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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFollow Up Site Visit - GRD Letters / Memos - 6/1/2011 Page 1 of 2 Allan Borden -Neyhart site visit From: "Mraz, Richard A. (ECY)" <rmra461@ECY.WA.G0V> To: "Allan Borden" <Ahb@co.mason.wa.us> Date: 6/1/2011 2:04 PM Subject: Neyhart site visit CC: "Lund, Perry (ECY)" <plun461@ECY.WA.GOV>, "Habel, DarrenNWS" <Darren.Habel@usace.army.mil>, "Van Zwalenburg, Kim(ECY)" <kvan461@ECY.WA.GOV>, "Rockett, Derek(ECY)" <droc461@ecy.wa.gov>, <dgeiger@masoncd.org>, <neyhart@msn.com> Attachments: Neyhart conditions.pptx; 0512111031 jpg; 0512111031b[1].JPG; 0512111042 jpg Hello Allan, I write to follow-up on our site visit to Doug Neyhart's property along the Tahuya River,which was conducted on May 12,2011. The primary purpose of the visit was to determine whether any recent clearing,grading or other land modifications had occurred and whether those actions would have required permits pursuant to the County's Shoreline Master Program(SMP)or Resource Ordinance. We observed that Mr.Neyhart had cleared about 300 feet of an overgrown roadway that existed in between his pastures and training track, and the Tahuya River(see attached aerial). It did not appear that any substantial grading or filling had occurred and it seemed that the work was done within the footprint of existing disturbance. This activity appeared to be normal maintenance of an existing,albeit somewhat ignored use. We also observed recent berm repair near Mr.Neyhart's barns and utility building. This berm appears on older aerials. We then toured portions of Mr.Neyhart's property that had been significantly damaged by past and recent flooding. Some of these included: • Portions of a training track that had been scoured and eroded to the depth of three feet or more for a few hundred feet(photo attached). • Large areas of the fenced pastures that contained several hundred square feet of cobble alluvium and woody debris(photo attached). • An area,approximately 150 feet wide,of eroded shoreline,which was apparently the location of earlier shoreline armoring of dirt,rock and large woody debris(photo attached). The attached also aerial illustrates some of those features. Mr.Neyhart stated that he was interested in repairing some of this damage and re-establishing the use of his training track. He said that he had contacted the Mason Conservation District(Rich Geiger)to discuss a method for building new shoreline armoring. His approach may include new gabion walls and the incorporation of woody debris. He suggested that he wanted to refill the scours in the training track by borrowing material from a silted-in drainage ditch adjacent to the north end of the track. We explained that the new armoring would require review and permitting under the County SW. We encouraged him to work with the Conservation District to prepare a plan for review and submit it,along with a JARPA,to the file://C:\Documents and Settings\Ahb\Local Settings\Temp\XPgrpwise\4DE646E5Masonmai11001... 6/1/2011 Page 2 of 2 County,Ecology and the Corps of Engineers. We also noted that the repair of the track may be an exempted activity and the Mr.Neyhart should submit a separate application to the County for this work. It is worth noting that the horse pasture,training track and outbuildings are located in the channel migration zone and floodway of the Tahuya River. The river has aggraded upstream of this property and flood events like the ones that caused the recent and extensive damage to Mr.Neyhart's property are likely to occur again. Ultimately, given floodplain dynamics,upstream activities and this location,flood protection for some of Mr. Neyhart's property may be unachievable. Portions of the property may be better suited for conservation and floodplain restoration. Should Mr.Neyhart be interested,I can provide contact information for organizations that may be interested in purchasing conservation easements or areas of land outright. I hope that this review is useful for our purposes. If you have an questions or require clarification on an of these P Y PIP Y Y 9Y items,please contact me. Rick Mraz Wetlands/Shorelands Specialist Shorelands and Environmental Assistance Program Southwest Regional Office (360)407-6221 rmra461 @ecy.wa.gov file://C:\Documents and Settings\Ahb\Local Settings\Temp\XPgrpwise\4DE646E5Masonmai11001... 6/1/2011