1. We are “SLERP” State Lands & Environmental Resources
21 staff
150 person Central District
1 of 6 of regulatory districts
Part of DEP’s Division of Water Resources
1 of 3 DEP regulatory divisions
21 of us
6 managers, incl. myself
11 environmental specialists
2 engineers
2 administrative support staff
1 intern

2. Acting on behalf of… The Governor & Secretary
Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund (Governor & Cabinet)
Army Corps of Engineers
Two water management districts
Gov & Sec: Reduce regulatory burden. Translates to help our customers, less enforcement, more compliance assistance.
We are agents for the Board of Trustees on issues concerning State-owned river and lake bottom. Some of the least latitude that we have with the rules. Ask ourselves, “if we had to take it before the Board…”
Army Corps of Engineers gets a copy of all of our applications. In some simple projects, we act on their behalf with an authorization that represents both agencies
Water mgt. districts – in stormwater at least, we implement their rules under their basis of review…

3. Two sides of the house Regulatory = Environmental Wetlands
Other resources
Pollution
Proprietary = State property (sovereign submerged lands)
Clear agreements
Fair (as per rules) use of land
Revenue
Regulatory = Environmental
Wetlands
Other resources
Pollution
Proprietary = State property (sovereign submerged lands)
Clear agreements
Fair (as per rules) use of land
Revenue
July 14, 2011

4. You need an Environmental Resource Permit (ERP) for…
Most land alterations and construction in uplands, wetlands, and other surface waters
You need a permit from DEP or the WMDs
Before you build
By build, we mean construct, alter, operate, maintain, abandon, or remove
Anything that potentially influences the movement or condition of water
Or that is in, on or over wetlands or surface waters
There are exempt activities for which you don’t need a permit
But they are specifically described in Florida rule and law
We don’t have anything that I would call a variance process
We just make calls on the rules – like umpires.
More and more, like umpires who will help you be “safe.”
As per (1), F.A.C.

5. Typical projects Beltway High speed rail Landfills Power plants
Water plants
Pipelines
Electric/phone lines
Single family homes
Water Mgt. District projects
Special cases
Marinas
Docks
Seawalls
Here is an almost-comprehensive list of the types of projects we’ve worked on in Orange County.
Take a moment to read it.
Any of them you’d like to discuss?
When people build these sorts of things w/out a permit and in some cases, a lease, we shift from permitting to enforcement.

6. You need State Lands Authorization for…
In, on, over, or under state-owned submerged lands
Landlord/tenant relationship & agreements
Revenue
“Cumulative” and concurrent with ERP
July 14, 2011

7. DEP & the Water Mgt. Districts: Division of labor
WMDs
Residential & commercial development
Roads
Agriculture
Associated SSL Authorization w/ the above
DEP
Single family residences
Marinas not associated w/ other upland development
Utilities
Governmental dredging & other “in water”
Sovereign Submerged Lands Authorization tied with these projects
Governed by operating agreements as per , F.A.C.

8. Commenting agencies and branches:
Florida Fish & Wildlife
Florida Dept. of State Division of Historical Resources
DEP office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas
DEP Division of State Lands
DEP Engineering Evaluation Section
DEP Division of Rec & Parks
Florida Fish & Wildlife
Bald eagles, manatees, gopher tortoises
Florida Dept. of State Division of Historical Resources
Indian mounds
DEP office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas
Projects in the aquatic preserves
DEP Division of State Lands
State Lands title determinations
DEP Engineering Evaluation Section
Flushing studies
DEP Division of Rec & Parks
If any of these groups can legally justify that a project would be counter to their rules, we take the applicant back to the drawing board.

9. Outstanding Florida Waters & Aquatic Preserves
Butler Chain
Outstanding Florida Waters
Wekiva River
Outstanding Florida Waters & Aquatic Preserve
Econlockhatchee River
Butler Chain
Outstanding Florida Waters
Wekiva River
Outstanding Florida Waters & Aquatic Preserve
Econlockhatchee River
Like Florida, the rules are different here.
In OFW, projects must be clearly in the public interest (instead of “not contrary to”)
In aquatic preserves, projects are subject to tighter restrictions for stuff like sq. footage of docks

10. Impaired Waters Crane Strand & Long Branch
Lake Carlton, Beauclair and Apopka
Lake Jesup
Crane Strand & Long Branch
Coliform and Dissolved Oxygen
Lake Carlton, Beauclair and Apopka
Total Phosphorus
Lake Jesup
Nutrients and unionized ammonia
Important because newly installed stormwater systems in these basins will need to cause net improvement of water quality.
In South Fla Water Mgt District, every trib to Okeechobee is subject tighter restrictions must build 1.5 times the normal treatment volume for stormwater.

11. Our various branches: Delineations
Jim Lee
1/8 of an FTE
Plays by the rules
Head trainer
25 paid delineations per year
Jim Lee - our top wetlands expert
Keeps us out of fights
For Orange County: 1/8 of an FTE
Plays strictly by the rules: Delineates wetlands as per FAC as per Section FS
Trains our staff
In Orange County, does about 25 requested delineations in a year
Formerly a free service
Now $100 each (by statute)

12. Stormwater engineering
Deb and Leo
¼ of an FTE
Presumptive criteria & new rule
“make the world into a better place”
Water Mgt. Districts
Deb Laisure and Leo Anglero
Certified professional engineer and an engineer who is as good as they come
For you, ¼ of an FTE, but for us all the expertise we can get from these two people
They work from presumptive criteria - build it with this much capacity and we can certify water quality.
That presumption may be flawed. New statewide stormwater rule is in the making and on hold.
Remember that discharges to impaired waters must “make the world into a better place” – insisting on that doesn’t make us any friends.
And remember we are working on behalf of… the WMD – we use their applicant’s handbooks and their basis for review

13. SLERP permitting Lisa and Erica About ½ FTE 280 permits in four years
200 with State Lands
Lisa Prather and Erica Goshleski
Almost 20 years experience between them
About ½ FTE
Products:
Exemptions
General Permits
Individual Permits
often includes a State Lands authorization
In Orange County over the past four years, we’ve issued 280 permits of which required a State Lands authorization

14. Key factors in review of applications:
No net loss
Avoid, minimize, mitigate
Water storage
Water quality
Flushing issue
Sovereignty submerged lands
Cumulative impacts
Secondary impacts
Looking for “reasonable assurance”
No net loss - of wetland function.
First by aoidance and minimize. If you can’t avoid, then mitigate.
Mitigation must be in basin.
Water storage issues must be considered. Will the project cause offsite flooding – or drain land that should be wet. Can the property contain a 25-year 24-hour storm?
How will the project affect water quality of receiving waters? Can we certify reasonable assurance of no impacts?
Are there flushing issues
Sovereignty submerged lands issues?
What would be the cumulative impacts of the project – that is, If everybody in the basin did it, will the proposed system, considered in conjunction with past, present and future activities, be the proverbial “straw that breaks the camel’s back”? (X.2.8.1, AH or BOR)
What would be the scondary impacts:
Affect of boat wakes on wading birds
Increased hazard to manatees
Shading of submerged grassbeds
Impact associated with change in flushing
Possible fuel spill
Impacts to submerged archaeological sites
Public interest (the seven sisters)
Looking for “reasonable assurance”

15. SLERP compliance Terry, Jennifer, Leo and the interns ½+ FTE
Focused efforts:
onsite mitigation
stormwater in impaired basins
Influence the permittee
Terry Riordan, Jennifer Green, Leo Anglero, and our interns
½ FTE
Focused efforts on onsite mitigation and stormwater in impaired basins
Trying to influence our permittees to improve chances of compliance
No one demanding we do this work - but we put a lot of energy into it
How busy are they? In the past year:
8 state lands inspections in the past year
30 stormwater inspections per year
5 conservation easement inspections
40 permit compliance inspections

16. SLERP enforcement Pamela, Lauren and Sirena About ½ FTE Stay informal
About 80 complaints in Orange County per year
Divide and conquer with EPD
“reasonable” and “discretion”
Pamela, Lauren and Sirena
About ½ FTE
Where possible, we stay as informal as possible –
Non-compliance letters (“please fix it”)
Consent orders (formalized, legally binding timetable)
Notice of violation (ready to go to court)
Criminal investigation (book ‘em Danno)
About 80 complaints in Orange County per year
Divide and conquer with EPD
Seeking agreemnetns that are “reasonable” - we have considerable discretion established in case law
Penalties are established in law under ELRA, but with discretion, they are negotiable for “the greater good”
Can’t file liens or go to special magistrate
Statute of limitations - four year statutory requirement to go to court

17. Key factors in enforcement:
“allowable”?
Same factors as permitting
More grey
“Reasonable” application of the law & rules – discretion
“allowable”?
Wetlands (no net loss of wetland function)
Avoidance and minimization
Mitigation (in basin)
Water storage & potential offsite impacts from a 25-year 24-hour storm
Water treatment and water quality of receiving waters
Sovereignty submerged lands
Cumulative impacts
Secondary impacts
Public interest
“Reasonable” application of the law & rules – discretion

18. Your FTE scorecard Permitting .5 Enforcement .5 Compliance .25
BRANCH FTEs
Permitting .5
Enforcement .5
Compliance
Delineation & training
Administrative support .25
Total FTEs
The importance of experts
2ndary impacts
Affect of boat wakes on wading birds
Increased hazard to manatees
Shading of submerged grassbeds
Impact associated with change in flushing
Possible fuel spill
Impacts to submerged archaeological sites
Cumulative
If everybody in the basin did it, will the proposed system, considered in conjunction with past, present and future activities, be the proverbial “straw that breaks the camel’s back”? (X.2.8.1, AH or BOR)

19. 120 rights: Window that opens - and shuts Publish public notice
14 or 21 days to challenge DEP’s intent
Burden of proof
Go to hearing – or forever hold your peace
2ndary impacts
Affect of boat wakes on wading birds
Increased hazard to manatees
Shading of submerged grassbeds
Impact associated with change in flushing
Possible fuel spill
Impacts to submerged archaeological sites
Cumulative
If everybody in the basin did it, will the proposed system, considered in conjunction with past, present and future activities, be the proverbial “straw that breaks the camel’s back”? (X.2.8.1, AH or BOR)

20. Tales of the unusual Pilot projects General Drive Septage
Alligators in stormwater ponds
2ndary impacts
Affect of boat wakes on wading birds
Increased hazard to manatees
Shading of submerged grassbeds
Impact associated with change in flushing
Possible fuel spill
Impacts to submerged archaeological sites
Cumulative
If everybody in the basin did it, will the proposed system, considered in conjunction with past, present and future activities, be the proverbial “straw that breaks the camel’s back”? (X.2.8.1, AH or BOR)

21. Streamlining SLERP Ongoing: More exemptions, NGPs, self-certs
“LEAN” at direction of Secretary Vinyard
Emphasis on:
Pre-application meetings and “completeness assistance”
Goal:
Issue 90% of permits within 180 days
Keeping score as of July 1
Since 2005: “Wildly Important Goals”
Dry transmission lines
Little docks
Little boat ramps
Dock repair or replace
Seawall restore or replace
Maintenance dredging of channels
Pipe or culvert repair
Aid to navigation installation
Transmission line placement on or in river bottom
Limited plant removal from shorelines

22. Noticed General Permits
“Already issued” in F.A.C.
$100 fee
No more than one RAI
Artificial reefs
Certain boat ramps
Private docks up to 2,000 sq. ft.
Rip rap in front of seawalls
Culverted roadway crossings & bridges over artificial waters
Some FDOT, county & city road & bridge activities within ROW
Relocation of aerial power & phone lines for road improvements
Certain utility cable, conduit & pipeline installations & crossings
Environmental restoration & enhancement by DEP & WMDs
Somewhere in between an exemption and a permit is the “notice general permit.”
These are permits that DEP has already issued, that the applicant can claim.
And an almost-comprehensive list of the types of NGPs
Note that we now have a self-certified NGP for rip rap placement.
As a streamlining measure, DEP is trying to enable as many different kinds of self-certifications as possible

23. Self-certifications Single family docks
Single family dock with a boat lift
Repair or replace of a single family dock
Addition of a boat lift
Notice General Permit riprap at the toe of an existing seawall
To date, rarely used in Orange County – did two compliance followups on Tuesday – the first in about three years.
May do more now that we are doing more NGPs via self-cert.
In 2010, 77% were built in compliance

24. Exemptions:
“Dry” transmission lines
Little docks
Little boat ramps
Dock repair or replace
Seawall restore or replace
Maintenance dredging of channels
Pipe or culvert repair
Aid to navigation installation
Transmission line placement on or in river/lake
Single family stormwater facilities
Limited plant removal from shorelines
Floating vessel platforms
, FS
De minimis
(6), FS
Grandfathered
(11)-(16), FS
And here is another almost-comprehensive list of the sorts of projects that might be exempt in Orange County

25. One of the 23% out of compliance