Hocking River Basin, Ohio Monday Creek Subbasin Ecosystem Restoration Project Final Feasibility Report and Environmental Assessment July 2005 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Huntington District Huntington, West Virginia HOCKING RIVER BASIN, OHIO MONDAY CREEK SUBBASIN ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION PROJECT FINAL FEASIBILITY REPORT AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Executive Summary 1 2.0 Introduction 3 2.1 Study Authority 4 2.2 Purpose and Need 4 2.3 Study Area 8 2.4 Public Involvement 11 2.5 Prior Studies and Reports 11 3.0 Existing Conditions* 17 3.1 Land Use 17 3.1.1 Existing Land Use 17 3.1.2 Historical Land Use 17 3.2 Geology and Topography 19 3.3 Soils and Farmland 20 3.4 Air Quality 20 3.5 Noise 20 3.6 Vegetation 20 3.7 Water Resources/Water Quality 21 3.8 Wetlands 23 3.9 Aquatic Life and Wildlife 26 3.9.1 Aquatic Life 26 3.9.2 Wildlife 30 3.10 Threatened and Endangered Species 31 3.11 Historic and Archaeological Resources 34 3.12 Hazardous, Toxic and Radiological Wastes 34 3.13 Socio-Economics 35 3.14 Recreation 40 3.15 Future Without Project Condition (FWOPC) 41 4.0 Plan Formulation and Alternative Evaluation* 42 4.1 Formulation Process 42 4.2 Aquatic Ecosystem Approach 43 4.3 Quantifying Environmental Benefits as Species Diversity 44 4.4 Initial Screening Technologies for Abating AMD 46 4.5 Intermediate Screening of Alternatives 53 4.6 Alternatives Considered in Detail 56 4.6.1 Environmental Outputs 58 4.6.2 Costs 60 4.6.3 IWR-Plan Results 60 4.7 Final Array 64 4.7.1 Comparison of Efficiency 67 4.7.2 Comparison of Effectiveness 67 4.7.3 Comparison of Completeness 68 4.7.4 Comparison of Acceptability 69 5.0 Recommended Plan* 71 5.1 Plan Description 71 5.1.1 Open Limestone Channel 72 5.1.2 Limestone Leach Bed 73 5.1.3 Steel Slag Leach Bed 75 5.1.4 Aerobic Wetlands 77 5.1.5 Low Head Dam 79 5.1.6 Lime Kiln Dust Doser 79 5.1.7 Stream Capturing Subsidence Closures 81 5.1.8 Spoil Block Removal 83 5.1.9 Rerouting Dissipating Streams 83 5.2 Plan Benefits 84 5.3 Monitoring and Adaptive Management 85 5.4 Operation and Maintenance 90 6.0 Watershed Impacts of Recommended Plan 96 6.1 Land Use 96 6.1.1 Existing Land Use 96 6.1.2 Historical Land Use 96 6.2 Geology and Topography 96 6.3 Spoils and Farmland 96 6.3.1 FWOPC (No Action) 96 6.3.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 97 6.4 Air Quality 97 6.4.1 FWOPC (No Action) 97 6.4.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 97 6.5 Noise 97 6.5.1 FWOPC (No Action) 97 6.5.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 97 6.6 Vegetation 97 6.6.1 FWOPC (No Action) 97 6.6.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 98 6.7 Water Resources/Water Quality 98 6.7.1 FWOPC (No Action) 98 6.7.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 98 6.8 Wetlands 99 6.8.1 FWOPC (No Action) 99 6.8.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 99 6.9 Aquatic Life and Wildlife 100 6.9.1 Aquatic Life 100 6.9.1.1 FWOPC (No Action) 100 6.9.1.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 100 6.9.2 Wildlife 101 6.9.2.1 FWOPC (No Action) 101 6.9.2.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 101 6.10 Threatened and Endangered Species 101 6.10.1 FWOPC (No Action) 101 6.10.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 101 6.11 Historic and Archaeological Resources 105 6.11.1 FWOPC (No Action) 105 6.11.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 105 6.12 Hazardous, Toxic and Radiological Wastes 106 6.12.1 FWOPC (No Action) 106 6.12.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 106 6.13 Socio-Economics 106 6.13.1 FWOPC (No Ac tion) 106 6.13.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 106 6.14 Recreation 106 6.14.1 FWOPC (No Action) 106 6.14.2 FWPC Alternative Plan Combination 6 106 6.15 Cumulative Effects 107 6.15.1 Past, Present, and Future 107 6.15.2 Scoping 108 6.15.3 Reasonable Foreseeable Actions 109 6.15.4 Cumulative Effects Analysis 109 7.0 Financial Analysis 112 7.1 Local Cooperation and Cost Sharing 112 7.2 Cost Appointment 115 8.0 Conclusions 117 Volume I Planning Appendix Appendix A Wetland Information Appendix B HTRW Summary Appendix C Total Acid Mine Drainage Loading Model Appendix D Agency Coordination Appendix E Economic Appendix Appendix F Long-Term Monitoring Plan Appendix G Public Comments Appendix H District Response Appendix I Notice of Availability Appendix J Distribution List Appendix K Draft and Final FONSI Appendix L 404 (b) (1) Analysis Volume II Engineering Appendix Appendix A Coe Hollow Subwatershed Supplemental Data Appendix B Lost Hollow Subwatershed Supplemental Data Appendix C Construction Materials Report Appendix D Cost Estimate Appendix E Real Estate HOCKING RIVER BASIN, OHIO MONDAY CREEK SUBBASIN ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION PROJECT FINAL FEASIBILITY REPORT AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT List of Figures Figure 2-1 Quality Gradient of Aquatic Life Uses and Narrative 6 Descriptions of Biological Community Index Figure 2-2 Aquatic Organisms Response to AMD Constituent Levels 7 Figure 2-4 Monday Creek Watershed 10 Figure 3-1 Before and After Photographs of Reclamation Activities 19 Figure 3-3 Total Number Fish Caught During TMDL Field Activities 27 Figure 3-4 Total Number Fish Species Caught During TMDL Field 27 Activities Figure 3-5 Main Stem Monday Creek Fish Populations by Percentage 28 Figure 3-6 Snow Fork Fish Populations by Percentage 29 Figure 3-7 Little Monday Creek Fish Populations by Percentage 30 Figure 3-8 Percent Population of Athens, Hocking and Perry Counties by 36 Age Group Figure 3-9 Unemployment Rates in Athens, Hocking and Perry Counties 39 1970-2000 Figure 4-3 Flow Chart for Selecting Passive Treatment Systems for AMD 48 Projects Figure 4-5 Monday Creek AMD Treatment 57 Figure 4-6 Plan Combinations and Cost Effective Plans 61 Figure 4-7 Best By Plans for Monday Creek Ecosystem Restoration 63 Project Figure 5-1 Open Limestone Channel and Limestone Leach Beds 74 Figure 5-2 Slag Leach Beds 76 Figure 5-3 Wetland Locations 78 Figure 5-4 Low Head Dams 80 Figure 5-5 Lime Doser Location 82 Figure 5-6 Subsidences, Spoil Blocks and Dissipating Streams 84 Figure 5-7 Flow Conditions – Past Conditions 86 Figure 5-8 Daily Mean Discharge and Median Daily Stream Flow 87 Figure 5-9 Long Term Monitoring Site Locations 89 Figure 6-2 Affected Resources and Foreseeable Future Actions 110 List of Tables Table 3-1 Recovery Potential for Aquatic Organisms 22 Table 3-2 Extent of Jurisdictional Wetlands 23 Table 3-3 Regional Forester’s Sensitive Species Listed for Wayne 33 National Forest Table 3-4 Watershed Population by Village, 1900-2000 36 Table 3-5 Demographic Population of Townships by Race 37 Table 3-6 Percent of Individuals Below Poverty by County, 1970-1999 37 Table 3-7 Per Capita Income by County, 1969-1999 38 Table 3-8 Educational Attainment for Persons 25 Years and Over 40 Table 4-1 Remediation Thresholds and Margins of Safety for the 42 Remediation Simulation Models Table 4-2 Aquatic Organisms Response to AMD Constituent Levels 44 Table 4-3 Parameters that limit type of technologies used in AMD 47 remediation Table 4-5 Initial Screening of Alternatives 52 Table 4-6 Drainage Areas Captured in Subsidence Features 53 Table 4-7 Description of Alternative Plans Analyzed 55 Table 4-8 Future With Project and Without Project Output 59 Table 4-9 Alternative Plans Cost 60 Table 4-10 Non-Combinability Constraints Alternative Plan 61 Table 4-11 Best Buy Plan Descriptions 62 Table 4-12 Average Costs and Incremental Cost Analysis of Best Buy 63 Restoration Plans Table 4-13 Final Plan Comparisons 65 Table 5-1 Plan Combination 6 71 Table 5-2 Recommended Alternative – Plan Combination 6 Features 93 Table 5-3 Summary Comparison of Final Alternative Plans 95 Table 6-1 Extent of Jurisdictional Wetlands 99 Table 6-2 Wetlands Created 100 Table 6-3 Relationship of Selected Alternatives to Environmental 111 Requirements and Protection Statutes Table 7-1 Fully Funded Cost Share Summary 116 List of Graphs Graph 4-1 Snow Fork ICI Existing Conditions Scores 45 Graph 4-2 Mainstem Monday Creek ICI Existing Conditions Scores 46 Hocking River Basin, Ohio, Monday Creek Sub-basin Ecosystem Restoration Project Feasibility Report and Environmental Assessment 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District has prepared this Final Feasibility Report and Environmental Assessment pursuant to an adopted resolution in March 1996, requesting the Assistant Secretary of the Army to study and recommend for implementation ecosystem restoration projects that relate to former resource extraction activities. This report is an evaluation of the Monday Creek Watershed stream ecosystem and the potential impacts to the natural, physical, and human environment associated with the proposed ecosystem restoration alternatives. The Monday Creek Watershed (HUC 05030204 060) is located entirely within the State of Ohio in the counties of Hocking, Athens and Perry. Monday Creek drains a 116 square mile (724,240 acres) area in the unglaciated portion of the Allegheny Plateau region of southeastern Ohio.