Details:

Creators:
McCormack, Sarah M. ; Van Dyke, Chris ; Kreis, Doug
McCormack, Sarah M. ; Van Dyke, Chris ; Kreis, Doug Less -
Corporate Creators:
University of Kentucky Transportation Center
Corporate Contributors:
Kentucky. Transportation Cabinet ; United States. Federal Highway Administration
Kentucky. Transportation Cabinet ; United States. Federal Highway Administration Less -
Subject/TRT Terms:
[+]
Alternatives Analysis Ditches Evaluation Habitat (Ecology) Road Construction Runoff Stream Restoration Water Quality
Publication/ Report Number:
KTC-15-08/SPR13-458-1F
Resource Type:
Tech Report
Geographical Coverage:
Kentucky
Corporate Publisher:
University of Kentucky Transportation Center
Abstract:
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) mandates that state agencies and other entities perform compensatory mitigation when

their activities impair jurisdictional waters. In the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is

required to pay in-lieu fees or purchase stream mitigation credits when a roadside ditch is impaired or relocated as part of a road

construction project. In-lieu fees and stream mitigation credits are costly, and ditches that have suffered degraded habitat and loss of

hydrogeomorphic functionality are treated as total losses when they are impacted by construction and maintenance activities. This

raises the question of whether the United States Corps of Engineers (USACE) would be receptive to alternative mitigation and

monitoring practices that impose a less stringent financial burden on the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, but which still comply

with CWA regulations. This report discusses methodologies used to evaluate the quality of instream and riparian habitat, Section 404

of the CWA and its implications for mitigation of lost or damaged jurisdictional ditches, and the strategies that have been used by

other states to fulfill their Section 404 mitigation requirements. We highlight mitigation practices that depart from the norm and

which place a less onerous financial burden on state transportation agencies. KYTC officials presented this report’s key findings to

the USACE Louisville District Office in January 2015 in an effort to receive approval to experiment with novel restoration

techniques. The USACE granted KYTC license to implement these techniques on a project-by-project basis. Before implementation

on each project, the Cabinet must receive formal approval from USACE officials. Although this was not the blanket mandate that

KYTC hoped for, it indicated the Louisville District is willing to study the effectiveness of alternative mitigation strategies. Despite

the Cabinet’s request, USACE officials did not approve a plan to reduce post-restoration monitoring requirements. KTC researchers

suggested that KYTC perform exhaustive monitoring of the performance of completed project that used alternative mitigation

techniques. Having information on the short-, medium-, and long-term performance of these sites could – if the results are promising

– pave the way to the wider adoption of alternative mitigation practices and could eventually reduce the level of post-restoration

monitoring required by the USACE.


Format:
PDF
Funding:
SPR13-458
Collection(s):
US Transportation Collection
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:6bf08512379609e26ad55b5ba05bf517fec951312580cc0a2d2b9e9fecbfcae9
Download URL:
https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/29541/dot_29541_DS1.pdf
File Type:

Supporting Files

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