Since multiple agencies are charged with protecting aquatic resources in California, complying with regulations has often been burdensome for property owners. Now a single form has been developed to help property owners obtain the many permits needed when property changes affect a creek, coastal area or wetland.
The Bay Area Joint Aquatic Resources Permit Application (JARPA) was developed by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) and the San Francisco Estuary Project (SFEP) under a grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). During the first year of the JARPA project, ABAG and SFEP developed the form with input from staff at Bay Area agencies with aquatic permitting responsibility, including San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, California Department of Fish and Game, EPA, and US Army Corps of Engineers. The form is 14 pages long, similar to the length and complexity of several agency applications, but combining these multiple applications into one.
Local agency staff were trained to understand the mandates of the various permitting agencies, and how the form might be used in the permitting process. The form will provide each agency with the same project information on which to base permitting decisions. Agencies can also determine which other agencies are reviewing the application, enabling better coordination and ensuring proper permitting with no gaps in oversight.
The JARPA process is already in use in Washington state, where it has been successfully used for many small projects such as single family docks and small wetland fills, and for projects as large as an airport runway and a large bridge crossing. ABAG and SFEP have recently received a two-year grant from EPA to establish a JARPA permit center, including assistance for individual permit applicants who wish to use JARPA for their project. The grant will also allow continued agency staff training, and ongoing revision of the form based on initial use by permit center staff and participating agencies.
For more information:
The JARPA form is online at http://www.abag.ca.gov/bayarea/sfep/projects/JARPA/JARPA.html. ABAG contact is Jennifer Krebs, 510-464-7977, jenniferk@abag.ca.gov or Carol Thornton, 510-622-2419, CarolT@abag.ca.gov