Agency or authority

About the Permit Coordination Program

The Marin Resource Conservation District (Marin RCD) created an easier and faster way for landowners and ranchers to apply for permits for restoration projects by facilitating the CEQA process for their projects as a Lead Agency. The Marin Permit Coordination Program (PCP) was designed to help landowners and ranchers plan, permit, fund, and implement practices that will minimize impacts to wildlife and water quality.

The PCP provides CEQA coverage for specific conservation practices under a certain size and within a specific area of Marin County.  The PCP consists of an Initial Study, Mitigated Negative Declaration and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program.  Other counties within California have used the PCP has a model to create their own programmatic CEQA process. The PCP also helps Marin RCD in the grant application process when CEQA coverage is required to be complete prior to submittal.  The Marin RCD has renewed the program three times because of its success in incentivizing restoration work.

The latest version of the PCP increased the life span from 5 to 10 years and increased the physical boundaries of the program.  The updated program provides streamlined environmental review for 44 conservation practices that meet certain criteria.  On annual basis, the RCD adopts projects into the program, and then applies and pays for additional permits to assist landowners wanting to construct conservation projects.  The projects range from stabilizing streambanks, installing large wood for fisheries projects, to installing livestock crossings and grade stabilization work.

Applicable locations

Rural and riparian areas within the following watersheds: greater Tomales Bay watershed, which includes Lagunitas Creek, San Geronimo Valley, Marin County portions of Walker Creek, Inverness, and the direct eastern and western drainages into Tomales Bay; Stemple Creek-Estero de San Antonio; Marin County portions of the Estero Americano watershed; Novato, Miller, and San Antonio Creek watersheds in north and/or east Marin; and the creeks in the northern portion of western Point Reyes National Seashore that flow directly into the ocean.

Permit documents

Expires on

June 13, 2028

How to apply

Contact Marin RCD at marinrcd@marinrcd.org.

Projects proposed for inclusion in the PCP were initially vetted by a Technical Advisory Committee and ultimately selected by the Marin RCD Board of Directors.

May be used with:

Example projects

Activities covered

Marin RCD has identified 44 NRCS Conservation Practice Standards that provide technical guidelines for the conservation of soil, water, air, and related plant and animal resources, for the PCP. In addition, other standards, such as the California Salmonid Stream Habitat Restoration Manual (CDFW 2010) and the Handbook for Forest, Ranch, and Rural Roads (PWA 2015), may guide project planning. The 44 conservation practices are grouped into ten activity categories.

They include land management actions to address water quality, sedimentation, and erosion from rural roads, stream crossings, vegetation, and facility operations, as well as resource management activities for waterways, alternative water sources for livestock, erosion and sediment control, and aquatic habitat restoration.

  1. Road Upgrade and Decommissioning
  2. Stream Crossing
  3. Operations Management
  4. Manure Management
  5. Upland and Riparian Vegetation Management and Planting
  6. Waterway Vegetation and Planting
  7. Waterway Stabilization
  8. Alternative Livestock Water Supply
  9. Sediment Basin
  10. Aquatic Habitat Improvement

Exclusions

Though they may be present in the applicable location, several natural communities and special-status species are excluded from the PCP because they have been determined to be particularly sensitive and inappropriate for programmatic environmental review. Work that occurs within or affects the natural communities and species listed below would require traditional, project-specific environmental review.

Excluded Natural Communities

  • Coastal estuaries
  • Salt marshes and mudflats
  • Tidally influenced wetlands and waters
  • Vernal pools
  • Dune or beach habitat
  • Serpentine grasslands

Excluded Species and Habitats

  • Tidewater goby
  • Salt marsh harvest mouse
  • Clapper rail (aka Ridgway’s rail), California black rail
  • Point Reyes mountain beaver
  • Bakers’s and yellow larkspur critical habitat

Application Tips and Resources