CONCORD, Mass. – The town of Dennis 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 beach nourishment in Dennis, Massachusetts. The proposed work involves beach nourishment to restore the beach along Dr. Bottero Road, which will provide a natural buffer to dissipate wave energy and prevent further erosion of the beach and roadway.
The proposed work includes the placement of both sand for beach nourishment and stone for groin construction below the High Tide Line (approximately 19,110 cubic yards and 710 cubic yards respectively). Two stone groins will be constructed perpendicular to the shore for the purposes of stabilizing the sand fill, and extending the design life of the nourishment.
The groins will be approximately 100 feet long and 69 feet long, measured from the mean high water (MHW) line, and vary from 5 feet to 32 feet wide. The groins will place 303 cubic yards and 136 cubic yards of fill below MHW, respectively. The area of disturbance below the High Tide Line for groins and beach fill is approximately 1,390 feet long and between 80 feet to 100 feet wide, for a total area of approximately 3.46 acres.
The sand for beach nourishment will be from an upland source and will match the grain size of the sand presently on the beach. Throughout the development of this project, the applicant has worked to avoid and minimize direct impacts to waters of the U.S. As the project purpose is to stabilize an eroding beach, no compensatory mitigation is proposed.
The project will impact 3.5 acres of Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). This habitat consists of sandy, intertidal beach. Loss of this habitat may adversely affect these species. 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 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.; and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, which regulates the discharge or fill of material in U.S. waters, including wetlands. The public notice, with more specifics on the work proposed by the town of Dennis, can be viewed on the Corps website at https://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Missions/PublicNotices/.
Public comments on this work proposed by the town of Dennis (file # NAE-2016-01554) should be forwarded no later than June 14, 2019 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Regulatory Division (ATTN: Phillip Nimeskern), 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742-2751. Additional information is available from Permit Project Manager Phillip Nimeskern at 978-318-8660 or toll free 800-343-4789 or 800-362-4367 (if calling from within Massachusetts) or by email to: phillip.w.nimeskern@usace.army.mil