Ecology Priorities > Mitigation That Works > Permitting Process

Permitting Process

Applicants who propose to alter aquatic resources must go through mitigation sequencing - avoiding and minimizing impacts - before determining whether compensatory mitigation is appropriate, and a permit is required. Compensatory mitigation involves restoring (re-establishing, rehabilitating),creating (establishing), enhancing, or preserving aquatic resources to replace those lost or degraded through permitted activities.

Several key messages have emerged in the last two decades. The single most important message is that compensatory mitigation should make ecological sense in the context of the landscape in which it is conducted. This entails using information about the landscape when making decisions about the type, location, and design of compensatory mitigation. Landscape information may include data accessed through geographic information systems and resource inventories, as well as local or regional plans that were developed using such information. This includes watershed, sub-basin, community, and restoration plans that are based on scientific information. These should be consulted when developing compensatory mitigation projects.

The Office of Regulatory Assistance and the agencies listed below can help you determine if your project may affect an aquatic resource and require a permit.

• Regulatory Assistance - Links to the Office of Regulatory Assistance, the joint permit application (JARPA), and other permitting resources.
  
  
• Wetlands mitigation compliance - The purpose of compliance is to ensure that permittees meet the terms and conditions of their permits, including successful implementation of any required mitigation plan. Regulatory agencies strive to work collaboratively with permittees to ensure that the mitigation plan is implemented successfully and complies with the conditions of the permit.
  
  
• Environmental & governmental agencies