographic Province (White, 1970). The Brooksville Ridge is a north-south trending ridge located in the approximate center of Citrus County that extends from Hernando County into Marion County. Elevations along the ridge range from approximately 70 to 240 feet above NGVD (National Geodetic Vertical Datum). The Ridge is characterized by deep, well drained sandy soils, overlying a discontinuous clay unit that varies between 0 and 30 feet thick. A review of SWFWMD 1-2’ contour LIDAR topography indicated elevations on the subject site range between 15 and 71 feet, with elevations highest along the western limits adjacent to CR 491, and generally decreasing to the east to a low point within the central / eastern portion of the subject site. A review of the Citrus County Soil Survey indicates the majority of the property (65%) is underlain by Lochloosa Fine Sand / 0 to 5 percents, with other soils noted comprising between 5 and 15% of the site including Quartzipsamments / 0 to 5 Percent Slopes, Sparr Fine Sand / 0 to 5 Percent Slopes, Kendrick Fine Sand / 0 to 5 Percent Slopes, Imokalee Fine Sand, and Arredondo Fine Sand / 0 to 5 and 5 to 8 Percent Slopes. Lochloosa and Sparr Fine Sand are both Hydrologic Group C soils indicating a soil with lower infiltration rates when thoroughly wetted, and with high water tables between 30 and 60 inches below the surface for one to four months in most years. Kendrick and Arredondo Fine Sand are Hydrologic group A soils with rapid percolation and high water tables more than 72” below the surface throughout the year. Imokalee Fine Sand is a Hydrologic Group B/D soil, indicating a natural state D class soil (poorly drained / low permeability) that could be modified through drainage to a B class soil, and with a high water table less than 10” below the surface for up to 2 months in most years. Quartzipsamments is a soil that has been highly reworked for development purposes and is not assigned a hydrologic group, percolation rate or water table depth due to its highly variable nature. The subject site lies within a low density residential / pastureland corridor along the east side of CR 491. Adjacent Land Uses include low density residential and pastureland habitat to the north, east, and south, and CR 491 and the Allen Ridge / Audubon Park Medical facilities to the west. 2 2716 S. Lecanto Highway, Lecanto, Florida 34461 È Phone (352) 249-1012 s Fax (352) 249-1013 s E mail: [email protected] Phase 1 ESA’s ♦ Wetland Delineation ♦ Sinkhole Probability & Evaluation ♦ Listed Species & Habitat Assessments & Mapping ♦ Cultural Resource Assessments ♦ Water Quality Studies ♦ Environmental Impact Assessment Results: MGC staff conducted a field inspection of the subject site on September 22, 2015. The majority of the subject site assessment area (~95%) is Open Lands (FLUCFCS 1900) habitat in varying degrees of maintenance / use, and the northern limits were described as Mixed Hardwoods Forest (FLUCFCS 4380). Open lands habitat within the western half of the subject site is substantially overgrown by herbaceous ruderal species and in some locations dominated by stands of exotic / invasive cogon grass (Imperata cylindrica), especially along the very western site limits adjacent to CR 491. Species noted within these habitat areas are principally ruderal field plants and shrubs that have grown to substantial size, including dog fennel (Eupatorium capillifolium), winged sumac (Rhus copallinum), showy rattlebox (Crotalaria spectabilis), Canadian horseweed (Conyza canadensis), spotted beebalm (Monarda punctata), ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), hairy indigo (Indigofera hirsuta), sand blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius), beggar ticks (Bidens alba), bahia grass (Paspalum notatum), sapling live oaks (Quercus virginiana) and cogon grass. Heading further west into fenced cattle pasture areas, open land habitat possesses a notably lower growing herbaceous cover, generally less than 12” in height, with species noted including dog fennel, bahia grass, beggar ticks, tropical soda apple (Solanum viarum), broomsedge (Andropogon virginicus), and sand blackberry with scatted canopy trees including live oak, longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), wild cherry (Prunus serotina), camphor tree (Cinnamomum camphora), Chinese tallow tree (Sapium sebiferum), mimosa tree (Albizia julibrissin), and laurel oak (Quercus laurifolia). Mixed Hardwood forest present along the northern limits of the subject site is thick canopied, dominated by stands of live oak, laurel oak, cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto), mimosa tree and eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), with a ground cover / understory of beauty berry (Callicarpa americana), sapling oaks and skunkvine (Paederia foetida). Several squirrel nests were noted in these habitat areas, but none of sufficient size