[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 38 (Monday, February 27, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12352-12353]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03914]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) 
for the Installation of a Terminal Groin Structure Along the Inlet 
Shoulder of the New River Inlet and the Placement of the Dredge 
Material for the Fillet Along Approximately 2,000 Linear Feet of Ocean 
Shoreline of North Topsail Beach in Onslow County, NC

AGENCY: Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Wilmington District, 
Wilmington Regulatory Field Office has received a request for 
Department of the Army (DA) authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of 
the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbor Act, from 
the Town of North Topsail Beach to construct a terminal groin and its 
associated oceanfront fillet placement along approximately 2,000 linear 
feet of oceanfront shoreline. Additionally, the installation of the 
terminal groin will be conjunction with the existing May 27, 2011, DA 
authorization that permitted the Town to relocate the New River Inlet 
ebb tide channel, conduct maintenance events within the channel, and 
perform a phased beach nourishment along approximately 11 miles of 
oceanfront shoreline. The DA authorization for the maintenance 
operation expires on December 31, 2041. The main purpose of adding the 
terminal groin is to provide additional shoreline protection of the 
Town's infrastructure, specifically along the northeastern end of 
island.

DATES: No comments are requested, so there are no dates applicable to 
this Notice of Intent.

ADDRESSES: Questions regarding this notice may be submitted to: U.S. 
Army Corps of Engineers, Wilmington District, Regulatory Division. 
ATTN: File Number: SAW-2016-02091, 69 Darlington Avenue, Wilmington, NC 
28403 or [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and Draft EIS can be directed to Mr. Mickey Sugg, Chief, Wilmington 
Regulatory Field Office, at telephone (910) 251-4811; email 
[email protected]; or regular mail at (see ADDRESSES).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    1. Proposed Action. On May 27, 2011, the USACE granted DA 
authorization to the Town of North Topsail Beach to implement a 
shoreline protection project, which encompassed the relocation of the 
New River Inlet ebb tide channel and nourishment of approximately 11 
miles of the Town's oceanfront shoreline. This authorization also 
allowed the Town to conduct channel maintenance dredging to maintain 
the ebb tide channel within a pre-determined location to improve 
shoreline protection along the eastern end of the island. The initial 
construction of the channel relocation was completed in January 2013, 
but no subsequent maintenance dredging has taken place. Upon the 
completion of the channel relocation, the Town re-evaluated the post-
construction conditions and the project's performance and is currently 
seeking to supplement the existing inlet management project with the 
installation of a terminal groin to enhance the oceanfront protection 
along the most western end of the island.
    The proposed plans for a terminal groin consist of constructing the 
structure along the eastern shoulder of the New River Inlet and 
building the groin's fillet (or oceanfront shoreline) with material 
dredged during an inlet channel maintenance event. The terminal groin 
would consist of a 2,021-ft-long sheet pile and rubble-mound structure 
with several distinct components, including a 345-ft-long sheet pile 
anchor section extending landward of the primary dune, an 894-ft-long 
sheet pile upland section extending seaward from the primary dune 
across the inlet/oceanfront dry beach, and a 782-ft-long rubble mound 
in-water section extending seaward of the MHW line. The anchor and 
upland sheet pile groin sections would have maximum crest elevations of 
+5 feet NAVD that are slightly lower than the natural beach berm 
elevation of +6 ft NAVD. The in-water rubble-mound section, consisting 
of 4- to 6-ft-diameter granite armor stone, would have a crest 
elevation of +5 feet NAVD, a crest width of 5 feet, and a base width of 
~40 feet. Conventional land-based heavy equipment would be used to 
construct both the onshore and in-water groin sections. Construction of 
the onshore (anchor and upland) sections would involve excavating the 
groin footprint, installing sheet pile and armor stone scour aprons to 
design specifications, covering the completed structure with the 
original excavated material, and grading the work area to reestablish 
pre-construction beach profiles. Depending on the position of the 
shoreline, construction of the in-water groin

[[Page 12353]]

section may require work from a temporary trestle, or an embankment, 
built out from the shoreline using existing beach material. It is 
anticipated that all of the stone for groin construction would be 
hauled in by trucks from the quarry site. Once the structure is in 
place, beach fill material would be placed southward of the terminal 
groin to construct the north end beach fill and groin fillet. The groin 
fillet would consist of a tapered fill section extending 2,000 feet 
southwest from the groin along the seaward margin of the +6-ft berm. 
Initial construction of the fillet and a projected four-year 
maintenance nourishment event would require ~310,000 cy of beach fill. 
Based on a four-year nourishment cycle, an estimated volume of ~2.35 
million cubic yards of beach fill would be required over a total 30-
year period.
    2. Scoping Process. A local Public Notice was issued on March 15, 
2021, announcing an initial scoping meeting (a Facebook Live event) and 
included a 30-day commenting period that ended on April 14, 2021. The 
scoping meeting was held on March 25, 2021, and all received comments 
were evaluated and considered in the preparation of the Draft EIS.
    Additionally, the USACE will reinitiate consultation with the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act and the Fish 
and Wildlife Coordination Act; with the National Marine Fisheries 
Service under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act and the Endangered Species Act; and with the North Carolina State 
Historic Preservation Office under the National Historic Preservation 
Act. Additionally, the USACE will coordinate the proposed project with 
the North Carolina Division of Water Quality (NCDWQ) to assess the 
potential water quality impacts pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean 
Water Act, and with the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management 
(NCDCM) to determine the projects consistency with the Coastal Zone 
Management Act. The USACE will closely work with NCDCM and NCDWQ in the 
development of the EIS to ensure the process complies with all State 
Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements. It is the intention of 
both the USACE and the State of North Carolina to consolidate the NEPA 
and any required SEPA processes thereby eliminating duplication.
    3. Alternatives. Several alternatives, including various borrow 
areas, are being considered for the proposed project. The following 
alternatives have determined to be reasonable options for the Town's 
proposal and each will be evaluated in the EIS: (1) No Action 
(Continuation of existing USACE-authorized Beach and Inlet Management), 
(2) Abandon and Retreat (No use of existing USACE-authorized Beach and 
Inlet Management and/or other USACE permitting actions), (3) Beach 
Nourishment Only, (4) Beach Nourishment and Terminal Groin (No use of 
existing USACE-authorized Beach and Inlet Management), and (5) Beach 
Nourishment, Terminal Groin, and Use of existing USACE-authorized Inlet 
Management.
    4. Availability of the Draft EIS. The Draft EIS is expected to be 
published and circulated the summer of 2023; and a public hearing will 
be held after the publication of the Draft EIS.

Daniel H. Hibner,
Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Commanding.
[FR Doc. 2023-03914 Filed 2-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P