Public Notice (PN) Date: February 16, 2023           PN Reference Number: POA-1983-00465-M8 v1.0
PN Expiration Date: March 10, 2023                      Waterway: Thorne Bay

Any applicant for a federal license or permit to conduct an activity that might result in a discharge into navigable waters, in accordance with Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1977 (PL95-217), also must apply for and obtain certification from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation that the discharge will comply with the CWA, the Alaska Water Quality Standards, and other applicable State laws.

Notice is hereby given that a request for a CWA §401 Water Quality Certification of a Department of the Army Permit application, Corps of Engineers’ PN Reference Number indicated above has been received for the discharge of dredged and/or fill materials into waters of the United States (WOUS), including wetlands, as described below, and shown on the project figures/drawings. The public notice and related project figures/drawings are accessible from the DEC website at http://dec.alaska.gov/water/wastewater/.

To comment on the project or request for a public hearing with respect to water quality, submit comments electronically via the DEC public notice site at https://water.alaskadec.commentinput.com/?id=NKHJR on or before the public notice expiration date listed above.

Applicant: City of Thorne Bay, John Huestis, PO Box 19110 Thorne Bay, AK 99919; (907) 828-3380; administrator@thornebay-ak.gov.

Agent: R&M Engineering-Ketchikan, Inc., Trevor Sande, 7180 Revilla Road, Suite 300 Ketchikan, AK 99901; (907) 225-7917; trevorsande@rmketchikan.com.

Project Name: Thorne Bay Davidson Landing Harbor Parking

Location: The proposed activity is located within Section S34, T. 71S, R. 84E; Copper River Meridian; in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska. Project Site: Latitude 55.67048, Longitude -132.52414.

Purpose: The applicant’s stated purpose is to provide additional boat trailer and vehicle parking adjacent to the existing launch ramp and harbor because a planned fire station will displace some of the few parking spaces that currently exist, and the site is very underserved for parking.

Project Description: The applicant proposes to expand the Davidson Landing Harbor parking area by filling in a corner bounded by the boat launch ramp to the south, the existing gravel pad and access driveway to the west, harbor access/entrance to the north, and the South Davidson Inlet to the east. Approximately half of this corner area appears to have been partially filled prior to 2008, but not brought up to the surface grade of the surrounding gravel pads/access roads so it is not a useable surface. This previously filled area is lower than the high tide line, but higher than the mean high water, and much higher than the natural beach. The applicant proposes to place clean fill material from a local quarry consisting of 1494 cubic yards of shot rock, 119 cubic yards of D-1 gravel, and 411 cubic yards of armor rock as fill in 0.132-acre of waters of the U.S. to bring this corner area up to grade as a functional parking area. The surface of the proposed parking area would be approximately 74 feet at the widest point and 124 feet long at the longest point, with a 2:1 riprap slope on the east side.

Additional Information: This is the 8th modification for the Davidson Landing Harbor and the final planned phase of the harbor expansion under permit number POA-1983-00465. Most of the land designated for the Davidson Landing Harbor is located with inter-tidal or submerged tidelands. There is a narrow strip of upland area adjacent to the site is already developed with the harbor access road and utilities, and there is no remaining upland to accommodate harbor and boat launch parking.

Permit History for the Davidson Landing Harbor (POA-1983-00465):

- POA-1983-00465, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as 071-0YD-1-830465, Thorne Bay 24): Issued to the South Bay Landowners Association on February 29, 1984 (expiration date February 29, 1987), and transferred to the City of Thorne Bay on July 13, 1984, authorizing the construction of a 360-foot long, 4-foot-wide log stiff leg anchored in place with an attached 8-foot by 24-foot log mooring float.

- POA-1983-00465-M1, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as M-830465): Issued on November 20, 1990 (expiration date extended to December 1, 1991), authorizing the temporary mooring of a 4-foot by 90-foot catwalk section to the existing float.

- POA-1983-00465-M2, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as N-830465): Issued on March 16, 1992 (expiration date March 16, 1995), authorizing the removal of the existing 8-foot by 24-foot mooring float held in place by two pilings and replace with a 40-foot by40-foot mooring float held in place with two pilings and remove the existing 4-foot by 360-foot anchored log stiff leg and replace it with a decked and railed 6-foot by 390-foot anchored log stiff leg.

- POA-1983-00465-M3, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as O-830465): Issued on September 15, 1992 (expiration date September 15, 1995), authorizing the construction of an additional 24-foot by 70-foot mooring float, secured with two anchors installed on the southeast corner of the existing mooring facility.

- POA-1983-00465-M4, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as POA-1983-465-P): Application was withdrawn – no authorization was issued. POA-1983-00465-M5, Thorne Bay (formerly referenced as POA-1983-465-Q): Issued on July 18, 2007 (expiration date May 31, 2012), authorized the installation of a new approach, steel and wood pier, ramp, and a new harbor at the Davidson Landing Harbor. It authorized the removal of the existing structures at the Davidson Landing Harbor and the discharge of 12,851-cubic yards of fill material below the high tide line into 0.29-acre to construct an "L-shaped" approach pad with a 45.7-foot by 73.4-foot section (59-foot by 65-foot toe-to-toe) and a 61.7-foot by 24-foot section (46-foot by 84.2-foot toe-to-toe) and a 12-foot by 200-foot boat launching ramp consisting of pre-cast concrete planks. The total toe-to-toe width of the fill material placed to support the ramp was 35-foot at the widest point narrowing toward the end of the ramp. The authorization included the installation of a 6-foot by 200-foot wood float adjacent to the boat ramp to be held in place with six (6) 12-inch diameter driven piles, and a 14-foot by 100-foot steel and wood pier supported by eight (8) 12-inch diameter driven piles. Also included was a 6-foot by 80-foot aluminum gangway and a new harbor system consisting of a 20-foot by 20-foot gangway landing float; a 10-foot by 160-foot access float; a 10-foot by 100-foot and a 10-foot by 75-foot main float; a 10-foot by 72-foot main float with a 3-foot by 42-foot finger float and six (6) 3-foot by 16-foot finger floats attached; and a 40-foot by 60-foot seaplane float at the Davidson Landing Harbor. A total of twenty-one (21) 12-inch diameter driven piles was authorized to support the floating portions of the dock. The floating structures would impact a total of 0.19-acre located below mean high water.

- POA-1983-00465-M6, Thorne Bay: Issued on August 22, 2008 (expiration date June 30, 2013), as a modification of the POA-1983-00465-M5 authorization dated July 18, 2007. This modification authorized the construction of a 14-foot by 25-foot pile constructed pier, and 75-foot of the previously authorized pile supported pier to be substituted with 2400 additional cubic feet of shot rock to be placed seaward of the Mean High Water (MHW) impacting an additional 0.101-acre of intertidal waters of the U.S.

- POA-1983-00465-M7, Thorne Bay: Issued on June 18, 2009 (expiration date May 31, 2014), as a modification of the POA-1983-00465-M5 authorization dated July 18, 2007 (and modified on August 22, 2008, under POA-1983-00465-M6). This modification changed the location and slightly the design of the previously authorized boat launch, increased the float configuration from 8,496 square feet to 12,300 square feet, added a parking area for vehicles with trailers adjacent to the boat launch, changed slightly the approach embankment slope from 1:1 to 1.5:1, and installed 28 additional steel pilings to secure the additional floats. This authorized modification increased the total fill area in the project by 0.66-acre for a total of 0.95-acre of fill in intertidal and subtidal areas for the entire project (POA-1983-00465-M5, POA-1983-00465-M6, and POA-1983-00465-M7).

Applicant Proposed Mitigation: The applicant proposes the following mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, and compensate for impacts to waters of the United States from activities involving discharges of dredged or fill material.

a. Avoidance: “The existing boat ramp and small boat harbor are located on the end of the long narrow peninsula with tidelands on both sides of the peninsula. There is very little land available for vehicle and boat trailer parking and the small stretch of land has been programmed to receive a fire station which will further reduce marine service parking.”

b. Minimization: “The parking area was chosen to be the smallest dimensions to accommodate the combined length of vehicles and trailers that utilize the existing boat launch ramp.”

c. Compensatory Mitigation: “No compensatory mitigation is proposed for this project.”

After reviewing the application, the Department may certify there is reasonable assurance the activity, and any discharge that might result, will comply with the CWA, the Alaska Water Quality Standards, and other applicable State laws. The Department also may deny or waive certification.

The permit application and associated documents are available for review. For inquires or to request copies of the documents, contact dec-401cert@alaska.gov, or call 907-269-6285.

Disability Reasonable Accommodation Notice

The State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. If you are a person with a disability who may need special accommodation in order to participate in this public process, please contact ADA Coordinator Claire Fishwick at  907-465-5066 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-8973/TTY or dial 711 prior to the expiration date of this public notice to ensure that any necessary accommodations can be provided.