Eight Pathways to Speed Restoration Permitting
Leaders around the globe have committed to restoring 30% of the world’s degraded ecosystems but right now, the costs of permitting burn through up to ⅓ of a restoration project’s budget. We need money to go to Nature, not paperwork. Over the past two years, the Environmental Policy Innovation Center has quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed policies and processes related to permitting restoration projects (see summary in paper). One consistent theme in our research findings is that the permitting process presents significant challenges and often results in major project delays. The objective of this concept note is to showcase multiple pathways to speed permitting, along with excerpts from enabling policy text (in gray boxes). These examples could be tailored and replicated in other contexts.
The eight pathways described in the report are:
1. Evaluate State Permitting
2. Create a Categorical Exclusion / Programmatic Analysis
3. Create a Programmatic Biological Opinion
4. Use Nationwide and Regional Permits
5. Create a Dedicated / Rapid Response Permit Review Team
6. Use Technology for Permitting Efficiencies, Transparency, and Accountability
7. Systematically Streamline Multiple Permits - California’s Cutting Green Tape Initiative
8. Address Funding for Permit Staff and Prioritize Timeliness
www.policyinnovation.org/publications/funding-nature-not-paperwork-policy-and-programmatic-pathways-to-speed-restoration-permitting
