CONCORD, Mass. – The city of Stamford is seeking a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District to conduct work in waters of the U.S. in conjunction with dredging in Stamford, Connecticut. This work is proposed in Westcott Cove at West Beach, 850 Shippan Avenue, in Stamford.
The proposed work involves mechanically dredging about 2,000 cubic yards of material from a 14,000- square-foot area using a barge based crane with a clamshell dredge and/or an excavator. The existing mudline elevation varies between +0.1± feet mean low water (MLW) and -4.9± feet MLW, and it is being proposed to dredge to -6.4 feet MLW (-7.4 feet MLW including a 1 foot overdredge allowance).
The dredged materials consist of black organic silt with sand, black organic silty sand, and grey poorly graded sand. This material is going to be dewatered onsite and then disposed of in the upland area of the nearby park. The project is also to relocate about 3,900 cubic yards of brown poorly graded sand from a 90,000± square-foot area in the northern portion of the beach and redistributing it over 85,000± square feet in the southern portion of the beach.
The work also includes constructing a 105-foot by 30-foot boat ramp with a 105-foot by 6-foot of riprap scour protection apron on each side and a 41-foot, 8-inch by 10-foot of grouted riprap scour protection apron at the bottom of the ramp; to install a 6-foot wide by 130-foot long floating dock in an L shaped configuration; to remove concrete rubble from a 10-foot wide by 80-foot long area; and to repair 30 feet of timber jetty.
The dock will extend approximately 89 feet beyond MHW, and the boat ramp and grouted riprap scour protection apron will extend approximately 105 feet from MHW. It is anticipated that the boat ramp will be installed in the dry, using a temporary internally braced sheet pile cofferdam, with an active dewatering system, that will be installed using an excavator or a barge-mounted crane equipped with a vibratory hammer. The purpose of the boat ramp project is to accommodate larger vessels, up to 35 feet, and to make the boat ramp available for use throughout the normal tide cycle.
The dredging portion of this project will impact approximately 33,500 square feet of Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). Habitat at this site can be described as shallow water, intertidal and hard bottom. Loss of this habitat may adversely affect species that use these waters and substrate. However, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the site-specific adverse effect will not be substantial. Further consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service regarding EFH conservation recommendations is being conducted and will be concluded prior to the final permit decision.
The other portions of the project will impact 6,534 square feet of EFH. This habitat consists of shallow water, intertidal, tidal wetlands and hard bottom. Loss of this habitat may adversely affect species that use these waters and substrate. However, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the sitespecific adverse effect will not be substantial. Further consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service regarding EFH conservation recommendations is being conducted and will be concluded prior to the final permit decision.
The application for the federal permit was filed with the Corps in compliance with Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, which provides for federal regulation of any work in, or affecting navigable waters of the U.S.; with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, which regulates the discharge or fill of material in U.S. waters, including wetlands; and with Sec. 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act. The public notice, with more specifics on the work proposed by the city of Stamford, can be viewed on the Corps website at www.nae.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/PublicNotices.aspx.
Public comments on this work proposed by the city of Stamford (file # NAE-2018-02081) should be forwarded no later than March 28, 2019 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Regulatory Division (ATTN: Christina Comeau), 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742-2751. Additional information is available from Permit Project Manager Christina Comeau at 978-318-8705 or toll free 800-343-4789 or 800-362-4367 (if calling from within Massachusetts) or by email to: christina.m.comeau@usace.army.mil.