Ports granted variance for Cape Fear River turning basin

Ports is seeking to widen turning basin from 1,400 to 1,524 feet to accommodate larger ships

MANTEO — The N.C. Coastal Resources Commission (CRC) voted this week to grant the N.C. Ports Authority’s variance request to widen its turning basin in the Cape Fear River, a N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) spokeswoman said Friday.

Previously, the N.C. Division of Coastal Management had denied the Ports Authority’s request for a modification to its Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) permit in the Cape Fear River near the Port of Wilmington, citing the area’s status as a designated primary nursery area for aquatic life. The ports authority’s project would widen the turning basin from 1,400 to 1,524 feet, resulting in the dredging of 17.76 acres, including 1.4 acres of wetlands.

In its variance request, the Ports Authority argued the economic boons of widening the basin outweigh the environmental impacts of the project. It also put forth a series of mitigation efforts, including creating tidal pools on 6.75 acres along the Brunswick River, donating $800,000 to complete a fish passage at Lock and Dam No. 1 and creating a conservation easement on 30.2 acres of brackish tidal marsh and wetlands east of the Brunswick River.

Bethany Welch, a ports spokeswoman, wrote in a statement, “We are pleased to be able to move forward with this critical project for North Carolina Ports. the turning basin expansion project will enable the Port of Wilmington to successfully and efficiently turnaround (vessels carrying 14,000 20-foot shipping containers).”

Earlier this month, the port received its third neo-Panamax crane — a 151-foot tall, 1553-ton structure that will allow the Port of Wilmington to unload two ships carrying 14,000 shipping containers at a time.

The New Hanover County Commissioners wrote a letter to the CRC earlier this month requesting the state commission grant the variance.

Jonathan Barfield, the board’s chairman, wrote, “During meetings with Ports Authority Executive Director Paul Cozza, we learned that widening the port’s turning basin is critical to ensure the port can accept larger vessels that the shipping industry is increasingly using for greater efficiency.”

The CRC vote was unanimous, the DEQ spokeswoman said.

Additional requirements added by the board included that the ports comply with mitigation efforts required by other permitting agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers and that the ports and DEQ reach by Sept. 1 a memorandum of understanding outlining public hearing and stakeholder engagement for any future plans or petitions for variance at ports facilities.

In addition to the now-approved CAMA permit, the project also needs a corps permit and certification from the N.C. Division of Water Resources. According to the CAMA agreement, construction cannot start until after July 1.

_{Source: starnewsonline.com}