The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District received a permit application to conduct work in waters of the United States from the City of Portsmouth for proposed work in Little Bay at 180 Piscataqua Road in Durham, New Hampshire and at Fox Point in Newington, New Hampshire.

The proposed work involves both direct permanent and temporary discharges of dredged and fill material into wetlands and waters for the United States along the proposed crossing of Little Bay between Durham and Newington to install a drinking water transmission main. The proposed project involves installing a new high-density polyethylene (HDPE) water main on the ocean floor between the existing cast iron mains crossing Little Bay with connections to the existing reinforced concrete mains on either shore.

The proposed installation method involves assembling the new pipeline on land and floating the pipeline into Little Bay. Since the HDPE pipe is buoyant, concrete collars are required to sink
and anchor the pipeline to the river bottom. At the intertidal zone and within portions of the tidal buffer zone, the proposed pipeline will be buried, via trench excavation, to protect the pipe from freezing, anchor drag and tidal currents.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is soliciting comments from members of the public; federal, state and local agencies; Indian Tribes; and other interested parties to consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed activity. The comment period opened July 20. The public notice with more detailed information is available for review on the District website at: https://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Missions/PublicNotices, file # NAE-2019-01078.

Public comments on this proposed work by the City of Portsmouth should be forwarded no later than Aug. 19, 2021, to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Attn: Lindsey Lefebvre, Regulatory Division, 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742 or by email to Lindsey.E.Lefebvre@usace.army.mil. Please reference file # NAE-2019-01078.