comment role the Service plays in Federal permit review [106]. A State 

 Coastal Zone Management Program may also add significant controls on 

 coastal development [107]. 



Appendix B provides an overview of land use management programs 

 typically provided by state and local government. 



3.2 ACCESS TO DECISIONS THROUGH FWCA-NEPA COMMENT: PERMITTING AND 



LICENSING PROGRAMS FOR OCS-RELATED ONSHORE AND NEARSHORE DEVELOPMENT 



Federal regulatory programs affect both places and activities 

 involved in siting OCS-related onshore and nearshore development. The 

 most pervasive place-related program is the permit program for the discharg 

 of dredged or fill material in the waters of the United States. Other 

 place-related programs, important in some geographic areas, include those 

 responsible for protecting endangered species habitats, marine and estuarir 

 sanctuaries and certain watersheds. 



In some cases, the place-related regulations only reach certain 

 categories of activities. For example, the FWS has a responsibility to 

 protect endangered species habitats, but in practice, this responsibility 

 primarily affects activities by Federal agencies or under Federal permit 

 or license because NEPA and the Coordination Act provide a link between the 

 place related interest and these types of activities. 



Activities of the oil and gas industry are also regulated by the 

 Federal Government. Pipelines must meet federal safety standards 

 (interstate gas pipelines must also comply with other regulations relating 

 to gas prices and operations). Special Federal legislation addresses 

 deepwater port development. Activities that generate new sources of 

 water and air pollution are subject to federally supervised regulatory 

 programs. Tanker operations are increasingly subject to Federal standards 

 and surveillance. 



Short summaries of the principal programs that affect OCS-related 

 nearshore and onshore development follow. These requirements generally 

 are cumulative. Table 7 relates these program descriptions to the fourteen 

 development types described in detail in other reports in this series. 



The NEPA and/or the Coordination Act review process gives the FWS 

 access to these programs in an advisory role to express fish and wildlife 

 and habitat issues whenever an environmental impact statement is required, 

 or when the activity takes place in the navigable waters of the United 

 States. The Coastal Zone Management Program, guided by the Office of 

 Coastal Zone Management in the Department of Commerce, also provides 

 extensive opportunities for advice and comment relating to state-federal 

 interests in the coastal zone. 



35 



