Permitting Process
How do you obtain a permit?
In northwest Florida, depending on the type of activity, your ERP permit may be issued by either the District or the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Generally, the District handles permitting for most residential, commercial, and industrial developments, while the DEP handles single-family projects, marinas and docks, landfills, and water treatment facilities.
The Operation Agreement can help determine which agency will issue your permit.
Types of Permits
The District issues three types of ERP permits:
- Exemption Verifications
- General Permits
- Individual Permits
Exemptions and General Permits
Exemptions are already authorized by rule or statute, but the District recommends applicants double-check they qualify for the exemption by contacting the District or DEP.
General permits are permits that are already issued by rule. Applicants are required to submit a notice to the agency with the details of the project.
With both exemptions and general permits, the District will review the project to determine that it qualifies for the exemption or general permit. The District has 30 days to complete this review and will provide permittees with a notice of determination if they qualify.
Individual Permits
If a project does not qualify for either an exemption or a general permit, then the applicant should submit an application to the District for an individual permit.
Once it receives an individual permit application, the District has 30 days to check for errors or omissions. If information is missing or incorrect, the District will send a Request for Additional Information (RAI) to the applicant and/or agent.
Once the District receives all the information it needs and determines that an application is complete, the agency has 60 days to review the application and approve or deny requests for permits.
What happens after a permit is issued?
Pre-Construction
After receiving an individual ERP, the permittee will typically have five years from the date of issuance to construct the permitted facility. The permittee is required to submit a Construction Commencement Notice to the District at least 48 hours before beginning construction.
Post-Construction
Within 30 days of the completion of the project, or any independent portions of the project, the permittee must submit an As-Built Certification and Request for Conversion to Operational Phase form to the District.
District staff will review the request within 60 days, and either approve the request or notify the permittee of any deficiencies that must be corrected prior to conversion to the operation and maintenance phase. If there are deviations from the permitted plans, the permittee may need to submit a permit modification.