APPENDIX B 



State and Local Roles in Nearshore/Onshore 

 OCS Development Permitting' 



Site locations in nearshore and onshore areas are significantly 

 affected by state and local laws and regulations. The interaction of land 

 and water requirements for a site, and the number of acres used for 

 storage and industrial activity govern the extent of applications to 

 state and local governments for zoning and related permits. Permits or 

 approvals required before construction may begin typically include one 

 or more of the following: 



zoning use designation 



permission to subdivide land ownership 



certification of flood proofing and location outside highest 

 flood hazard areas 



wetlands conservation or impact mitigation 



site alteration assurance to guard against erosion or drainage 

 alteration 



dredge and fill permit (state) 



Permission under many of these types of regulations may usually be denied 

 as a matter of state (or local) policy at any point in a sponsor's 

 planning process before construction begins. Because of this, local 

 assurance such as zoning approval are often sought well before applica- 

 tions for Federal permits are submitted. 



The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution reserves this "public power" 

 authority to the States. They in turn have assigned land use regulation 

 primarily to local governments for the last 50 years. 



Recent dramatic changes in approach are now being considered and 

 implemented: 



^See John Clark, Coastal Ecosystems Management (John Wiley & Sons (1977), 

 Chapter 5. 



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