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FOR COASTAL WETLANDS PERMIT AND WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION The City of Gulfport has filed an application with the Department of Marine Resources requesting permission to conduct regulated activities under the provision of the Coastal Wetlands Protection Law Act, Title 49, Chapter 27, Mississippi Code of 1972. The applicant proposes to construct new boat ramps, parking facilities, and perform dredging operations to establish an access channel for small boats using the newly constructed boat ramps. The area to be dredged is approximately 1,045 feet long by 130 feet wide and the channel will be dredged to -7.0 feet at mean lower low water (mllw). In addition to the access channel, a small basin approximately 375 feet long by 300 feet wide will be dredged to -7.0 feet at mllw. Approximately 26,000 cubic yards of dredged material will be removed from the access channel and basin, and placed in a designated upland disposal area. Dredging will be performed by dragline and/or hydraulic dredge depending on the availability of equipment and the efficiency of the selected equipment. Material dredged by hydraulic dredge will be disposed of in a temporary dewatering area in the northwest corner of the harbor. Material will be allowed to dewater and then it will be transported by truck to the Harrison County Development Commission Upland Disposal Area C-1. Material dredged by dragline dredge will be placed in a barge and transported to the Disposal Area C-1. In addition, the City of Gulfport proposes to construct sheetpile bulkhead retaining walls, a rock jetty system, boat ramps, and docking piers. The City will construct approximately 1,245 linear feet of steel sheet pile bulkhead, 2,760 linear feet of riprap jetty, 120 linear feet of piers 6 feet wide, and 400 linear feet of finger piers 5 feet wide. The riprap jetties that extend past the parking area will have 16-inch diameter flow-thru pipes every 200 feet. Finally, the City of Gulfport proposes to fill 7.8 acres of shallow water bottoms for the proposed parking area. The applicant proposes to excavate an area of the existing sand beach to create approximately 7.8 acres of shallow water habitat to replace the area of shallow water to be filled for the project. The applicant will be required to request and justify a variance to Section 2, Part III.O.1. of the Mississippi Coastal Program, which states, “Permanent filling of coastal wetlands because of potential adverse and cumulative impacts is discouraged.” In compliance with Section 401 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251, 1341), as amended by PL 95-217, the applicant will request certification from the Office of Pollution Control that the above mentioned activity will be in compliance with applicable provisions of Section 301 (33 U.S.C. 1311), Section 302 (33 U.S.C. 1312), Section 303 (U.S.C. 1313), Section 306 (U.S.C. 1316), and Section 307 (U.S.C. 1317) of the Act and appropriate requirements of the State Law. Any person wishing to make comments or objections to the proposed regulated activity must submit those comments in writing to the Department of Marine Resources at 1141 Bayview Avenue, Biloxi, Mississippi 39530 and the Office of Pollution Control, Post Office Box 2261, Jackson, Mississippi 39225-2261 before 1:00 p.m. on the day August 6, 2008.
PLEASE PUBLISH: July 20, 2008 July 27, 2008 August 3, 2008
Please Furnish Proof.
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