The Federal Highway Administration and North Carolina Department of Transportation are constructing roadway improvements in Graham County, NC that will provide safe, reliable transportation infrastructure, as part of Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS) Corridor K . Corridor K presents a multitude of challenges: mountainous terrain, Appalachian Trail, Cherokee homesteads and other archeological resources, Trail of Tears, Nantahala National Forest, jurisdictional waters, high quality mountain streams, acid-producing (pyritic) rock, and federally-protected species. Given these challenges, it is among the last ADHS corridors to be completed; however, the project is very much needed in the economically distressed county. The existing roadway network in Graham County is limited to three two-lane roads with steep grades, sharp curves, and inadequate shoulders.
After the publication of a Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) in 1984 and a Draft Supplemental EIS in 2008, the proposed four-lane project was put on pause while a regional economic study was developed that also evaluated Corridor K. Planning efforts resumed in 2015 under an iterative planning process that allowed for the exploration and refinement of the project scope prior to the NEPA process. The Corridor K planning process reflects elements of the FHWA Planning and Environment Linkages (PEL) approach, where concerns and constraints are identified early in the planning process and used to inform project development and review. This new, integrated approach was developed to focus on local engagement and meaningful collaboration with the public, environmental stakeholders, and agency staff, while still aligning with NEPA and other regulations.
Through the new process, the project team developed a project that: improves existing roadways through a “right-size” approach that avoids and minimizes impacts to natural and cultural resources; provides a process for tribal/agency oversight regarding cultural resources throughout the construction phase; and includes innovative mitigation for project impacts including a wildlife overpass that would prevent animal mortality and preserve habitat connectivity within the Nantahala National Forest. The wildlife overpass, along with benched retaining walls, would be vegetated with a planting plan developed in coordination with the US Forest Service to minimize visual impacts of the project for users on the Appalachian Trail.
The integrated, coordinated planning approach allowed the team to reach identification of a Preferred Alternative within fifteen months after initiating formal NEPA studies. Interagency coordination and the entire NEPA documentation process (including an Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact) were completed within a two-year timeframe. Additional background information, videos, and environmental documents can be found on the Corridor K Improvements website.
Planning and Environment Linkages (PEL) approach
Right-Size design
Wildlife Crossing