Joint Application Piermont Marsh Pilot Shoreline Stabilization Project Rockland County May 2021 Applicant: NYSDEC – Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve Attn: Heather Gierloff P.O. Box 315 Staatsburg, NY 12580 Joint Application Piermont Marsh Pilot Shoreline Stabilization Project Table of Contents Joint Application Form Attachments: 1. Project Description and Purpose 2. Location Map 3. Site Photos 4. Project Plans 5. 401 Water Quality Certification – Supplement WQC-1 6. 401 Water Quality Certification – Pre-Filing Meeting Request 7. SEQR – Short Environmental Assessment Form 8. SHPA – Structural Archaeological Assessment Form 9. NYS DOS – Federal Consistency Assessment Form 10. Supplemental Compensatory Mitigation Plan for a Pilot Project to Evaluate Erosion Prevention Techniques at Piermont Marsh Orangetown, NY May 2021 JOINT APPLICATION FORM For Permits for activities activities affecting streams, waterways, waterbodies, wetlands, coastal areas, sources of water, and endangered and threatened species. You must separately apply for and obtain Permits from each involved agency before starting work. Please read all instructions. 1. Applications To: > NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Check here to confirm you sent this form to NYSDEC. Check all permits that apply: Dams and Impound- Tidal Wetlands Water Withdrawal Stream Disturbance ment Structures Wild, Scenic and Long Island Well Excavation and Fill in 401 Water Quality Recreational Rivers Incidental Take of Navigable Waters Certification Coastal Erosion Endangered / Docks, Moorings or Freshwater Wetlands Management Threatened Species Platforms >US Army Corps of Engineers Check here to confirm you sent this form to USACE. Check all permits that apply: Section 404 Clean Water Act Section 10 Rivers and Harbors Act Is the project Federally funded? Yes No If yes, name of Federal Agency: General Permit Type(s), if known: Preconstruction Notification: Yes No >NYS Office of General Services Check here to confirm you sent this form to NYSOGS. Check all permits that apply: State Owned Lands Under Water Utility Easement (pipelines, conduits, cables, etc.) Docks, Moorings or Platforms >NYS Department of State Check here to confirm you sent this form to NYSDOS. Check if this applies: Coastal Consistency Concurrence 2. Name of Applicant Taxpayer ID (if applicant is NOT an individual) Mailing Address Post Office / City State Zip Telephone Email Applicant Must be (check all that apply): Owner Operator Lessee 3. Name of Property Owner (if different than Applicant) Mailing Address Post Office / City State Zip Telephone Email For Agency Use Only Agency Application Number: JOINT APPLICATION FORM 04/20 Page 1 of 4 JOINT APPLICATION FORM – Continued. Submit this completed page as part of your Application. 4. Name of Contact / Agent Mailing Address Post Office / City State Zip Telephone Email 5. Project / Facility Name Property Tax Map Section / Block / Lot Number: Project Street Address, if applicable Post Office / City State Zip NY Provide directions and distances to roads, intersections, bridges and bodies of water Town Village City County Stream/Waterbody Name Project Location Coordinates: Enter Latitude and Longitude in degrees, minutes, seconds: Latitude: ° ' " Longitude: ° ' " 6. Project Description: Provide the following information about your project. Continue each response and provide any additional information on other pages. Attach plans on separate pages. a. Purpose of the proposed project: b. Description of current site conditions: c. Proposed site changes: d. Type of structures and fill materials to be installed, and quantity of materials to be used (e.g., square feet of coverage, cubic yards of fill material, structures below ordinary/mean high water, etc.): e. Area of excavation or dredging, volume of material to be removed, location of dredged material placement: f. Is tree cutting or clearing proposed? Yes If Yes, explain below. No Timing of the proposed cutting or clearing (month/year): Number of trees to be cut: Acreage of trees to be cleared: JOINT APPLICATION FORM 04/20 Page 2 of 4 JOINT APPLICATION FORM – Continued. Submit this completed page as part of your Application. g. Work methods and type of equipment to be used: h. Describe the planned sequence of activities: i. Pollution control methods and other actions proposed to mitigate environmental impacts: j. Erosion and silt control methods that will be used to prevent water quality impacts: k. Alternatives considered to avoid regulated areas. If no feasible alternatives exist, explain how the project will minimize impacts: l. Proposed use: Private Public Commercial m. Proposed Start Date: Estimated Completion Date: n. Has work begun on project? Yes If Yes, explain below. No o. Will project occupy Federal, State, or Municipal Land? Yes If Yes, explain below. No p. List any previous DEC, USACE, OGS or DOS Permit / Application numbers for activities at this location: q. Will this project require additional Federal, State, or Local authorizations, including zoning changes? Yes If Yes, list below. No JOINT APPLICATION FORM 04/20 Page 3 of 4 Joint Application Piermont Marsh Pilot Shoreline Stabilization Project Attachment 1 Project Description and Purpose Orangetown, NY May 2021 Joint Application Form Piermont Marsh Pilot Shoreline Stabilization Project Project Description and Purpose a. Purpose of the proposed project: The primary purpose of the proposed project is to stabilize a section of eroding shoreline at Piermont Marsh in order to protect the present and potential values of the tidal wetland. Undercutting, slumping, and calving have been observed along much of the marsh shoreline. A review of historical aerial imagery and maps indicates that the Piermont Marsh shoreline has eroded 0.5 – 1.5 ft per year over the past 75 years resulting in an overall loss of marsh area and native low marsh vegetation. As a pilot project, the shoreline stabilization has been designed to protect a priority section of shoreline and evaluate different treatments that could be utilized to stabilize other shoreline sites in Piermont Marsh or other areas of the Hudson River. b. Description of current site conditions: Piermont Marsh is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, downstream of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge (see attached Location Map). Piermont Pier is located at the marsh’s northern end. From the base of the pier at the mouth of Sparkill Creek, the marsh extends 1.5 miles downstream. Piermont Marsh occupies approximately 278 acres, and is the largest brackish tidal marsh in the Hudson River estuary, providing ecologically significant habitat that is uncommon in the region. Extensive shallows are located between the marsh and the Hudson River navigation channel to the east. Located between the Village of Piermont and the Hudson River, Piermont Marsh provides important ecosystem services, including protecting the Village of Piermont from waves and storm debris. Sparkill Creek runs through the northern portion of Piermont Marsh, and Crumkill Creek runs through the central area of the marsh. Piermont Marsh experiences semi-diurnal tides with an average tidal range of 3.2 ft. Mean higher high water (MHHW) is 2.13 ft NAVD88, mean high water (MHW) is 1.84 ft NAVD88, mean sea level (MSL) is 0.11 ft NAVD88, mean low water (MLW) is -1.77 ft NAVD88, and mean lower low water (MLLW) is -1.94 ft NAVD88. The marsh surface elevation is generally above MHHW, with elevations between 2 and 3 ft NAVD88, and flooding of the marsh occurs irregularly. Marsh flooding occurs during spring tides and episodic flood and storm surge events. The top soil layer of the marsh is peat, and the soil profile alternates between layers of peat and clay to a depth of at least 40 ft. The Hudson River is brackish at Piermont Marsh, with salinity ranging from 0 to 12 ppt. There is a relatively steep 1 to 2 ft decline in elevation from the marsh surface to the intertidal zone. The slope at the marsh edge is more gradual within inlets compared to more exposed shoreline. The elevation decreases from 0 to -1.5 ft NAVD88 within approximately 10 ft of the marsh edge. Offshore of the initial drop off, there is a wide, relatively flat area with a typical elevation of -1.5 ft NAVD88 and scattered depressions, near the edge of the drop off, where elevations are slightly lower at -1.75 ft NAVD88 (see attached Supplemental Compensatory Mitigation Plan for a Pilot Project to Evaluate Erosion Prevention Techniques at Piermont Marsh). The project site includes brackish tidal marsh and brackish intertidal mudflat communities. The vegetation along the marsh edge is dominated by common reed (Phragmites australis) with isolated remnant patches of native saltmarsh cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) and three-square bulrush (Schoenoplectus pungens). Erosion has resulted in the loss of marsh vegetation and peat, undercutting and slumping of the shoreline, and exposure of rhizome and roots (see attached Site Photographs). c. Proposed site changes: Oyster castle sills, coir logs, and saltmarsh cordgrass will be installed by hand within the intertidal zone in order to stabilize the eroding shoreline. The design includes two parallel oyster castle sills positioned at MLLW and MSL to reduce wave energy over the entire tidal range and promote sediment accretion landward of the sills (see attached Project Plans). This design would reduce wave energy by 66 to 100% when the tide is at or below MSL. Under high tide conditions, the double castle sill design would reduce wave energy by 37 to 38%. Per USACE guidelines, five-foot gaps will be included for every 100 ft linear length of sill to allow for the unencumbered movement of aquatic organisms between the marsh and the river. The pilot project design also includes coir logs, placed at the unvegetated marsh toe in a single row behind the lower castle sill, adjacent to a patch of cordgrass. This treatment promotes sediment accretion and facilitates marsh expansion. Placing the coir logs at the marsh toe will protect the marsh edge, which is most vulnerable to erosion and it will offer wave protection for the shoreline when the tide is above MSL.