Hope Mills Lake Restoration – Hope Mills, NC:
Gerald prepared and obtained a Section 404-401 Individual Permit for rebuilding Hope Mills Lake dam, which had breached during a storm seven years earlier, are required re-flooding 23.7 acres of wetlands and 11,400 feet of streams that had naturalized during the 7-year drained period. Special permit conditions imposed by USACE or NCDEQ included monitoring forest health in the re-flooded cypress-gum swamp, monitoring temperature and dissolved oxygen in Little Rockfish Creek below the dam, and providing passage for American eels over the dam. Gerald installed Onset Hobo loggers in the stream and prepared quarterly water quality reports for the first two years after re-impoundment, developed design plans for the eel ladder (now operated by Town staff), and is presently monitoring forest health for four years using visual ratings of 220 tagged trees and plant community sampling along transects from the lake pool edge to the uplands.
Brunswick H2go Water Supply EA – Leland, NC:
Gerald prepared and managed the inter-agency review of an EA for Brunswick H2GO’s proposed new groundwater-based water supply system with five well sites, nine miles of water lines, reverse osmosis treatment plant, and process water discharge into the Brunswick River. He served as lead field scientist for the wetland and stream delineation, habitat mapping, and rare species survey work, and was principal author of the EA and subsequent Clean Water Act 404-401 and CAMA permit applications.
Falls Dam Hydroelectric Retrofit — Raleigh, NC:
Gerald prepared the environmental components of a feasibility study for a proposed hydroelectric turbine retrofit on Falls Dam, a USACE reservoir operated for water supply by the City of Raleigh. He evaluated potential ecological and environmental impacts and participated in multiple inter-agency meetings with federal and state regulatory agencies, engineering consultants, and City staff. He prepared reports and presentation materials on impacts to upstream and downstream fish passage, anadromous fish spawning habitat, downstream water quality impacts, recreational fishing and boating, and rare aquatics species.
Other Mitigation Banks:
- Marsh Resources Meadowlands Mitigation Bank
- Richard P. Kane Wetlands Mitigation Bank
- West Virginia Mitigation Bank
- Tar River Headwater Stream Mitigation Bank
- Tar River Headwater Riparian Buffer & Nutrient Offset Mitigation Bank
- Pott Creek Stream and Wetland Mitigation Bank
Other Environmental Restoration Projects:
- White Oak Creek Wetland Mitigation Site
- Hilcrest Bay Wetland Mitigation Site
- Stricker Branch Stream Restoration Project
- Harper’s Crossroad Stream Restoration Project
- Tarlton Stream and Wetland Restoration Site
- Reeds Creek Stream and Wetland Restoration Site