DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY

JACKSONVILLE DISTRICT CORPS OF ENGINEERS

ANTILLES OFFICE
ANNEX BLDG., FUND. ANGEL RAMOS, SUITE 202
383 F.D. ROOSEVELT AVE.
REPLY TO SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO 00918
ATTENTION OF

February 8, 2018

Regulatory Division
South Permits Branch
Antilles Permits Section
SAJ-1976-89037 (SP-JCM)
Modification # 1

Gertrude J. Prior
Coral World (V.I.) Inc.
6450 Estate Smith Bay
St. Thomas, USVI 00802

Dear Ms. Prior:

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has completed the review and evaluation
of your modification request, received on July 27, 2017, in which you asked to revise the
Project Description and Drawings included in Department of the Army permit number
SAJ-1976-89037 (SP-JCM), dated October 18, 2016. The project site is located at
Water Bay on the north shore East End, St. Thomas.

The new Project Description would be as follows:

Construction of a new dolphin enclosure facility at Coral World Ocean Park (Coral
World) for public viewing of dolphins. The enclosure facility, including its piers,
associated structures and open-water areas, will be generally rectangular and will
extend over approximately 1.6 acres (ac) of navigable waters of the U.S. The shoreline
of the Coral World property will serve as the north side of the enclosure. Three main
piers measuring 325’, 250’, and 373’-7 1/8” in length will form the east, south and west
side of the enclosure, respectively. The piers will have concrete framing and grated
decking to allow for light penetration. The grated decking will consist of parallel 3-foot
wide longitudinal grates, providing an overall grated area of 4,593 sq. ft. for the entire
enclosure structure. The piers and associated platforms will have a footprint of 17,034
sq. ft., and will be built with an elevation of 3.5 ft. above mean high tide. Smaller pens
will be constructed within the enclosure for medical purposes and to isolate dolphins, as
needed. A treated timber wave attenuation screen will be installed along the outer side
of the southeast corner of the main piers. In addition, a fence will be installed under the
main piers, extending to the sea floor to prevent the dolphins from escaping. The piers
will be supported by 110 concrete piles with a diameter of 18”. Forty-eight (48) piles will
be installed by pre-drilling the piles into the hard layer of rock (socketing) on the north
side of the project site, while the remaining 62 piles will be driven into firm sand with a
vibratory hammer/water jet. The time required to complete the installation of all piles
will not exceed 65 days. After installation, 12 of the 110 piles will be tested using an
 -2-

impact hammer to confirm vertical load capacity. A maximum of four piles will be tested
each day. The pile testing will require a maximum of 50 blows per pile. A bubble
curtain system will be implemented to reduce potential acoustic impacts during the pile
testing. All pile installation will be done from a barge. The barge will also be used
during construction of the enclosure. A 40-ft buffer or “no access” zone will be
established around the dolphin enclosure, which will be demarcated by a buoy line to
prevent unauthorized access to the enclosure. In addition to this buoy line, two
information buoys will be located near Coki Point and another one will be located on
Turtle Rock. The buoys will indicate that there are shallow waters containing corals in
order to reduce the number of vessel strikes these areas receive from motorized
vessels, including jet skis. Furthermore, two mooring buoys will be installed in Water
Bay to the west of the dolphin enclosure. These buoys are part of the compensatory
mitigation measures of the project. All buoys will be anchored with helical screw
anchors and buoy lines will be designed to ensure they do not drag on the bottom. An
existing wooden pier will remain at the site within the enclosure for docking of boats
used for maintenance of the enclosure as needed.

Also, the attached Permit Drawings would replace the drawings included in the
original permit.

The impact of your proposal on navigation and the environment has been reviewed
and found to be insignificant. The permit is hereby modified in accordance with your
request. You should attach this letter to the permit. All other conditions of the permit
remain in full force and effect.

If you have any questions concerning this permit modification, please contact the
project manager José A. Cedeño-Maldonado at the letterhead address, by telephone at
787-729-6944 or by electronic mail at jose.cedeno-maldonado@usace.army.mil.

BY AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY OF THE ARMY:

CASTILLO.SI Digitally signed by

CASTILLO.SINDULFO.1182884851

NDULFO.11
DN: c=US, o=U.S. Government,
ou=DoD, ou=PKI, ou=USA,
cn=CASTILLO.SINDULFO.11828848

82884851
51
Date: 2018.02.08 16:35:13 -04'00'

Jason A. Kirk, P.E.

for Colonel, U.S. Army
District Commander

Enclosures

Copy Furnished:
USVI-DPNR-CZM
CESAJ-RD-PE