Public Notice for Delaware River Main Channel Deepening Hearing

Please consult the Civic League for New Castle County's Resolution Opposing this project that represents our official position on this project.  If you can, please attend and testify against this project.

Permit and background information is available on the Web (Click Here)

DNREC – Wetlands and Subaqueous Lands

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Pursuant to 7 Del. C. Ch. 72, Section 7208, 7 Del. C. Ch. 66, Section 6609 and Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (“DNREC”) will conduct a public hearing commencing at 6:00 p.m. each evening on July 13 and July 14, 2010.  The hearing will be held in the Longwood Room #113 Auditorium, in the Bank of America Building at Delaware State University, College Road Dover, Delaware.


The purpose of the public hearing is to receive comments from interested parties regarding the application for a Wetlands Permit, a Subaqueous Lands Permit and a 401 Water Quality Certification filed on March 22, 2010 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Philadelphia District (“COE”) for the State of Delaware portion of the Delaware River Main Stem and Channel Deepening Project (“Deepening Project”).  The Deepening Project will deepen the existing Delaware River Federal Navigation Channel from its established depth of 40 feet to a depth of 45 feet and will widen 12 of 16 existing channel bends between the mouth of the Delaware Bay and the ports of Philadelphia and Camden.  Dredged material from the Delaware portion of the project is proposed to be placed at Kelly Island in Kent County, Delaware for erosion control and habitat restoration, and along Broadkill Beach in Sussex County, Delaware as beach nourishment, with the remaining material to be disposed at the Reedy Point South confined disposal facility (CDF) south of Delaware City, Delaware, and in CDFs at Artificial Island, Oldmans, and Pedricktown North and South in New Jersey.   Rock removed by blasting near the Delaware/Pennsylvania state line will be disposed at Fort Mifflin, PA and/or utilized at artificial reef sites in Delaware waters.  The local sponsor for the project is the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority.

Pursuant to 7 Del. C. § 7207, DNREC has requested additional information from the COE so that DNREC can properly consider the application.  The COE has provided some, but not all, of the information requested by DNREC. DNREC is noticing the COE’s application at this time, however, because of DNREC’s commitment, resulting from the DNREC v. USACOE federal lawsuit, to conduct a thorough scientific review of the Deepening Project and process the application in an efficient, timely, and transparent manner.  DNREC believes the scheduled hearing date provides the COE with sufficient time to provide additional information.

The application and supporting documents may be inspected at the DNREC Offices at 89 Kings Highway, Dover. To schedule an appointment to inspect the application, please call (302) 739-9943.    The application is also available online, on the DNREC website at the following address:
http://www.dnrec.delaware.gov/Info/Pages/US_Army_Corps_of_Engineers_2010_Dredging_Application.aspx
Should the record be left open after the conclusion of the hearings, any additional information submitted by the applicant will also be posted to this website for review.

Statements and testimony may be presented at the public hearing either orally or in written form.  Written statements may be presented prior to the hearing and should be addressed to:
Public Hearing Officer
c/o Laura Herr
Wetlands and Subaqueous Lands Section
DNREC
89 Kings Highway
Dover, DE  19901