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Public Notices

POH-2012-00145

Published Sept. 11, 2012
Expiration date: 10/11/2012

Interested parties are hereby notified that an application has been received for a Department of the Army (DA) permit for certain work in waters of the United States as described below and shown on the attached drawings.

APPLICANT:  Mr. Clyde Kaneshiro

AGENT:  Mr. Mike Saito

LOCATION:  In Kaneohe Bay at/near TMK (1) 4-6-003: 007, Kaneohe, County of Honolulu, Island of Oahu, Hawaii.  Coordinates:  Latitude 21.424899 N, Longitude -157.799576 W 

WORK:  The proposed project is the replacement of an existing pier with an approximately 352-square-foot boat dock.  The proposed work would consist of the placement of 6 pre-cast concrete pier footings in Kaneohe Bay.  Each footing would be pre-cast on land and placed into position by crane-lift.  A boat dock consisting of structural plastic lumber decking material would then be constructed on the footings.  The boat dock would run along approximately 22 feet of an existing concrete rubble masonry wall and extend seaward approximately 16 feet, for a total of approximately 352 square feet.

PURPOSE:  The purpose of the proposed project is to provide berthing of private boat and recreational use of the dock facility.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:  The existing pier, which is smaller than and located within the footprint of the proposed boat dock, was previously authorized by a Department of the Army permit, Letter of Permission, dated August 7, 1979.

MITIGATION:  The applicant believes that all necessary steps have been taken in order to avoid and minimize any adverse impacts to the environment.  The only in water work proposed is the placement of the pre-cast concrete pier footings.  No special aquatic sites, including coral reefs, are known to exist within or near the project area.  No placement of fill or dredged material will be done.  The applicant has not proposed any further mitigation.

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION:  The Corps may not issue a DA permit for any activity that may result in a discharge into waters of the United States until the applicant has obtained a certification or waiver of certification as required under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, from the State of Hawaii, Department of Health, Clean Water Branch.

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT CERTIFICATION:  Section 307 of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended, requires the applicant to certify that the described activity affecting land or water uses in the Coastal Zone complies with the enforceable policies of the State’s approved Coastal Zone Management Program and that the activity will be conducted in a manner consistent with the Program.  A permit may not be issued until the Office of State Planning, Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism has concurred with the applicant's certification.

PUBLIC HEARING:  Any person may request that a public hearing be held to consider this application.  Requests for public hearings must be in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, and state clearly and concisely, the reasons and rationale for holding a public hearing.

CULTURAL RESOURCES:  The latest published version of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) has been consulted to assist in determining the presence or absence of historic properties, including those listed in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.  There are no listed or eligible properties in the vicinity of the worksite.  Consultation of the NRHP constitutes the extent of cultural resource investigations by the District Engineer at this time, and he is otherwise unaware of the presence of such resources.  This application is being coordinated with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO).  Any comments SHPO may have concerning presently unknown archeological or historic data that may be lost or destroyed by work under the requested permit will be considered in the final assessment of the proposed work.

ENDANGERED SPECIES:  Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires federal agencies to consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and/or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to ensure that any action they authorize, fund, or carry out is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of species listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA or result in the destruction or adverse modification of designated critical habitat.  After receipt of comments from this public notice, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will evaluate the potential impacts to proposed and/or listed species and their designated critical habitat.

ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT: The proposed work is being evaluated for possible effects to Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) pursuant to Section 305(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1996 (MSFCMA) (16 U.S.C. 1855 (b)) and associated federal regulations found at 50 CFR Part 600 Subpart K.  The Honolulu District area of responsibility includes EFH for species managed under Fishery Management Plans.  We have reviewed the January 20, 1999, Western Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Environmental Assessment to locate EFH area as identified by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).

We have determined that the described activity within the proposed area will not adversely affect EFH, including anadromous fish and federally managed fishery resources.  The project site is within the species/management unit “Hawaiian Bottomfish.”  The substrate at the project site is described by the applicant as being composed of “silt, sand, and rubble.”  The NOAA Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment online mapper describes the area as being “uncolonized,” composed of mud and within the reef flat zone.  Based on this information, it is expected that minimal, if any, direct impacts to EFH will occur.  Indirectly, some turbidity is expected from the placement of the pier footings; however this disturbance will be temporary, and therefore, minimal in nature.

AUTHORITY:  This permit application will be reviewed under the following authorities:

(X)  Perform work in or affecting navigable waters of the United States – Section 10 Rivers and Harbors Act 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403).

( )  Discharge dredged or fill material into waters of the United States – Section 404 Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344).  The Corps’ public interest review will consider the guidelines set forth under Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act (40 CFR 230).

( )  Transport dredged material for the purpose of dumping it into ocean waters - Section 103 Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C. 1413).  The Corps’ public interest review will consider the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972, as amended (40 CFR Parts 220 to 229), as appropriate.

EVALUATION:  The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impacts, 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 the cumulative effects thereof; among those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic 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.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State, and local agencies and officials; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of this activity.  Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to issue, modify, condition or deny a permit for the work.  To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on 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 activity.

COMMENT AND REVIEW PERIOD:  Conventional mail or e-mail comments on this public notice will be accepted and made part of the record and will be considered in determining whether it would be in the public interest to authorize this proposal.  In order to be accepted, e-mail comments must originate from the author’s e-mail account and must include on the subject line of the e-mail message the permit applicant’s name and reference number as shown below.  All e-mail comments should be sent to emilee.r.stevens2@usace.army.mil.  Conventional mail comments should be sent U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Honolulu District, Building 230 (Attn: CEPOH-EC-R), Ft. Shafter, HI 96858-5440.  Both conventional mail and e-mail comments must include the permit applicant’s name and reference number, as shown below, and the commentor’s name, address, and phone number.  All comments whether conventional mail or e-mail must reach this office, no later than the expiration date of this public notice to ensure consideration.  Please include the following name and reference number: POH-2012-00145.

Comments on the described work, with the reference number, should reach this office no later than the expiration date of this Public Notice to become part of the record and be considered in the decision.  Please contact Emilee Stevens at (808) 835-4310 if further information is desired concerning this notice.

Project Drawings and additional information (5 pages) are attached to this Public Notice.



Contact Information

Regulatory Office
Building 252
Fort Shafter, HI  96858-5440
(808) 835-4303
CEPOH-RO@usace.army.mil 

Guam Field Office
Apra Harbor Naval Complex
PSC 455 Box 188
FPO, AP 96540-1088  Guam
(671) 339-2108 
CEPOH-RO@usace.army.mil

Civil and Public Works Branch

Civil and Public Works Branch

Bldg. 230 Fort Shafter, HI 96858