This library contains information on TPEAC's products and related transportation tools, subcommittee reports and additional products, and Additional Resources related to TPEAC's efforts and next steps. Scroll down to browse or use the navigation column to the left to find a specific TPEAC product.

TPEAC Products and Related Transportation Tools

Permitting Process Improvements seek to change how agencies and regulated entities approach environmental permitting for transportation projects.

Compliance Products

Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedure for Construction Projects and Activities
Environmental Training Plan and Estimated Costs
Interagency Auditing Procedure for Environmental Compliance
Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedures for Maintenance and Ferries Projects and Activities
Environmental Permit Overview courses for Design Engineers, Environmental Staff, and Construction Inspectors
TPEAC Resolutions relating to the Compliance Subcommittee include:

Resolution #13 Approving the Training, Compliance, and Reporting Sub-Committee's Goal and Objectives(5/02
Resolution #18 Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedure for Construction Projects and Activities (12/02)
Resolution #19 Statewide Environmental Training Plan and Estimated Costs (12/02)
Resolution #21 Interagency Statewide Auditing Procedure for Environmental Compliance (1/03)
Resolution #21 Environmental Compliance Assurance Procedures for Maintenance and Ferries Projects and Activities TPEAC Resolution (1/03)

Planning

Final Draft Report of the Planning Subcommittee: This document represents the work of the Transportation Permit Efficiency and Accountability Committee’s Planning Subcommittee. Many issues were identified, and the highest priority issues were studied by task groups and presented to the Subcommittee. It summarizes the issues and possible solutions that the Subcommittee has explored (December 2002 PDF 188kb).

Watershed Mitigation

TPEAC tasked the Watershed-Based Mitigation Subcommittee with creating a watershed approach to environmental mitigation. A watershed approach seeks to understand natural resource impacts, assess the condition of environmental processes, and evaluate restoration options in a landscape context. Read the Final Report on the Watershed-Based Mitigation Subcommittee. The watershed approach developed by the subcommittee consists of the following products:

Watershed Characterization Methodology:
The subcommittee developed a methodology to characterize the ecological health of the watershed and to use that information to identify areas that would provide the greatest environmental benefit for impacts caused by transportation projects. The watershed characterization method outlines a scientific framework and set of procedures for identifying, screening and prioritizing a suite of options for mitigating environmental impacts on large projects with complex environmental issues. Access the Enhancing Transportation Project Delivery Through Watershed Characterization: Operational Draft Methods Document (from WSDOT's Watershed Management Program site)
Watershed Characterization Projects:
Four watershed characterization projects that have helped test and refine the concept of watershed characterization. Access the reports through WSDOT's Enhancing Transportation Project Delivery Through Watershed Characterization site.
Mitigation Screening Tool:
The subcommittee oversaw development of a screening tool designed to identify transportation projects that are located near landscape features that have a high likelihood of affecting WSDOT’s ability to cost-effectively mitigate for environmental impacts. Types of landscape features include wetlands, floodplains, unstable slopes, areas of high intensity land use and high land values. The screening tool can use existing map products made by and for local agencies during land use planning under the Growth Management Act, and during watershed planning. These features can then be overlaid on the transportation project area, and an analysis conducted to assess the risk of facing high mitigation costs. Click to access the Draft Transportation Cost Mitigation Screening Matrix (PDF 36kb).
Integrated Mitigation Guidance:
The subcommittee developed an Integrated Mitigation Guidance document to promote the use of a watershed approach when making permit and other environmental decisions. The subcommittee intended this guidance document to integrate the mitigation policies of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Department of Ecology, and the Department of Transportation. This guidance is being tested on three transportation projects in Walla Walla, Whatcom, and Lewis Counties.
Watershed Integration Schedule (Road Map):
The final task given to the subcommittee was to develop a schedule to integrate its technical, policy, and procedural tools. The subcommittee created a proposed Road Map – a detailed set of directions to meet the subcommittee’s overall “charge” to institutionalize a watershed-based approach to environmental mitigation. The purpose of the Road Map is to take the watershed approach beyond the field-testing stage so that it can be used on a daily basis around the state to improve both the timing and quality of permit decisions. Access the Road Map to Integrating Watershed-Based Tools and Concepts Into Existing Policies and Procedures in the Subcommittee's final report.
Integrated Mitigation Policy Document and three watershed pilots using existing watershed information:
US-12 near Walla Walla, SR539 north of Bellingham, and I-5 in Lewis County. These efforts integrated watershed planning with local planning.

Additional Information: Please see "Watershed-Based Mitigation Subcommittee" below.

Coordinated Permitting Tools aim to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the existing regulatory system:

Programmatic Approach

The Environmental Permit Streamlining Act (ESB 6188) authorizing TPEAC directed the Committee to develop a "programmatic approach" for transportation projects. Programmatic approach means a permit or other action that covers a geographic or statewide area and applies to a variety of projects, activities, or locales. A programmatic approach may allow actions to proceed without individual approval by each permit decision making agency.

TPEAC's Programmatics Subcommittee has worked to develop this programmatic approach. Programmatic permits currently provide coverage for approximately 90% of the Washington State Department of Transportation's (WSDOT) Maintenance Program, 30% of WSDOT’s Preservation Program (e.g., bridge painting and washing, bridge deck replacement, and pile replacement), and less than 3% of WSDOT’s Improvement Program (e.g., culvert replacement and sediment test boring). The current programmatic coverage reflects the initial expectation of the Subcommittee: that programmatic permits were suitable for low impacting activities.

The benefits of programmatic permits include:

Certainty and Accountability – establish and make clear and consistent project conditions;
Efficient Project Delivery – saves time by eliminating need to negotiate conditions and obtain individual permits;
Environmental Protection – through consistent application of project conditions;
Transferability – established conditions can be utilized by other entities with similar activities

The 475 activities covered by programmatic permits in 2004 saved WSDOT approximately 2,375 staff hours. Read the Programmatics Subcommittee's 2005 report on status of WSDOT Programmatic Permits.

Multi-Agency Permit (MAP) Team

The MAP Team is a project delivery organizing framework developed by the Washington Departments of Ecology (WSDOE), Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), and Transportation (WSDOT) as a model with which to apply the processes and tools developed in TPEAC across the entire spectrum of transportation projects. The MAP Team consists of representatives from regulatory agencies and WSDOT who are responsible for meeting project timelines and permitting requirements for a given set of projects. This team is comprised of a set of technical experts that will expedite permitting for transportation projects; therefore, they will set schedules for permit delivery to ensure that project advertisement dates are met.

The MAP Team is not a TPEAC subcommittee but is the application of a permit streamlining concept generated by TPEAC. As such, TPEAC funds were used to help establish the first MAP Team. Subsequent teams, if warranted, would be supported by WSDOT project funds.

In November 2003, the first MAP Team was formed. The team consists of:

Washington State Department of Transportation
Washington State Department of Ecology
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
United States Army Corps of Engineers
King County Department of Development and Environmental Services (joined January 2004)

The MAP Team is a pilot program, co-locating these five agencies in a common office, with one primary goal – providing permit services for a selected set of WSDOT projects. Secondary goals include: improving environmental mitigation associated with project impacts, assessing and cooperatively resolving project risks, and actively seeking improvement opportunities. In the process of doing so, the MAP Team identifies potential permitting risks, develops cooperative processes and solutions, and provides a unified package of environmental information to the project manager early enough to make a difference. This process can reduce environmental impacts and provide a structured environmental permitting process resulting in efficient project delivery.

More information:

Interdisciplinary/Interagency Project Teams (IDT/IPT)

TPEAC Pilot Projects Interdisciplinary Team Questionnaire Report (December 2003):

This report documents the results from an evaluation of a permit streamlining process applied to two TPEAC "pilot" projects: SR 104 Hood Canal Bridge and SR 24 Yakima Bridge. The main source of data was comprised of questionnaire responses from participants on interagency permitting teams called "Interdisciplinary Teams" (IDT). The responses included information about how TPEAC's One-Stop Permitting process was applied to each project as well as feedback about how the IDT functioned to achieve the stated mission and goals of the Team. Access the Final Questionnaire Report (PDF 262kb).

TPEAC One-Stop/Pilots Subcommittee Working Draft Interagency Project Team Guidance (November 2003):
This guidance provides details on convening and conducting an Interagency Project Team (IPT) as a tool for streamlined state transportation project delivery. It provides background, checklists and templates that can be used as tools to support effective IPT processes. An Interagency Project Team (IPT) is a technical group made up of federal, state, and local resource and permitting agencies, tribes, and an interdisciplinary group from Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) that represents planning, design, environmental, construction, and other disciplines including highways and local programs when appropriate. Access the report (PDF 589kb) and its appendices (PDF 798kb).

Multi-Agency Web-Based Permitting Tools

One-Stop E-Permitting Service:
The One-Stop E-Permitting Service provides an inter-agency project management and collaboration function. The Service is a web site that provides many of the functions of a project room that contains all the participants and project documents. It is a virtual project room (i.e., “web room”) developed and organized around the project. It provides a central project location, accessible by others, to store and access a variety of project materials during all stages of the project including documents that would support permit applications and decisions. The Service resides on a secure server that is easily accessible to authorized persons (i.e., the “interagency project team”). Different participants have different levels of access to documents (i.e., some can only view, while others can view, upload, and download).

Available features/functions include:

Tools that assist applicants to prepare a complete and accurate JARPA
A central project location, accessible by others, to store and access a variety of project materials during all stages of the project including documents that would support permit applications and decisions.
A site organization and structure that can accommodate different levels of project complexity, interagency involvement, and quantity/type of project materials/documents over the lifetime of the project.
Communication tools to review project information and reviewing agency information and to comment on that information (e.g. draft reports, plans, analyses, commitments/conditions).

These functions support good project management, management and maintenance of project information, interagency communication, and customer understanding through project orientation. This in turn should result in reduced permit decision-making transmittal times and iteration cycles; increased project decision-making clarity, understanding, and transparency; and better projects and environmental outcomes. The tool is expected to evolve to provide more functions that will support interagency involvement during early planning and project development decision-making.

On-Line Permit Assistance System:
The On-Line Permit Assistance System (OPAS) is an interactive, query-based application designed to help applicants and WSDOT determine permitting requirements based upon answers given to select project questions and the extent to which certain regulatory thresholds are met or exceeded. The result of a query session is a customized, narrative report of applicable permits and their descriptions. Visit OPAS online.
Permit Process Schematics:
This site includes interactive process and timeline flowcharts depicting the sequence and steps associated with select permitting and regulatory processes, including Section 404, Section 10, HPA, Shoreline, CZM, SEPA, NEPA, NPDES Stormwater, Air Operating, Water Rights, NPDES, and more. Permit process schematics, coupled with customized OPAS narrative reports, provide applicants and WSDOT with a comprehensive overview of applicable permit and regulatory requirements. Access final permit process schematics.

Additional TPEAC Materials, Reports, and Documents

TPEAC Reports and Resolutions

December 2005 Legislative Status Report
TPEAC Resolution #23: Approving the Continuation of TPEAC Streamlining Activities by the Office of Regulatory Assistance
TPEAC Resolutions (#1-22) (pdf 4205kb)

TPEAC Meeting Highlights

2006	Dec 2004	2003	2001
2005	2004 (Jan - Nov)	2002

Local Government Task Force

Final Report to TPEAC (December 2004)
Finalized WSDOT Development Services Manual (September 2005):
The Local Government Task Force identified the draft WSDOT Development Services Manual as a useful tool for permitting state transportation projects, particularly in the case of staff turnover. The WSDOT Development Services Manual promotes a consistent statewide development review process and application of transportation and environmental mitigation guidelines for impacts to the state highway. The manual also provides guidance for public and private sector partners in their assessment of development impacts and mitigation to the state highway system.
The Task Force recommended that the draft WSDOT Development Services Manual be finalized to provide clear guidance to local governments regarding the requirements and procedures for reviewing developer services applications
Programmatic Noise Permits:
The Local Government task force recommended the development of a nighttime noise programmatic permit. WSDOT worked with the City of Renton to develop a programmatic permit that would result in a five-year permit for nighttime maintenance work along I-405 within the City of Renton. The programmatic approach provides predictability in that permit conditions will be set for a period of five years and will reduce review time by both the City of Renton and WSDOT staff.

The City of Renton and the Renton Public Works Board issued WSDOT a programmatic noise permit in late June 2005. Once approved, the permit was immediately utilized for scheduled maintenance work along I-405. Use of the programmatic permit will be monitored by WSDOT to determine how beneficial it is before applying it in other areas.
Shoreline Management Act:
The Local Government Task Force recommended to TPEAC that a streamlined process be developed for how routine roadside maintenance activities will be handled in the shoreline permitting process. The task force drafted guidance to clarify how routine maintenance projects are “Exempt Activities” under the Shoreline Management Act and establish a process for determining thresholds for which types of maintenance projects warrant individual “letters of exemption” under the Shoreline Management Act versus those projects that have lesser impacts that can use a standard “letter of exemption” developed by the task force. The draft guidance provides clarification to WAC 173-27-050 by establishing thresholds linked to the Clean Water Act (CWA) §404-permit process. Based on the work of the task force, the Department of Ecology is currently in the process of revising its Shoreline
Management Act exemption guidance webpage, which will clarify that certain types of maintenance activities may not need written exemption approval from local agencies. Additionally, WSDOT will develop an internal guidance memo that will clarify this process for field staff that conduct maintenance work. The guidance memo is expected to be complete by January 2006.

Watershed-Based Mitigation Subcommittee

For additional subcommittee products, please see "Watershed-Based Mitigation" above.

May 2005 Report to the TPEAC

Transportation Permit Efficiency and Accountability Committee

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