Fed Con Raritan to Arthur Kill Cut Off_EDITED_.pdf

April 4, 2024

Michael Oseback, Chief, Operations Support Branch Department of Army NY District 26 Federal Plaza Jacob K Javits Federal Building New York, NY 10278

RE: Federal Consistency Determination / Water Quality Certification File and Activity No.: 0000-01-1003.1 CDT240001 Applicant: Army Corp of Engineers, NY District Project: Raritan River to Arthur Kill Cut-Off Federal Navigation Project

Dear Mr. Oseback:

This letter is issued in response to your request for a Federal Consistency (FC), as per Section 307 of the Federal Coastal Zone Management Act (16 USC 1451 et seq.), and Water Quality Certification (WQC) as required by Section 401 of the Federal Clean Water Act (33 USC 1251 et seq). The request included the sediment testing data as well as specifications for the maintenance dredging of the Raritan River to Arthur Kill Cut-Off Federal Navigation Project on plans cited below. The proposed maintenance dredging would remove approximately 350,000 cubic yards (CY) of material to a depth of -20 feet mean lower low water (MLLW) plus 2 foot of allowable overdredge, with placement at the Historic Area Remediation Site (HARS). This Federal Navigation Project was last dredged in 2014 and involved the removal of 329,445 CY with placement at the HARS.

Beneficial Use at HARS

The FC/WQC request included a December 11, 2023 Memo from the NY District Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency – Region 2 demonstrating compliance with respect to 40 CFR 227 (Criteria for the Evaluation of Permit Applications for Ocean Dumping of Materials) and 40 CFR 228 (Criteria for the Management of Disposal Sites for Ocean Dumping).

Federal Consistency and Water Quality Certification

The Coastal Zone Management Rules (N.J.A.C. 7:7) constitute New Jersey’s enforceable policies under its federally approved Coastal Zone Management Program. The Maintenance Dredging of the Raritan River to Arthur Kill Cut-Off New Jersey Federal Navigation Project has been reviewed under the following Coastal Zone Management Rules: Finfish migratory pathways (7:7-9.5), Navigation Channels (7:7-9.7), Ports (7:7-9.11), Submerged Infrastructure Routes (7:7-9.12), Historic and Archaeological

New Jersey is an Equal Opportunity Employer l Printed on Recycled Paper and Recyclable

PHILIP D. MURPHY DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION SHAWN M. LATOURETTE

Governor Commissioner

TAHESHA L. WAY

Lt. Governor

New Jersey is an Equal Opportunity Employer l Printed on Recycled Paper and Recyclable

Watershed & Land Management Program Mail Code 501-02A

P.O. Box 420 Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0420 www.nj.gov/dep/landuse

Resources (7:7-9.13), Endangered or threatened wildlife or plant species habitats (7:7-9.36 ), Maintenance dredging (7:7-12.6), Dredged material placement on land (7:7-15.12), Marine Fish and Fisheries (7:7- 16.2), and Water Quality (7:7-16.3). Based on the materials submitted within the subject federal consistency request, the Department has CONDITIONALLY determined that the dredging of this Contract is consistent with the Coastal Zone Management Rules and New Jersey’s federally approved Coastal Management Program.

Provided that the following conditions are met, the Department has determined that this project is not likely to cause a violation of New Jersey’s Surface Water Quality Standards (N.J.A.C. 7:9B-1.1 et seq.).

Therefore, this determination includes the State’s Water Quality Certification pursuant to Section 401 of the federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 USC 1251 et seq.) subject to the following conditions. It is noted that this Water Quality Certificate is valid for a term of five years and expires five years from the date on the first page of this determination.

PROJECT SPECIFIC CONDITIONS:

1. Dredging is prohibited from March 1 to June 30 of each year in order to protect migrating and spawning anadromous fishes.

2. Dredging is prohibited from January 1 to May 31 of each year to protect winter flounder early life stages.

3. All sediments from this project shall be removed using a closed clamshell environment bucket.

4. The permittee shall employ the services of an independent dredging inspector to monitor dredging activities twice per week. The permittee shall submit the resume of the dredging inspector to the Department for review and receive written approval prior to the initiation of dredging.

5. The dredge shall be operated so as to control the rate of descent of the bucket so as to maximize the vertical cut of the clamshell bucket while not penetrating the sediment beyond the vertical dimension of the open bucket (i.e. overfilling the bucket). This will reduce the amount of free water in the dredged material, will avoid overfilling the bucket, and minimize the number of dredge bucket cycles needed to complete the dredging contract. The dredging contractor shall use appropriate software and sensors on the dredging equipment to ensure consistent compliance with this condition during the entire dredging operation. The independent dredging inspector shall monitor the operation of the software and sensors during the inspections as specified in the below conditions. Any malfunction of the software and sensors on the dredge at any time shall be immediately reported to the independent dredging inspector and the permittee by the dredging contractor and shall be immediately repaired to working order.

6. The closed clamshell environmental bucket shall be equipped with sensors to ensure complete closure of the bucket before lifting the bucket. Said sensors shall be operational during the entire dredging operation.

7. The closed clamshell environmental bucket shall be lifted slowly through the water, at a rate of 2 feet per second or less.

8. Dredged material shall be placed deliberately in the barge in order to prevent spillage of material overboard.

9. The discharge (i.e. “overflow”) of water from the barge/scow into which dredged material is placed is prohibited.

10. All barges or scows used to transport sediment shall be of solid hull construction or be sealed with concrete.

11. The gunwales of the dredge scows shall not be rinsed or hosed during dredging except to the extent necessary to ensure the safety of workers maneuvering on the dredge scow.

12. All decant water holding scows shall be watertight and of solid hull construction.

13. Barge overflow is authorized for placement of dredged material at the HARS site.

14. Decant water from this project may only be discharged within the channel from where the sediments originated, in close proximity to the dredging contract area. Discharge to another receiving waterbody requires prior approval from the Department, and may require a New Jersey Discharge Pollutant Elimination System/Discharge to Surface Water (NJDPES/DSW) permit.

15. All decant water shall be held in the decant holding scow a minimum of 24 hours after the last addition of water to the decant holding scow. Said water contained in the decant holding scow may only be discharge after this mandatory 24-hour retention time.

a. Should the contractor wish to reduce the required holding time, the contractor shall demonstrate that the reduced holding time is sufficient to meet a total suspended solids (TSS) background value of 30 mg/L. This TSS action level is consistent with the ambient TSS results presented in the NY District study entitled "NY and NJ Harbor Deepening Project - Total Suspended Solids (TSS) Monitoring, Interim Report" (January 2006). The total suspended solids shall be determined through gravimetric analysis. No discharge shall be permitted from the decant holding scow until the results of the gravimetric analysis have confirmed that the 30 mg/L background level has been achieved. No additional water shall be added to the decant holding scow between the time of sample acquisition and discharge. Upon successful demonstration that the reduced holding time is sufficient to meet the TSS background level of 30 mg/L, the monitoring of TSS may be suspended and the demonstrated settling time shall replace the 24-hour minimum. A successful demonstration of the reduced holding time efficiency shall be determined once three consecutive TSS analyses have confirmed that the 30 mg/L action level has been achieved by the reduced holding time.

b. Should the contractor wish to demonstrate this reduced holding time, all records including time of last addition of decant water into the scow, time of TSS sampling and the results of TSS sampling shall be submitted to the NJDEP as soon as they become available, together with a request for a reduced holding time.

16. During pumping of the decant water from the holding scow, great care shall be taken to avoid re-suspending or pumping sediment which has settled in the decant holding scow.

17. The dredging contractor shall complete and submit the attached Dewatering Form to the independent dredging inspector on a weekly basis as part of the Quality Control Report provided to the permittee. Said Dewatering Form shall be certified by the independent dredging inspector that they have witnessed the dewatering process during the preceding week. The permittee shall submit the completed Dewatering Form with appropriate certifications by email to the Office of Dredging and Sediment Technology for the preceding week.

18. The independent dredging inspector shall perform inspections of the dredging contract a minimum of twice per week using the attached WQC Field Inspector form. The permittee shall submit the completed inspection forms to the NJDEP on at least a weekly basis.

19. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS: At the completion of the project, the permittee shall submit the following information to the Department. This information shall be submitted within three months of completion of dredging.

Start and finish date of work order(s) Post-dredge hydrographic survey

APPROVED PLANS:

The drawing(s) hereby approved consists of four (4) sheets entitled:

“RARITAN RIVER TO ARTHUR KILL CUT-OFF CHANNEL, NJ

CONDITION SURVEY,” dated November 8, 2023, unrevised:

a. “VH-101,” sheet 1 of 4

b. “VH-102,” sheet 2 of 4

c. “VH-103,” sheet 3 of 4

d. “VH-104,” sheet 4 of 4

If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Jeff Thein by email at jeff.thein@dep.nj.gov. Please reference the Division’s file number in all communication.

Sincerely, Janet Stewart, Bureau Chief Bureau of Coastal Permitting Division of Land Resource Protection

Digitally signed by Janet Stewart Date: 2024.04.04 16:04:56 -04'00'

NOTICE OF COMPLETION OF DREDGING

Date:

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Division of Land Resource Protection Bureau of Coastal Permitting, Dredging Unit P.O. Box 501-02A 501 East State Street, 2nd Floor Trenton, NJ 08625

Attn: NJDEP, DLRP, Project Manager FAX: (609) 777-3656

Re: NJDEP Permit No.

Insert project title:_______________________________ Location of Dredging:_____________________________

Dear Sir/Madam:

I hereby serve notice that the DREDGING allowed by the above referenced permit has been completed as of ___________________________, 200__.

The dredged material was removed via mechanical_____ or hydraulic____ dredging (check one).

The dredged material was/is being dewatered with discharge into _________________________.

The actual quantity of material dredged was cys. The dredged material was taken to:

1. cys was taken to the Historic Area Remediation Site.

2. cys used on site as per NJDEP Permit(s) # __________ _______________________________________________(specify the type of permit(s)).

3. cys was taken to for beneficial reuse.

4. cys was taken to for disposal.

5. cys was taken to for beach nourishment.

Signature of the Permittee Signature of the Contractor (if any)

Permittee's Name (Printed) Contractor's Name (Printed)

Name of Permitted Agency/Entity Name of Company

Street Address Street Address City State ZIP City State ZIP

NYSDEC/NJDEP WQC FIELD OFFICE INSPECTOR’S FORM

Inspector Name: _________________________

Date/Time of Inspection: __________________ USACE Contract Number: ________________________

Contract Reach: _________________________ Dredge Name: __________________________________

State(s) Permit(s) on Dredge (Y/N): _________ NYSDEC PERMIT “Notice” on Dredge (Y/N): _______

Inspection of Dredge Bucket (Prior to Initial Use):

Type of Bucket: __________________________ Is the appropriate bucket being used as per State WQC? (Y/N): ________

Is the environmental bucket equipped with appropriate software/sensors to ensure complete closure of the bucket? (Y/N)______

Is the bucket operator controlling the rate of descent so as to maximize the vertical cut; while also controlling over penetration?

(Y/N) _______

Description of Bucket:___________________________________________________________________________________

Are all flaps (if appropriate) intact and appear operable? (Y/N): _______

Comments and additional actions taken on initial inspection: _______________________________________________________

Inspection of Dredge Bucket During Construction:

Type of Bucket: ____________________________ Is the appropriate bucket being used as per State WQC? (Y/N): ____

Are sensors and software fully operational during dredging? (Y/N) _______

Describe software/sensors monitored by NY Districtrep.__________________________________________________________

Description of Bucket: ____________________________________________________________________________________

Are all flaps (if appropriate) intact and appear operable? (Y/N) _______

Observed approximate Hoist Speed (ft/sec): _______

Comments and additional actions taken on inspection: ____________________________________________________________

Has there been any observance of Barge Overflow of any contaminated, non-HARS, and non-Rock Dredged Material? (Y/N): __

Is dredged material placed deliberately in barge in order to prevent spillage of material overboard? (Y/N): ______

Is sediment transport barge of solid hull construction or sealed with concrete, except as permitted for aquatic placement? (Y/N): _

Were gunwales rinsed or hosed during inspection? (Y/N): _______

Is dredging occurring during the WQC specific “no dredging” time and area restrictions? (Y/N): ______

Have silt curtains been placed where specified in WQC? (Y/N): _______

Additional Actions and Comments: