Nolichucky River CSX Reconstruction Update

From the TN Department of Environment & Conservation: https://t.e2ma.net/message/dzmu3u/pc5ajhmc

Nolichucky River CSX Reconstruction Update

December 05, 2024

Thank you for your concerns regarding the Nolichucky River and the ongoing CSX railroad reconstruction project. We greatly appreciate your dedication to protecting this valuable natural resource and the communities that rely on it.

Heavy rainfall from Hurricane Helene caused catastrophic flooding on September 27, 2024. The flooding significantly altered the Nolichucky River channel and left a swath of unprecedented destruction in its path. Among the destruction was severe damage to CSX’s Blue Ridge Subdivision rail line, which connects North Carolina and Tennessee through the Nolichucky River valley, including major damage to CSX’s infrastructure from Milepost 140.0 to Milepost 142.5 in Tennessee. Large sections of the railroad track were displaced, rail beds and land beneath the track were washed away, and the CSX bridge near the NC border was destroyed.

Emergency response provisions were implemented to facilitate timely and measured response actions with the goal of minimizing impact to both the environment and the economy. Roads, bridges, and railways are critical infrastructure in transporting goods and supplies needed for disaster recovery, and this rail line is considered a vital artery through the mountains to coastal areas.

TDEC Permitting

CSX first notified TDEC of its need for repairs on October 10, 2024, which initiated TDEC’s authorization of the emergency work through a Notice of Coverage under the General Aquatic Resource Alteration Permit (ARAP) for Emergency Infrastructure Repair issued to CSX on October 16, 2024. The purpose of the ARAP program is to minimize adverse impacts to jurisdictional waters while allowing for necessary development and reconstruction. TDEC has been working with CSX and other agencies since October to review and evaluate CSX’s work and investigate complaints received about CSX’s work. Because of the remote location and damage to roads from the flooding, the area of most interest cannot be safely reached by our staff unless escorted by CSX. TDEC staff were first able to visit this area on November 13, 2024, with representatives of CSX, the U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps).

This inspection and additional information from CSX are informing TDEC’s path forward, including requiring an Individual Permit for CSX’s future work. CSX submitted an application to TDEC on November 30, 2024, for an Individual Permit for the remaining repair activities. If TDEC issues an individual ARAP, it would more specifically detail the authorized activities, and many of the conditions would be similar to those in the general permit, for example:

1.CSX’s work should be conducted in the dry, wherever possible.  Portions of the work, such as constructing footers for the bridge and toe protection for the rail bed, may require work in the flow.
2.CSX’s work should be limited to removing bridge and rail debris from the river and restoring the railway to its original condition and functionality.
3.Effective erosion control measures should be applied and maintained.
4.The banks and channel should be restored to post-hurricane, pre-work conditions as much as possible and all areas should be permanently stabilized.

TDEC issued a Notice of Violation to CSX on December 4, 2024, for conducting activities outside the scope of work requested under the Emergency Infrastructure Repair General Permit.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) also has regulatory authority over CSX’s work in the Nolichucky Gorge, which is being coordinated with the Corps’ Nashville and Wilmington Districts. The Corps has also given CSX expected practices to minimize the impact of its work on the Nolichucky River. CSX has applied for an after-the-fact permit from the Corps to cover completed, ongoing, and future recovery work. On December 2, 2024, the Corps Nashville and Wilmington Districts advised CSX to cease any work in the Nolichucky River and its tributaries that would require a Corps permit, excluding work in Tennessee that involves the recovery of rail debris from the Nolichucky River and/or the stabilization and revegetation of disturbed river banks.

TDEC will review and, if appropriate, certify the activities to be authorized by the Corps permit pursuant to section 401 of the Clean Water Act as part of TDEC’s individual ARAP process.

Riverbed Material

TDEC has received complaints about CSX using riverbed material for its reconstruction. For context, it is helpful to understand that parts of the railroad were constructed more than 100 years ago with materials from the river. The flooding dislodged and redeposited a significant amount of riverbed material from the rail bed as well as new rock bedload from other roads, banks, and infrastructure upstream. It is difficult to differentiate material washed out from these sources from native river cobble. Under state law, TDEC may authorize the removal of sand and gravel from a riverbed through an ARAP, and such activity does not constitute mining.

Endangered Species

TDEC has also received concerns about whether CSX’s actions impact threatened or endangered species. The impact of the flood on fish and aquatic life in the Nolichucky Gorge is currently unknown, including whether any Appalachian elktoe mussels or Virginia spiraea remain in the area after the flood. If listed fish and mussels did survive the flood despite boulders rolling through the gorge, the opinion of TDEC biologists is that the repair work would have no significant additional effects if conducted predominantly in the dry during current lower flow conditions, as required by the ARAP.

Regardless, CSX is responsible for complying with all applicable legal requirements related to its work, including compliance with the Endangered Species Act. The Corps initiated emergency consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and is expected to initiate formal consultation with the USFWS if listed species or critical habitat have been adversely affected.  Practices intended to reduce impact on these species were among the Corps’ recent increased work parameters for CSX.

TDEC shares concerns about how the flood has changed the river morphology. River hydraulics for recreation may have been altered from pre-flood conditions, but TDEC anticipates that the Nolichucky may return to a state comparable to pre-flood habitat and hydraulics after several bankfull flow events.

TDEC continues to work with CSX and other agencies to ensure compliance with applicable environmental regulations. Information about this project is available on TDEC’s dataviewer, HERE.

Thank you again for your engagement on this important issue. We will continue to provide updates to this mailing list when pertinent.