Regulatory Mapping and Streamlining of Tide Gate Permitting in Coastal Oregon

Abstract

This project explores the complex multi-agency regulatory process involved in tide gate permitting on the Oregon Coast. The goal of this research is to highlight regulatory streamlining efforts as a means to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of tide gate permitting in Oregon. The guiding research question for this project is twofold. First, what does the combined regulatory process look like when visually mapped and second, what does this mapping exercise illuminate in terms of inter-agency collaboration and streamlining strategies to increase efficiencies in the permitting process. The regulatory agencies with stake in Oregon tide gates include the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), the National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Oregon Department of State Lands (ODSL), and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). Details of these regulatory authorities and their permitting processes are acquired through interviews and group discussion with key staff at relevant agencies and watershed councils. This project concludes in presenting regulatory process maps for individual agencies and a combined regulatory process map with integrated recommendations for how the state and federal agencies can more effectively permit tide gate projects on the Oregon Coast.