Interested parties are hereby notified that an application has been received for a Department of the Army permit for certain work in waters of the United States as described below and shown on the attached drawings.
APPLICANT: Ken Williams, Ko Olina Community Association, 92-1480 Aliinui Drive, Kapolei, HI 96707
AGENT: Christopher Conger, Sea Engineering, Inc., Makai Research Pier, 45-305 Kalanianaole Hwy, Waimanalo, HI 96795
LOCATION: TMKs: (1) 9-1-057: 003, 008, 012, 016; Coordinates: Lagoon 1 [21.337942 N, -158.124850 W], Lagoon 2 [21.334889 N, -158.123772 W], Lagoon 3 [21.331789 N, -158.122583 W], Lagoon 4 [21.328214 N, -158.122217 W]
WORK: The applicant proposes to implement a 10-year maintenance plan for the existing Ko Olina Lagoons.
PURPOSE: To restore design depth of each lagoon through sediment management in order to maximize the daily exchange of water and maintain sustainable slopes on the beach face.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The artificial lagoons at Ko Olina were designed to reflect the natural shape and function of the lagoons at the Alice Kamokila Campbell Estate. Each lagoon has a single, deep outlet channel that connects to the 10-foot contour offshore and to the inner lagoon areas which are approximately eight (8) feet deep. Shallow inlet channels allow for wave wash and initiate water circulation within the lagoon. Wave action within the lagoons is insufficient to return sand from the nearshore lagoon floors to their respective beach faces. Original maintenance of the lagoons was authorized under PODCO 1512 and a Nationwide Permit (NWP) POH-2011-00015, which expired in June of 2011. Sand management through the developed 10-year maintenance plan would include primary maintenance using heavy machinery, spot maintenance, and sand pushing. Primary maintenance would be conducted using a long reach excavator to dredge 1,000-3,200 cubic yards (CY) of sand from each lagoon floor and a bulldozer to redistribute dredged sand onto the beach face. Primary maintenance would be conducted on an 18-36 month cycle. Spot maintenance would occur on an as needed basis using a small hydraulic dredge operated from a pontoon. Dredge material (approximately 60-100CY per day) would be dewatered in a basin located at a distance above the high tide line sufficient to ensure that no return water enters waters of the United States. The basin would be surrounded by sand berms approximately three (3) feet high in order to prevent return water to the Pacific Ocean. Sand pushing would be conducted every three to four months using a Bobcat in order to counter the gradual slumping of sand on the beach face that result from natural processes and use. A swimmer safety line is also present in each lagoon. Each swimmer safety line is anchored to the bottom with four parking lot wheel stops bound together with stainless steel wire rope and shackles. These safety lines receive maintenance on a 12-14 month cycle.
MITIGATION: A double silt curtain would be employed during dredging operations and remain in place overnight or until sediment has settled. All work would halt during heavy storms or South swells. When not in use, heavy machinery would be staged on the south end of each lagoon. Work would be conducted on one half of a lagoon at a time in order to minimize impacts to wedding operations and recreational uses and would take approximately two days per lagoon to complete.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: The Corps may not issue a DA permit for the proposed activity until a certification or waiver of certification as required under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, has been received from the State of Hawaii Department of Health. However, for activities needing a permit only under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, if this office has not received within the 30-day comment period a written determination from the State of Hawaii Department of Health stating that water quality certification is required, this office will assume that no water quality certification is required prior to the issuance of a DA permit.
COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT CERTIFICATION: Section 307(c)(3) 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 State/Territory’s Coastal Zone Management Program. A permit may not be issued until the State of Hawaii Office of State Planning, Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism has concurred with the applicant's certification.
PUBLIC HEARING: Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider this application. Requests for public hearings shall 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 for 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 our final assessment of the described 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) on all actions that may affect a species listed (or proposed for listing) under the ESA as threatened or endangered or any designated critical habitat. We have determined the following listed species have the potential to occur near the project location:
- Hawksbill sea turtles (Eretmochelys imbricate), endangered
- Green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas), threatened
- Hawaiian monk seals (Monachus schauinslandi), endangered
The project location is absent of designated critical habitat for ESA-listed species.
The applicant’s proposed site-specific Best Management Practices (BMPs) would be included as conditions of the Corps permit, if issued. Based on the applicant’s proposed project scope, the Corps has preliminarily determined this project may affect, but would not likely adversely affect the federally listed species identified above. We will be initiating informal consultation with NMFS and USFWS to seek written concurrence with our determination.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT: The proposed work is being evaluated for possible effects to Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) pursuant to the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1996 (MSFCMA) and associated federal regulations found at 50 CFR 600 Subpart K. The Honolulu District includes areas of EFH as 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. Bottom substrate of these artificial lagoons is sandy and has been regularly disturbed by swimmers and past maintenance activities. A fringe reef is located offshore from the lagoon outlet channels. A double silt curtain would be employed and remain in place overnight in order to reduce turbidity produced by dredge operations.
SPECIAL AREA DESIGNATION: None
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, which are found at 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, which are found at 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 Kaitlyn.R.Seberger@usace.army.mil. Conventional mail comments should be sent U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch, Building 230, Ft. Shafter, HI 96848. 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-2009-00015.
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 Kaitlyn Seberger at (808) 835-4300 if further information is desired concerning this notice.
Additional Project Information and Project Drawings are attached to this Public Notice.