HomeMy WebLinkAbout012-SEPA Comments
STATE OF WASHINGTON
DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY
Southwest Region Office
PO Box 47775, Olympia, WA 98504-7775 • 360-407-6300
January 4, 2023
Jenny Murphy, Project Planner
Jefferson County
Department of Community Development
621 Sheridan Street
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Dear Jenny Murphy:
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the optional determination of
nonsignificance/notice of application for the Brown Trust Reasonable Economic Use Variance
Project (MLA22-00044) located at 413 Gybe Ho Road as proposed by Robert M Brown III
Trustee. The Department of Ecology (Ecology) reviewed the environmental checklist and has the
following comment(s):
SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT: Derek Rockett (360) 407-6287
All grading and filling of land must utilize only clean fill. All other materials may be
considered solid waste and permit approval may be required from your local jurisdictional
health department prior to filling. All removed debris resulting from this project must be
disposed of at an approved site. Contact the local jurisdictional health department or
Department of Ecology for proper management of these materials.
TOXICS CLEANUP: Dean Malte (360) 999-9584
No confirmed or suspected contaminated sites are located on or within ¼ mile of the project
area. If any contamination is unexpectedly encountered, please report it to Ecology (per
WAC 173-340-300) via the online ERTS at https://ecology.wa.gov/Footer/Report-an-
environmental-issue/statewide-issue-reporting-form.
WATER QUALITY/WATERSHED RESOURCES UNIT:
Joseph McCord (360) 791-5017
Erosion control measures must be in place prior to any clearing, grading, or construction.
These control measures must be effective to prevent stormwater runoff from carrying soil
and other pollutants into surface water or stormdrains that lead to waters of the state. Sand,
silt, clay particles, and soil will damage aquatic habitat and are considered to be pollutants.
Jenny Murphy
January 4, 2023
Page 2
Any discharge of sediment-laden runoff or other pollutants to waters of the state is in violation of Chapter 90.48 RCW, Water Pollution Control, and WAC 173-201A, Water
Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington, and is subject to enforcement action.
Construction Stormwater General Permit:
The following construction activities require coverage under the Construction Stormwater General Permit:
1. Clearing, grading and/or excavation that results in the disturbance of one or more
acres and discharges stormwater to surface waters of the State; and
2. Clearing, grading and/or excavation on sites smaller than one acre that are part of a
larger common plan of development or sale, if the common plan of development or sale will ultimately disturb one acre or more and discharge stormwater to surface
waters of the State. a) This includes forest practices (including, but not limited to, class IV conversions)
that are part of a construction activity that will result in the disturbance of one or
more acres, and discharge to surface waters of the State; and
3. Any size construction activity discharging stormwater to waters of the State that Ecology:
a) Determines to be a significant contributor of pollutants to waters of the State of Washington.
b) Reasonably expects to cause a violation of any water quality standard.
If there are known soil/ground water contaminants present on-site, additional information
(including, but not limited to: temporary erosion and sediment control plans; stormwater
pollution prevention plan; list of known contaminants with concentrations and depths found; a site map depicting the sample location(s); and additional studies/reports regarding
contaminant(s)) will be required to be submitted. For additional information on contaminated
construction sites, please contact Evan Wood at evan.wood@ecy.wa.gov, or by phone at
(360) 706-4599.
Additionally, sites that discharge to segments of waterbodies listed as impaired by the State of Washington under Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act for turbidity, fine sediment, high
pH, or phosphorous, or to waterbodies covered by a TMDL may need to meet additional
sampling and record keeping requirements. See condition S8 of the Construction Stormwater
General Permit for a description of these requirements. To see if your site discharges to a
TMDL or 303(d)-listed waterbody, use Ecology’s Water Quality Atlas at:
https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/waterqualityatlas/StartPage.aspx.
The applicant may apply online or obtain an application from Ecology's website at:
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/stormwater/construction/ - Application. Construction
site operators must apply for a permit at least 60 days prior to discharging stormwater from
construction activities and must submit it on or before the date of the first public notice.
Ecology’s comments are based upon information provided by the lead agency. As such, they
may not constitute an exhaustive list of the various authorizations that must be obtained or legal
requirements that must be fulfilled in order to carry out the proposed action.
Jenny Murphy
January 4, 2023
Page 3
If you have any questions or would like to respond to these comments, please contact the
appropriate reviewing staff listed above.
Department of Ecology
Southwest Regional Office
(GMP:202206199)
cc: Derek Rockett, SWM
Dean Malte, TCP
Joseph McCord, WQ